My accountant is not giving me my balance sheet: what to do

When a business owner says "my accountant is not giving me my balance sheet", the instinct is to react immediately. That is usually the wrong move. The situation may stem from a simple production delay, missing documents, a fee dispute or a poorly managed end of engagement. Before taking any action, you need to identify the precise cause of the blockage, protect your legal deadlines and document every exchange in writing.

This guide covers the real professional rules — particularly those set out in Decree no. 2012-432 of 30 March 2012 (the code of professional conduct for expert-comptables, ≈ chartered accountants in France) — the legally important distinction between the firm's own deliverables and documents belonging to the client, and the formal mediation route through the Ordre des experts-comptables (the French Order of Accountants). It is aimed at directors of small and medium-sized businesses who are facing this type of blockage, whatever the underlying cause.

Direct answer: an expert-comptable may lawfully withhold the deliverables they have produced (balance sheet, tax return package, declarations) while undisputed fees remain unpaid. However, they must return without delay all documents that belong to the client (invoices, contracts, bank details). If the firm remains silent after a formal recorded-delivery letter, a referral to the President of the relevant regional council of the Ordre des experts-comptables opens a mediation process that is typically quick and does not require legal representation.

The expert-comptable's right to retain documents is real, but it is narrow. It is grounded in civil case law and the professional code of conduct.

A point many business owners are unaware of: even if you are in dispute with the firm over fees, it cannot use your own documents as a bargaining chip. Unlawfully retaining client documents exposes the expert-comptable to disciplinary proceedings before the regional disciplinary chamber of the Ordre.

Article 28 of Decree 2012-432 requires the expert-comptable to inform the regional council of the Ordre when a contractual dispute arises and retention is being considered. This means the regional council becomes an informed third party from the outset — which facilitates mediation if the dispute escalates.

A blockage at your firm does not suspend your own legal obligations. This is one of the most underestimated risks in these situations.

Concrete example: a SARL (limited liability company) closes its financial year on 31 December 2025. The ordinary general meeting to approve the accounts must be held by 30 June 2026 at the latest (within six months of year-end, under article L223-26 of the French Commercial Code). Filing with the commercial court registry must take place within one month of approval — by 31 July 2026 — or by 30 August 2026 if filed electronically (two-month window). If the balance sheet is not delivered before late June, the meeting cannot be held in time and the filing will be late.

Late filing carries concrete consequences: possible fines, a negative signal for banks and investors who check filed accounts, and an inability to produce approved accounts for a fundraise, disposal or audit.

Here is the recommended sequence, from the simplest to the most formal step.

1. Recorded-delivery letter (lettre recommandée avec accusé de réception, RAR) to the firm. State the period covered, the documents already sent, the document expected (balance sheet for year N, tax return package, associated declarations), your requested delivery date and the response window you are allowing (eight to fifteen working days is reasonable). Keep a dated copy.

2. Referral to the President of the regional council of the Ordre des experts-comptables. If the RAR receives no satisfactory response, the client can refer the matter to the President of the regional council covering the firm. This opens a mediation procedure that is typically concluded within a few weeks. The regional council can engage directly with the firm to obtain document release or facilitate the transition. This step is free of charge and does not require a lawyer.

3. Regional disciplinary chamber or civil court action for return of documents. If mediation fails or the firm persists in clearly unjustified retention — particularly of client documents — it is possible to refer the matter to the Ordre's disciplinary chamber or bring a civil court action for return of documents. A specialist lawyer is advisable at this stage.

In file recovery engagements we handle, it is common to see situations unblock at step one simply because a formal written request changes the dynamic. The firm recognises that the business owner knows their rights and has documented the position.

Regardless of the outcome of any dispute with the current firm, certain documents belong to you and should be recovered immediately.

• All supplier and customer invoices (originals or digital copies)
• Bank statements and reconciliations
• Contracts, leases, deeds
• Payslips and social declarations (DSN)
• Bank account details, SEPA mandates, payment data
• Access to online accounting platforms (if the firm uses a SaaS tool, request a full data export)

For deliverables such as the balance sheet, general ledger and tax return package, their recovery depends on resolving the fee dispute. However, a new firm can reconstruct a trial balance from source documents if deliverables are temporarily unavailable.

Article 11 of Decree 2012-432 requires a written engagement letter (lettre de mission) before any engagement begins. This is not a formality: it defines what the expert-comptable must produce, within what timeframe, and on what terms fees become payable.

In file recovery work, the absence of an engagement letter or a vague one often works against the firm rather than the client. If the expert-comptable cannot demonstrate that a specific deliverable was included in the agreed scope, they equally cannot justify withholding it on those grounds. Before beginning any formal process, re-read your engagement letter carefully and compare it against the documents you have actually received over the course of the relationship.

Several mistakes systematically make these situations worse.

• Letting weeks pass without sending at least one formal written request. Verbal follow-ups leave no trace and create no pressure.
• Changing firm in a rush without a document inventory: the new firm cannot work from nothing, and a disorganised transition typically adds weeks of recovery work.
• Treating a production delay (usually resolved quickly) as a deliberate refusal to hand over documents — they require different responses.
• Threatening criminal proceedings without solid grounds: this polarises the relationship without accelerating recovery of the balance sheet.
• Signing a new engagement letter before securing the recovery of documents from the previous firm.
• Waiting for the complete resolution of the fee dispute before acting on approaching legal deadlines. The two tracks — recovering your documents and resolving the commercial dispute — should run in parallel, not sequentially.

A successful file handover rests on a straightforward checklist.

• Identify the new firm and share the existing engagement letter with them.
• Gather all documents recovered from the previous firm (see list above).
• Inform the new firm of the exact state of the file: missing documents, unclosed financial years, outstanding declarations.
• Confirm with the new firm which deadlines are most urgent (VAT, corporation tax, accounts approval, registry filing).
• Formally terminate the previous engagement in writing, in line with the termination conditions in the engagement letter and with reference to article 11 of Decree 2012-432.

In file recovery engagements, the hardest files to reconstruct are those where the client changed firm without a document inventory, without a record of outstanding declarations and without formally closing the previous relationship. A well-organised transition takes one to two additional weeks but prevents months of corrective work.

For further guidance on the transition process, see our article on emergency balance sheets, our guide to accountant quotes and the template for termination of engagement at the initiative of the accountant.

A note of caution: this article sets out the general professional principles and procedures. It does not replace an individualised review of your specific situation, your engagement letter and the exchanges with your firm. For serious disputes or proven financial loss, consulting a lawyer specialising in regulated professions is recommended.