Security & life safety
Books and taxes for security training academies.
State-mandated certification classes, a firearms range day, instructor pay that varies by course, and the ammunition bill that comes with every armed cohort. 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
June came in at $9,300. Two armed cohorts ran range days this month, so I kept the ammunition and range fees apart from your unarmed course costs.
- Unarmed guard course, cohort 14Unarmed course tuition
- Armed guard course, cohort 6Armed course tuition
- Range facility rentalRange and ammunition costs
- Ammunition orderRange and ammunition costs
- Instructor pay, per-courseInstructor wages
Why your books are different
Security training academy books go wrong in the same four places.
A generalist sees tuition deposits and a range bill. Your business is unarmed and armed cohorts with very different costs, instructors paid per course rather than a salary, and state-mandated hours that have to line up with what a student was actually charged. When the books do not separate armed from unarmed, you cannot tell which course actually pays for itself.
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1
Armed and unarmed course costs get blended
An armed cohort needs range time, ammunition, and a firearms instructor, while an unarmed course needs none of that, and mixed into one tuition and cost number, you cannot see whether the armed course's higher tuition actually covers its higher cost.
What we doKeeps armed and unarmed course tuition and costs on separate lines, so each course's real margin is visible. -
2
Per-course instructor pay looks like irregular payroll
Instructors paid a flat fee per course they teach, rather than a salary, create payroll that swings with the class schedule, and without tying pay to the course, it is hard to see if a course's tuition covers its instructor cost.
What we doTies instructor pay to the specific course taught, so tuition and instructor cost line up course by course. -
3
State-mandated hours and what a student pays get disconnected
A course built around a state's required certification hours has a real cost per hour of instruction, and if tuition is not checked against those hours, a course can quietly stop covering its own cost as requirements change.
What we doTracks tuition against the hours a course actually runs, so a state requirement change shows up in the numbers, not just on a syllabus. -
4
Range and ammunition costs swing month to month
A month with two armed cohorts running range days costs far more in ammunition and range rental than a month with none, and without separating that, the swing looks like a budgeting problem instead of a normal scheduling pattern.
What we doKeeps range and ammunition costs in their own line and ties them to the cohorts that used them, so the swings make sense.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a security training academy.
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
- Unarmed course tuitionState-mandated unarmed guard certification classes.
- Armed course tuitionState-mandated armed guard certification classes, including range time.
- Continuing education feesRenewal and refresher courses for licensed guards.
- Corporate group training feesCustom sessions booked by a company for its own security staff.
Money out
- Instructor wagesPay tied to the specific course an instructor teaches.
- Range and ammunition costsRange facility rental and ammunition for armed cohorts.
- Classroom and facility rentSpace rented for classroom instruction.
- Training materials and manualsCourse books, handouts, and testing materials.
- State certification and accreditation feesFees to keep the academy's own state certification current.
- Liability insuranceCoverage for firearms training and physical drills.
What we watch for you
- Armed course margin
Armed course tuition against range, ammunition, and instructor cost. Shows if the higher tuition covers the higher cost.
- Tuition per instruction hour
Course tuition against state-mandated hours taught. A shrinking number means a course needs a price look.
- Instructor cost per course
Per-course instructor pay against that course's tuition. Shows which courses are worth running.
- The set-aside
What you will owe on tuition income, tracked monthly across armed and unarmed cohorts alike.
Ask Gus
Things security training academy 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.
Once ammunition and range rental are subtracted, the armed course still comes out ahead, but by less than the tuition difference alone suggests.
Yes, I tied the ammunition and range rental to those two cohorts, so the spike reads as a normal scheduling pattern, not a budget problem.
Worth a look. I track tuition against instruction hours, and that course's margin per hour has already started to thin.
The tax side
The tax side of a security training academy.
Most of what goes wrong here is instructor classification and separating armed from unarmed course costs. Get those right and the rest is timing.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Worker classification for instructorsAn instructor who teaches your curriculum on your schedule at your facility is usually an employee, even if paid per course. One who brings their own curriculum and sets their own schedule may be a legitimate contractor.
- Contractor 1099sAnyone not on payroll who you paid $2,000 or more in 2026, such as a guest firearms instructor, gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps the list all year.
- Equipment write-offs for training gearRange equipment and classroom technology can often be written off in the year you buy them. Bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when armed and unarmed course costs are tracked apart all year.
Deductions armed and unarmed security training academies miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Range facility rental
- Ammunition and targets
- Training manuals and materials
- Classroom rent
- State certification and accreditation fees
- Liability insurance
- Classroom audio-visual equipment
- Firearms and dummy weapons for training
- Continuing education for instructors
- Marketing to prospective students
- Phone and scheduling software
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
A security training academy's year, kept every month.
Cohorts start and finish on their own schedule all year long. Your taxes come on a schedule too. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Cohorts planned for the year
Last year's return gets started, the 1099 list for guest firearms instructors is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.
- April
Filed between cohorts
Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, since the set-aside kept up with tuition all year.
- July
A midyear cohort check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether this year's cohort schedule is on pace with last year.
- October
Before certification season
Guard certification renewal season often picks up before year-end. Gus looks at equipment worth buying and moves worth making before December.
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 armed and unarmed security training academies. 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 security training academy owners ask first.
Can Gus separate armed course costs from unarmed course costs?
Yes. Tuition, range fees, ammunition, and instructor pay are kept on separate lines for each, so you can see whether the armed course's higher tuition actually covers its higher cost.
How does Gus handle instructors paid per course instead of a salary?
He ties each instructor's pay to the specific course they taught, so tuition and instructor cost line up course by course instead of looking like irregular payroll.
Our state changed the required hours for a course. Will Gus catch that in the numbers?
He tracks tuition against the hours a course runs, so a change in required hours shows up as a shift in margin per hour, which is worth a pricing look.
Do range and ammunition costs count as a deduction?
Yes, they are an ordinary cost of running an armed cohort. Gus keeps them in their own line tied to the cohorts that used them.
My books are behind after a busy training season. Is that a problem?
No. Send whatever statements you have. Gus works through armed and unarmed course tuition and costs, usually within 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