Firm News Update COVID 19

Commitment To Service During COVID-19

Our COVID-19 operating procedures will stay in place for the foreseeable future and we continue to enhance them in order to keep everyone safe and to support our employees in this new reality.  In fact, maintaining robust health and safety measures is now more crucial than ever as restrictions are eased and as Canadians venture outside of their homes with greater frequency.  For the restart of our economy to be successful, we must each play a role and maintain the discipline we have shown over the last two months.

While this is by no means a return to business as usual, and circumstances remain extremely challenging for so many, we believe this is a step in the right direction.

That is why we are practicing and enforcing best practices for physical distancing, personal hygiene and self-isolation in the midst of COVID-19.  Rest assured that we are doing our best to keep you informed and taking every precaution to ensure Avisar’s office continues to be a safe environment.

This means we are asking you to work with us through digital channels as much as possible and encouraging remote meetings with virtual tools instead of in-person visits to Avisar’s office, limiting invitations and face-to-face in-office appointments.

We are encouraging all of our clients to continue to interact with our team of professionals via email, telephone, and even video chat if that is your preference.  It is our hope that you are continuing to follow physical distancing rules and that you will refrain from coming to Avisar’s office unless you absolutely have to.  We also encourage that you:

  • Scan your information, or use Office Lens to take pictures with your phone or tablet and convert them to a readable PDF;
  • Submit your information using our secure client portal;
  • Receive your accounting and tax packages via RightSignature, our secure electronic signature service, as much as possible this year.  We appreciate your understanding and receptiveness to this option if it is not something that you would normally consider. Signing a document through RightSignature is a simple process that any of our administrators can assist you with if required.  We are confident that our secure electronic tools will make submitting and receiving your tax and accounting information easier than you thought and look forward to working together to meet your goals and deadlines. 

Avisar’s office is open to the public and the following guidelines are in place to maintain a safe environment for you and our employees:

  • Appointments will be managed to allow for physical distancing between appointments and to reduce the number of people in common areas at any one time (occupancy limits have been posted);
  • Your movement will be restricted within Avisar’s office to the reception and boardroom areas;
  • We have introduced a new seating plan in our reception and boardroom areas that will provide sufficient distance between each client and our employees;
  • Social distancing signage and floor decals clearly identify 2-metre physical distancing within the office;
  • We ask that you arrive no more than 10 minutes prior to your scheduled appointment and that you wash/sanitize your hands before and after your visit;
  • Face masks may be worn if you feel more comfortable but are not required;
  • You will be asked some screening questions and to provide contact information prior to your scheduled appointment;
  • Contact-less payment transactions are accepted with a limit of up to $250.

In addition to our normal rigorous cleaning standards, we have increased the frequency of disinfecting high-touch surfaces throughout the office.

  • We have increased the frequency of cleaning of all areas in the office, including reception and boardrooms, door handles, tabletops.
  • The building’s janitorial service cleans and disinfects all high traffic touchpoints on a nightly basis since the outbreak of COVID-19.   The building’s restrooms are cleaned and disinfected and floors are mopped on a daily basis using disinfectant solutions.
  • All clients and employees are regularly reminded of handwashing and hygiene protocols (user guidelines attached).  You will be asked to wash your hands or use the hand sanitizer provided upon arrival to our office.
  • We are following the recommendations of the BC and federal governments to avoid all non-essential travel.  We ask that Employees and clients limit travel based on BC’s Restart Plan and on the Public Health Agency of Canada’s website and self-quarantine for 14 days before coming to Avisar’s office if required. 

To help us ensure the safety of our office space and employees, we ask that if you are feeling unwell that you choose to reschedule your appointment with us for another time.

We are working diligently to adapt to new circumstances while planning for the future.  We are grateful to you, your ongoing support, and that you are doing your part to flatten the curve.

Disclaimer: Avisar Chartered Professional Accountant’s blog deals with a number of complex issues in a concise manner; it is recommended that accounting, legal or other appropriate professional advice should be sought before acting upon any of the information contained therein.

Although every reasonable effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this post, no individual or organization involved in either the preparation or distribution of this post accepts any contractual, tortious, or any other form of liability for its contents or for any consequences arising from its use.

Covid-19 AVISAR CPA

AVISAR CPA: Office Plans For COVID-19

At Avisar, we take the health and safety of our clients and team seriously and we wish to share some of the steps we are taking to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak. We are committed to working together as an organization to decrease the transmission and lower the impact of COVID-19, by sharing factual information from our provincial and federal health agencies with our team members, while addressing any concerns that may arise. 

As the impact of COVID-19 continues to evolve and new information becomes available daily, our goal at Avisar is to remain calm but ensure that we have a contingency plan in place to minimize potential impact to our clients and team.

All our common areas, including the reception area, are being cleaned daily and our boardrooms are sanitized after each meeting, to help reduce the spread of germs.  We have also posted hygiene reminders throughout the office and washrooms, and hand sanitizer has been made available around the office.

We are monitoring the health of all team members and encouraging anyone who feels sick or has been in contact with family members who are ill or have travelled abroad to stay at home.  Our team members have been encouraged to avoid any physical contact (including handshakes) with clients and colleagues.

Thankfully, we are capable of transitioning our practice to a virtual office in the event that it becomes prudent or necessary to temporarily close our physical location.  The use of document management, client management and practice management software assists us in having file information readily available in the event that our team members are working remotely.

We continue to monitor the local situation and are prepared for the possibility that our office may be faced with exposure to the virus.  Below we have set out what you can expect if we temporarily close our physical office:

  • Our team members will continue to work on your file remotely.  It is expected that the transition to a virtual office (if necessary) will be seamless for you as Avisar already maintains its active files electronically.
  • All of our team members’ emails will be monitored.  We will continue to be accessible to you by email for inquiries, requests and other correspondence. While we will arrange for mail forwarding, we encourage you to use email for transmission of documents in the event that our physical office is closed. If you have security concerns over email or you need to send large files, please send documentation via ShareFile our file sharing tool, to ensure seamless service on your file. You can find a link in our staff email signatures or by accessing team member profiles on our website at www.avisar.ca and clicking on Client Portal.
  • Personal Income Tax returns and other filings will continue to be processed. Our office will complete all filings in the usual course to the extent that the Canada Revenue Agency and/or other filing agencies remain open.
  • All appointments will be by telephone or video call. While we value and enjoy the opportunity to meet with you in-person, we will make virtual arrangements for all meetings to minimize any potential exposure. Our voicemail system will be regularly monitored and our team members will be available by IP phones and/or cell phones.

As we navigate the potential challenges ahead, we will endeavour to keep you updated as quickly as possible. We value your continued trust and partnership with Avisar. Please feel free to reach out to us if you have any additional questions.

Disclaimer: Avisar Chartered Professional Accountant’s blog deals with a number of complex issues in a concise manner; it is recommended that accounting, legal or other appropriate professional advice should be sought before acting upon any of the information contained therein.

Although every reasonable effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this post, no individual or organization involved in either the preparation or distribution of this post accepts any contractual, tortious, or any other form of liability for its contents or for any consequences arising from its use.