CRM for Accounting Firms in Israel: What to Track per Client

A CRM for an accounting or bookkeeping firm runs the office, not the books: for each client a file type, reporting period, deadlines, powers of attorney, missing documents and hours worked. The bookkeeping software records transactions. The CRM answers "what is open for which client this week".

This article describes systems and official deadlines at a technical level. It is not tax advice.

What does an accounting firm's CRM need to manage?

Bookkeeping software knows what was recorded. It does not know that the client has not sent September's invoices, that their power of attorney lapsed, or that someone promised them an answer by Thursday. That is what the CRM manages:

• Client card - name, company or ID number, dealer type, file type and main contact.
• Reporting periods - monthly or bi-monthly VAT, advances, withholding and the annual return.
• Powers of attorney - per tax type, with date and validity.
• Expected versus received documents - per client and per period.
• Tasks and deadlines - what has to be filed, by when, and who in the firm owns it.
• Hours and fees - to see which clients are profitable and which take more time than they pay for.

The documents a client has to hand over each month are listed in what your accountant needs every month.

Which reporting deadlines does the system have to track?

Per the Tax Authority's notice setting reporting and payment dates:

The actual dates for each month are set every year in a Tax Authority notice, so the system must let you update them rather than hard-code them. For tax year 2025 the 126/856 deadline was extended to 31 May 2026, and that extension applies to that year only.

What should you store about a representative's power of attorney?

Certified accountants, licensed tax advisers and lawyers can register in the Tax Authority's representatives registry. After registering, a representative sends signed powers of attorney from clients through the system and acts on their behalf.

A main representative's power of attorney is registered on form 2279/A5, which covers income tax, withholding, VAT and property tax. Per the form, a power of attorney for a tax refund for an individual not required to file (file type 9.1) is valid for up to 24 months, and all others are valid until cancelled. It lapses if the file type changes.

So the CRM should store for each client: which tax types are covered, when the power of attorney was registered, the file type, and any expected expiry. A change of file type should trigger a reminder.

What can and cannot be connected to the Tax Authority?

The Tax Authority offers APIs to software houses through a developer portal and a signed undertaking. Among other things, that is how invoicing software requests an allocation number for Israel invoices. Representatives themselves connect to the SHAAM computer over a dedicated network, and I found no documented public API for them.

In practice: a custom CRM for a firm does not file reports for you. It tracks status, deadlines and documents, and filing itself stays in the systems already connected to SHAAM.

Israel invoices. A tax invoice to a licensed dealer above the threshold needs an allocation number, and without it the customer cannot deduct input VAT. The threshold was ILS 20,000 in 2025, dropped to ILS 10,000 on 1 January 2026 and to ILS 5,000 on 1 June 2026, all before VAT. A firm that handles invoicing for clients needs to know which clients get allocation numbers automatically and which still request them by hand.

Which accounting-practice management systems exist in Israel?

Each description is what the vendor states on its own site (checked October 2026). None publishes a price.

The practical difference is between a system that is mainly bookkeeping with extras and one built around running the office. One question is worth testing in a demo: can you see, on a single screen, every client missing something for the current period?

When is a dedicated system enough, and when do you need a custom CRM?

A dedicated system is enough for most firms, because it already knows file types, reports and SHAAM. A custom CRM, or an extension around one, pays off when one of these holds:

1. The firm works with several bookkeeping programs (whatever clients bring), and no single place shows every client.
2. Collecting documents from clients runs over WhatsApp and email, and someone in the office manages it by hand.
3. You need a profitability report per client, against fees and actual hours.
4. The firm wants its own client portal instead of clients working in several systems.

The difference between a firm's portal and a system the client owns is covered in accountant portal vs your own software.

How much does a custom CRM for an accounting firm cost?

A custom CRM or internal management system costs $5,000 - $28,000 and takes 3 - 8 weeks, per my pricing page. The low end fits deadline and document tracking around existing systems. The high end fits a system with a client portal, per-employee permissions and profitability reports. The CRM selection checklist for Israel has the questions worth asking every vendor before comparing prices.

What to have ready before you choose or build

• A client list with file type and reporting period for each.
• The status of existing powers of attorney, per tax type.
• The bookkeeping programs your clients use.
• How documents reach you from clients today, and through which channels.
• Who in the firm is responsible for which clients.

Sources

• Israel Tax Authority - reporting and payment dates (Hebrew)
• Israel Tax Authority - form 2279/A5, main representation (Hebrew)
• Israel Tax Authority - allocation number for a tax invoice (Hebrew)