Consulting & business services
Books and taxes for apostille services.
A Secretary of State filing fee you pay on a client's behalf, a rush order for someone leaving the country in three days, a notarization step before the apostille goes out, and the courier run to the state office. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
February came in at $4,400. The Secretary of State fees you covered for six clients this month never touched your income or expenses, since that money was never really yours to begin with.
- Meridian Corp, bulk orderApostille service fees
- Individual client, rush orderRush and expedited fees
- FedEx to Secretary of StateCourier and delivery
- Notary stamp renewalNotary supplies
- E&O insurance renewalProfessional liability insurance
Why your books are different
An apostille service's books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees deposits and fees paid out. Your business is a state filing fee collected from a client and paid straight through, a rush order that costs more to turn around fast, and a notarization step some orders need before the apostille itself. When the books do not know the difference, your real earnings get lost inside money that was never yours.
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1
A government filing fee looks like your income and your expense
A client pays you $145 to cover a Secretary of State fee, and you pay that $145 straight to the state. Booked as both income and an expense, it inflates your numbers without changing what you actually earned.
What we doKeeps government filing fees collected and paid on a client's behalf out of your income and expenses entirely, since that money was only ever passing through. -
2
Rush fees blend into the standard service fee
A same-week rush order charged at a premium over your normal turnaround is easy to lose track of if it is not tagged separately, so you cannot tell if rush work actually pays for the scramble it takes.
What we doKeeps rush and expedited fees in their own line, so you can see whether the premium covers what a fast turnaround costs you. -
3
Different states, different fees, one bank account
Filing fees vary by state and by document type, and without tracking which state a fee actually went to, it is hard to reconcile what you collected against what you paid out.
What we doTracks pass-through fees by state and client, so every dollar collected for a filing fee matches what actually got paid out. -
4
A notarization step gets buried inside the apostille fee
Some documents need to be notarized before they can be apostilled, and folding that fee into your standard service charge hides how much of your income actually comes from the notarization work itself.
What we doKeeps notarization fees separate from apostille service fees, so you can see both parts of the work clearly.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for an apostille service.
Set up once for how you bill and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Apostille service feesYour fee for processing and handling the request, apart from government charges.
- Rush and expedited feesPremiums for same-day or same-week turnaround.
- Notarization feesFees for notarizing documents that need it before the apostille is issued.
- Bulk corporate order feesMulti-document orders for businesses filing overseas.
Money out
- Courier and deliveryOvernight shipping to and from Secretary of State offices.
- Notary suppliesStamps, seals, and journals for in-house notarization.
- Professional liability insuranceCoverage for the document handling you do for clients.
- Office and filing suppliesFolders, tracking systems, and mailing materials.
- Marketing and referral feesDirectory listings and referral payments from immigration attorneys or relocation firms.
What we watch for you
- Pass-through reconciliation
Whether government fees collected from clients match what actually got paid out to the state.
- Rush fee value
Whether the premium you charge for fast turnaround actually covers what it costs you to deliver.
- Service fee versus government fee mix
How much of what clients pay is your fee versus a government charge passing through.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so tax season is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things apostille service owners ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
No, and I keep it that way. That money passes straight through, so it never touches your income or your expenses.
Yes. Rush fees are kept in their own category, so you can see whether the premium you charged actually covers the scramble it took.
Yes. Pass-through fees are tracked by state and client, so what you collected always matches what actually got paid out.
The tax side
The tax side of an apostille service.
Most of what goes wrong here is keeping pass-through government fees separate from your real income. Handled right, the year does not surprise you.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Pass-through fees are not your incomeA government filing fee collected from a client and paid straight to the state is not revenue, and it should never be reported as such. Gus keeps it out of your books entirely.
- Self-employment taxMoney you take home as the owner, rather than a paycheck, owes a 15.3 percent self-employment tax up to the $184,500 Social Security wage base.
- Quarterly estimated paymentsOwners who don't have tax withheld from a paycheck usually pay estimated tax four times a year: April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15.
- The pass-through deductionYour real service income, apart from government fees, can often qualify for up to a 20 percent deduction off taxable profit. The accountant confirms the actual number at filing time.
Deductions apostille services miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Courier and overnight shipping
- Notary stamps and journals
- Professional liability insurance
- Office and filing supplies
- Business licensing fees
- Website and marketing costs
- Laptop and scanner equipment
- Home office space
- Continuing education courses
- Vehicle mileage for deliveries
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
An apostille service's year, sorted every quarter.
International adoptions, overseas job placements, and corporate filings each carry their own timing all year. Gus keeps your taxes on schedule alongside it. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled, with pass-through filing fees already kept out of the picture.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed, and the amount due is already covered by the set-aside that's been running since January.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether your service fees are keeping pace with rush and bulk order volume.
- October
Before year end
A look at insurance renewals and equipment worth buying before December closes out the year.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for apostille services. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions apostille service owners ask first.
I collect a state filing fee from clients and pay it to the Secretary of State myself. Does that count as my income?
No. Gus keeps that money out of your income and expenses entirely, since it was only ever passing through your hands on the way to the state.
Do rush orders get billed and tracked differently than standard turnaround?
Yes. Rush and expedited fees are kept in their own category, so you can see whether the premium you charge actually covers a fast turnaround.
I handle filings in several different states with different fees. Can Gus keep that straight?
Yes. Pass-through fees are tracked by state and client, so what you collected always reconciles against what actually got paid out.
Some orders need notarization before the apostille goes out. Is that a separate fee in the books?
Yes. Notarization fees are kept apart from your apostille service fee, so you can see both parts of the work clearly.
My books mix up government fees and my own service charges. Can that get untangled?
Yes. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts pass-through fees from your real income, and most people know where they stand inside a week.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever