Document request email templates, ready to copy.

The first email you send about documents sets the pace for the whole job. If it's clear, most clients send most of the list in the first week. If it's vague, you spend the next month answering "what do you mean by…?" and chasing the rest. A good document request email template saves you writing that email from scratch for every client, and makes sure nothing important gets left out when you're busy.

Below are six templates for the requests accounting firms send most often: onboarding a new client, year-end accounts, Self Assessment, monthly bookkeeping, a one-off request mid-year, and a request with a date that can't move. Copy them, change the words in [square brackets], and make them sound like you.

What makes a document request email work

Every template below follows the same five rules. If you write your own, check it against them.

• One list. Ask for everything you need in one email, not in pieces over three weeks. A client can plan around one list. They can't plan around a drip of "one more thing".
• Clear names. Name each document the way the client would recognise it: "Bank statements, all business accounts, 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026", not "bank info". Add an example when a name might be unfamiliar.
• A due date. Give a date ("14 November"), not "when you can" or "soon". Make it early enough that you have time to chase the last few items.
• Why you need it. One short line for anything unusual or sensitive. Clients send documents faster when they understand what they're for, and they're more likely to tell you when something doesn't apply.
• One way to send. A single link or address for everything. If documents can arrive by email, post, a shared folder and a portal, some of them will end up in the wrong place.

Keep the email short enough to read on a phone. If the list is long, group it under a few headings rather than adding more explanation.

Template 1: new client onboarding

When to use: once a new client has agreed to work with you, before any work starts. They don't know how you work yet, so explain a little more than usual.

Subject: Welcome to [firm name]: a few documents to get started

Hi [first name],

Welcome to [firm name]. Before we start on [the work, e.g. your
accounts], we need a few documents from you:

- [Photo ID, e.g. passport or driving licence, for each director]
- [Proof of address dated in the last three months]
- [Your last filed accounts or tax return]
- [Contact details for your previous accountant]

We ask for ID and proof of address because [reason, e.g. we have to
confirm the identity of every new client]. The rest helps us pick up
where your previous [accountant] left off.

Please upload them by [due date] using this link: [link]. You don't
need an account, and please don't send ID by email.

Any questions, reply to this email or call me on [phone number].

[your name]
[firm name]

Template 2: year-end accounts

When to use: soon after the client's year end, once the last bank statement for the year is available. The earlier the list arrives, the more time they have to find the harder items.

Subject: Documents for your year-end accounts to [year-end date]

Hi [first name],

Your year ended on [year-end date], so it's time to start on your
accounts. Here's what we need:

- [Bank statements, all business accounts, [start date] to [end date]]
- [Sales invoices, or a sales report from your software]
- [Purchase invoices and receipts]
- [Loan and finance agreements, with balances at [year-end date]]
- [Stock count at [year-end date], if you hold stock]

If anything doesn't apply to you, let us know and we'll take it off
the list.

Please send everything by [due date]. That gives us time to prepare
your accounts, go through any questions with you and file before
[filing deadline].

Upload here: [link]

Thanks,
[your name]

Template 3: Self Assessment

When to use: for individual clients who need a UK Self Assessment tax return, ideally in the spring or summer after the tax year ends on 5 April. Sending it early spreads your work out before the January deadline.

Subject: Your [tax year, e.g. 2025 to 2026] tax return: documents we need

Hi [first name],

It's time to start your tax return for the year 6 April [year] to
5 April [year]. Here's what we need from you:

- [P60 from each employer]
- [P11D, if you had benefits such as a company car]
- [Interest statements from banks and building societies]
- [Dividend vouchers]
- [Rental income and costs, if you let out a property]
- [Personal pension contributions]

Please upload them by [due date]: [link]

The online filing deadline is 31 January [year], and any tax you owe
is due the same day. Sending your documents by [due date] means we
can tell you what you owe in good time.

If anything changed this year, such as a new job or a property sale,
let us know. It may mean we need more documents.

Thanks,
[your name]

Template 4: monthly bookkeeping

When to use: at the start of each month, for clients whose books you keep. It's the same list every month, so keep it short and send it on the same day each time.

Subject: [Month] bookkeeping: documents due by [due date]

Hi [first name],

It's time for your [month] bookkeeping. Please upload:

- [Bank statements for [month], all accounts]
- [Card statements for [month]]
- [Sales invoices issued in [month]]
- [Purchase bills and receipts]

Please send a statement even if an account had no transactions. We
use it to check the balance.

We need these by [due date] so we can [what happens next, e.g. send
you your monthly figures by the 15th].

Upload them here: [link]

Thanks,
[your name]

Template 5: a one-off request mid-year

When to use: when you need one or two things outside the usual cycle, such as a letter the client has received, a new loan agreement or the paperwork for a property purchase. Say what it is, why you need it and where they'll find it.

Subject: One document we need: [document name]

Hi [first name],

We need one more document from you: [document name, e.g. the
completion statement for your property purchase].

We need it because [reason, e.g. it shows the price and costs we'll
use in your tax return]. You'll usually find it [where to look, e.g.
in the email your solicitor sent after completion].

Could you upload it by [due date]? Here's the link: [link]

If you can't find it, reply and let us know. We'll tell you what
else will do.

Thanks,
[your name]

Template 6: a request with a hard deadline

When to use: when the date really can't move, such as a filing deadline, a lender's or court's date, or an application window. Give the client two dates: the one that can't move, and the earlier one when you need the documents.

Subject: Needed by [due date]: documents for [job name]

Hi [first name],

We need the documents below by [due date] for [job name]. This date
can't move: [reason, e.g. your application has to be submitted by
[external deadline], and we need [number] working days to prepare it].

- [document 1]
- [document 2]
- [document 3]

Upload them here: [link]

If you can't get one of these in time, please tell us now rather
than on the day. We can often [alternative, e.g. send what we have
and follow up with the rest], but only if we know early.

Thanks,
[your name]
[phone number]

Only use this template when the deadline is real. If every request says the date can't move, clients stop believing it.

Fitting the templates to your clients

The templates are deliberately plain. Before you save them as your own:

• Rename items to match your clients. A sole trader may call it "my business account". A company with a bookkeeper may need software report names.
• Delete what doesn't apply. A list with items the client knows aren't relevant makes them doubt the rest.
• Sign it from a person. Clients reply to people. Use the name of whoever will actually deal with the documents.
• Keep one version per job. Six good templates you reuse beat a new email every time.

When documents don't arrive by the due date, follow up with a reminder that names only what's still missing. Client reminder email templates has five, from a gentle nudge to a polite final notice.

How to do this in GarnerDocs

In GarnerDocs, the checklist and the email are set up once and reused.

• Your default request message is the opening of every request email. Write it once in Settings → Branding & portal, using {first name} and {request} for the client's name and the request's title, and change it on any request before you send. Changing the default is available on Growth and Pro. See Default request message.
• Templates hold the checklist, so each job above becomes a template you pick when you create a request. Each document can have a short description your client sees on the upload page, which is where the "why we need it" lines fit best. New workspaces start with Annual Tax Return, Monthly Bookkeeping and VAT / Quarterly Reporting templates. See Create a template.
• The email your client receives carries your firm's name, or your logo on Growth and Pro, and its subject says your firm has requested documents for the request's title. It greets your client by first name, shows your message, lists each document by name, gives the due date and says they don't need an account or a password. One button in your brand colour opens their private upload page. Replies go to whoever the request is assigned to.

You can see the email before it goes, on the last step of New request. See Create a request.

Sources

• Self Assessment tax returns: deadlines, GOV.UK. Checked on 20 October 2026.

This guide is general information, not tax or legal advice. Check the rules and deadlines that apply to each client.