Tutoring, test prep & alternative schools
Books and taxes for educational therapists.
A full diagnostic assessment billed as its own project, ongoing intervention sessions billed by the hour, a written report families use for school accommodations, and a caseload that runs deep rather than wide. Gus sorts it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
May made $8,600. Two full diagnostic assessments landed this month, so I kept that income apart from the regular weekly intervention sessions.
- Diagnostic assessment feesAssessment fees
- Weekly intervention sessionsIntervention sessions
- AET certification renewalCertification and training
- Testing and assessment materialsAssessment materials
- Practice liability insuranceLiability insurance
Why your books are different
Educational therapist books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees invoices and a home office. Your practice bills a full diagnostic assessment as its own project, ongoing intervention very differently, and writes reports families use with schools, none of which look like a typical small business's income. When the books do not know that, deductions and revenue both get muddled.
-
1
Diagnostic assessment fees get lumped into ongoing session income
A full educational evaluation, often billed as a flat project fee covering testing, scoring, and a written report, takes far more hours than a single intervention session, and if it is booked the same way, you cannot see what assessment work actually earns.
What we doKeeps assessment fees in their own category, separate from ongoing intervention session revenue. -
2
Report writing time disappears into the assessment fee
Writing the report a family uses for school accommodations or an IEP meeting takes real hours after the testing itself is done, and if that time is not accounted for anywhere, the true cost of an assessment project is understated.
What we doTracks assessment project revenue as a whole so the full scope of the work, including report writing, is reflected honestly. -
3
Certification renewal costs look like a routine expense
An educational therapy certification renewal through a professional association can be a real cost every couple of years, and filing it the same as an ordinary subscription understates what it is.
What we doTags each renewal as a certification cost the day it is paid, so it lands on the right year's return instead of blending into routine bills. -
4
A caseload that runs deep rather than wide looks inconsistent month to month
A therapist working intensively with a smaller number of long-term clients can see revenue swing more than a business with many short-term customers, and without context that swing can look like instability rather than the normal shape of deep, ongoing work.
What we doTracks revenue against your actual caseload pattern, so normal swings in a small, deep practice do not get mistaken for a problem.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for an educational therapy practice.
Set up once for how assessments and ongoing sessions get billed. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Assessment feesFull diagnostic evaluations billed as a project, including testing and the written report.
- Intervention sessionsOngoing therapy sessions billed by the hour.
- Consultation feesSchool meetings and parent consultations billed apart from direct sessions.
- Package prepaymentsA block of sessions purchased ahead of an intervention plan, drawn down week by week.
Money out
- Certification and trainingEducational therapy certification and continuing education costs.
- Assessment materialsStandardized testing kits and scoring materials.
- Liability insuranceCoverage for one-on-one work with children and their families.
- Practice space rentAn office rented by the hour, day, or month for sessions.
- Professional association duesMembership in educational therapy and learning disability organizations.
- Marketing and referralsA practice website and the referral network built with tutors, pediatricians, and schools.
What we watch for you
- Active caseload
The base your intervention session income rests on, tracked against how deep each case runs.
- Assessment revenue
What diagnostic evaluation projects bring in against ongoing intervention sessions.
- Certification cost timing
When renewal costs land, so a certification year does not look like an ordinary one.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things educational therapists 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.
Yes. Assessment projects are tracked in their own category from the start, so the fee reflects the whole scope of testing and the report, not just one session's worth of time.
Usually, yes. I logged it as a certification cost and flagged it so the accountant places it right, since the timing and amount can matter.
Once you've paid her $2,000 or more for the year, yes, a 1099-NEC goes out by January 31. I track the running total all year so that threshold never sneaks up on you.
The tax side
The tax side of an educational therapy practice.
Most of what goes wrong here is assessment work blending with ongoing sessions and certification costs filed without a second thought. Fix the labels and the rest follows.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Certification and training costsEducational therapy certification and continuing education are generally deductible business costs, tracked as they happen so the accountant can place them on the right year's return.
- Self-employment taxA solo therapist taking profit directly, without running payroll, owes self-employment tax of 15.3 percent on top of regular income tax, up to the Social Security wage base of $184,500.
- Assessment materials as recurring costStandardized testing kits and scoring materials are ordinary deductible business costs, tracked separately from ongoing session supplies so assessment work's real cost is visible.
- The pass-through deductionMost solo practitioners can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when assessment and session income are tracked cleanly all year.
Deductions educational therapists miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Certification renewal fees
- Standardized testing materials
- Continuing education courses
- Liability insurance
- Practice space rent
- Professional association dues
- Marketing and referral gifts
- Home office for report writing
- Business phone plan
- Card processing fees
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 educational therapy practice year, kept every month.
Assessments often cluster around report card season while ongoing sessions run all year. Gus keeps the swings organized alongside the tax calendar. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
New term, active caseload
Winter report cards bring a wave of new assessment requests. Last year's return gets started and the monthly set-aside gets planned.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.
- July
Summer check-in
Where you stand while summer sessions run lighter, and whether the year's assessments changed what you will owe.
- October
Before the fall wave
Fall report cards bring the year's next wave of assessment requests. Gus looks at any certification renewals or materials worth doing 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 educational therapists. 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 educational therapists ask first.
My full evaluations take way more time than a regular session. Does Gus account for that?
Yes. Assessment projects are billed and tracked as their own category, so the fee reflects the true scope of testing, scoring, and the written report.
Can Gus tell me whether assessments or ongoing sessions are actually more profitable for me?
Yes. Since the two are tracked separately from the start, you can see exactly how each part of the practice contributes to your income.
My caseload is small but each case runs for a long time. Will that look strange in the books?
No. Gus tracks revenue against your actual caseload pattern, so the normal swings of deep, long-term work do not get mistaken for instability.
Do standardized testing kits count as a real deduction?
Yes. Testing and scoring materials are ordinary deductible costs, tracked in their own category so the real cost of assessment work is visible.
My invoicing has been scattered across email and a spreadsheet for two years. Can Gus untangle that?
Yes. Send what you have and he sorts it into one clean set of books. Most therapists know exactly where they stand 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