How to Choose a Bookkeeper in Hawaii (2026)

To choose a bookkeeper in Hawaii, check the firm on the state's own records, confirm any CPA claim on the Hawaii Board of Public Accountancy lookup, and get the fee and the monthly close date in writing. Plan to ask about price: only 1 of the 11 Hawaii firms we list publish one.

What a Hawaii bookkeeper keeps track of

A Hawaii bookkeeper keeps the records behind the filings below. Which of them reach your business turns on your entity, your sales, your payroll and the schedule each agency sets, so read this as general information rather than tax advice.

• General excise tax. Hawaii's general excise tax falls on the business rather than the customer, and the state says it isn't a sales tax. Form G-45 is filed monthly if expected annual GET liability tops $4,000, quarterly at $4,000 or less, or semiannually at $2,000 or less, due 20 days after each period. Everyone also files the annual G-49. Source: Hawaii Department of Taxation, checked September 26, 2026.
• Withholding returns. Hawaii employers file Form HW-14 every quarter, due April 15, July 15, October 15 and January 15. Payment timing follows your withholding tax liability: quarterly under $5,000, monthly from $5,000 to $40,000 by the 15th of the next month, and semi-weekly above $40,000. Source: Hawaii Department of Taxation, checked September 26, 2026.
• Unemployment wage reports. Liable employers file Form UC-B6 with the Unemployment Insurance Division and pay contributions by the end of the month after each calendar quarter. A report is required every quarter, even one with no paid employees. Source: Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, checked September 26, 2026.
• Annual business report. Hawaii entities file an annual business report with the Business Registration Division. Your filing quarter is tied to the entity's registration date, and you can file any time during the quarter the report is due. Source: Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Business Registration Division, checked September 26, 2026.

How to check a Hawaii firm yourself

The Hawaii Board of Public Accountancy lookup settles any CPA claim in a minute. For the business itself, search its legal name on the Hawaii entity search. Someone trading under their own name may not be there at all, and that's normal. Hawaii doesn't publish these records in a form we can match, so on our Hawaii pages a license or registration reads Not verified until someone looks it up by hand. Do that lookup yourself for the two or three firms you shortlist.

What Hawaii firms put in writing

9 of the 11 firms we list in Hawaii say nothing about fees on their websites, and 1 publish a price or a starting price, 9% against 10% nationally. 3 of 11 say how often reports arrive (27%, against 21% nationally), none describe onboarding and none offer catch-up or cleanup work. The software Hawaii firms name most is QuickBooks Online (27%).

Where to start in Hawaii

• Firms that publish a price or a starting price: Wicklund CPA.

Questions for the first call

• What does the fee cover, and at what volume does it go up?
• When do I get last month's numbers, and in what form?
• Does the fee include preparing the general excise tax filing, or only the records behind it?
• How do you keep the records for withholding returns ready before each due date?
• Can you clean up past months first, and what does that cost?
• If we stop working together, do I keep the accounting file and its history?