The BGL integration connects OnboardMe to BGL CAS 360 and, if you use it, BGL Simple Fund 360. OnboardMe brings your BGL contacts, companies, trusts and SMSFs in so you can link them to your OnboardMe clients. When you turn on pushing, your corporate secretarial clients are created and kept up to date in CAS 360 from OnboardMe, including new trusts with their trustees, settlors, appointors, beneficiaries and unit holders.
Why it helps
New corporate secretarial clients you onboard end up in CAS 360 without re-keying names, dates, addresses and ABNs.
Trusts are created in CAS 360 with their people already attached, straight from the relationships you hold in OnboardMe.
Shareholders and trust beneficiaries from CAS 360 can be viewed from the client record, without leaving OnboardMe.
One dashboard shows which clients are linked to BGL, which details don't match, and which BGL records aren't linked yet.
Note: The BGL integration is for Australian businesses. Creating companies and trusts in BGL only works when your business is set up in Australia.
Connect BGL
You need to be an Owner or Admin in OnboardMe, and able to sign in to BGL with access to your firm.
Go to Settings > Integrations.
On the BGL tile, click Connect.
Sign in to BGL and allow OnboardMe access to your firm.
You're brought back to OnboardMe and the Finish BGL setup window opens.
Choose your options (see the next section), then click Save & continue.
OnboardMe then imports your BGL firm contacts and CAS 360 companies in the background. Once it's done, the BGL tile shows as connected with a BGL Settings button.
Choose your BGL settings
You choose these when you connect, and can change them at any time from Settings > Integrations > BGL Settings > Integration Settings. Click Save after changing them.
Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
CAS 360 | Always on. Brings in your BGL firm contacts, addresses, companies and trusts. |
Simple Fund 360 | Tick this if you use Simple Fund 360. OnboardMe also brings in your SMSFs and links them to your fund clients. |
Update clients in BGL when client details change in OnboardMe | Turns on pushing. When a corporate secretarial client is saved in OnboardMe, it's created or updated in CAS 360. Off by default. |
Tip: Leave pushing off while you link your existing clients on the dashboard. Turning it on first can create a client in BGL that you'd rather have linked to an existing BGL record.
How data comes in from BGL
OnboardMe syncs from BGL automatically every few hours. It brings in:
Firm contacts and firm addresses
CAS 360 companies and trusts (with their ACN and ABN)
SMSFs from Simple Fund 360, if you ticked it
Importing from BGL never creates new clients in OnboardMe. BGL records are held ready for you to link to the clients you already have.
To sync straight away, open BGL Settings > Sync. Click Sync All for contacts, addresses, companies and trusts, or click Sync next to one type. Use Sync SMSF / Funds for Simple Fund 360.
Note: BGL limits how many requests OnboardMe can make each day. If you hit the limit, syncing pauses until the next day. Avoid running Sync All over and over.
Link your clients to BGL
Go to Settings > Integrations, click Integration Dashboard, then open the BGL tab.
The totals at the top show how many records are Linked, Unlinked and BGL Only. Use All types to show only companies, trusts, people or SMSFs, and Filter to show one status.
Status | What it means |
|---|---|
Linked | The OnboardMe client is linked to a BGL record and their details match. |
Mismatch | Linked, but the name, email, ACN, ABN or TFN is different in each system. The Comparison column shows which. |
Suggested | OnboardMe found a single BGL record with the same ABN (or TFN for a person). Shown under the Suggested matches filter. |
Unlinked | An active OnboardMe client with no BGL link. |
BGL Only | A BGL record that isn't linked to any OnboardMe client. |
Link suggested matches
Click Link suggested to link every suggested match in one go, or click Link match on a single row.
Link or create one client
Find the client with Unlinked status and click Connect.
In Link to BGL record, choose the BGL record to link to and click Link.
To create the client in BGL instead, leave the record blank and click Create. This works for people and companies.
To remove a link, click Delink on the row. This only removes the link. Nothing is deleted in either system.
You can also select several rows and use Create in BGL or Delink from BGL to act on them together.
Tip: If you also use XPM, Xero, Karbon or FYI Elite, OnboardMe links BGL records for you during each sync where the ABN, ACN or exact name matches (or TFN, or email plus name, for people). Check the dashboard for anything it couldn't match.
How clients flow into BGL
With pushing turned on, a client is sent to CAS 360 when it's saved in OnboardMe, including when an onboarding is completed. A client is only sent when it:
has a Client Status of Client (active), not a lead, associated or terminated client, and
has Corporate secretarial client turned on.
If the client isn't linked yet, OnboardMe first looks for a matching BGL record that isn't linked to anyone and links to it, so you don't get duplicates. If there's no match, it creates the client in CAS 360.
Turn on Corporate secretarial client at the top of the client's Details tab. In an onboarding, staff can set it under Client services.
What's sent for each client type
Client type | Created in BGL as | What's needed |
|---|---|---|
Individual or Sole Trader | A firm contact | Name and an address (street, suburb, state and postcode). Date of birth, State of birth, email, phone, mobile and TFN are sent when you have them. |
Company | A CAS 360 company | The name must end with Pty Ltd (or Proprietary Limited), plus a Date of Incorporation and an address with a state. ACN and ABN are sent when you have them. |
Trust | A CAS 360 trust | See Trusts below. |
Updates work the same way. When you change a linked client's details and save, the new details are sent to BGL.
Note: For companies, OnboardMe sends the company details only. Directors, shareholders and the secretary aren't sent, so add them in CAS 360.
Important: Automatic sends happen in the background when you save. If BGL rejects one, the save still goes through and no error shows. If a client hasn't appeared in BGL, open it and use the Create button (see below) to see the reason.
Create a single client in BGL
When BGL is connected, an unlinked individual, sole trader, company or trust shows a BGL Create button at the top of its Details tab. Click it to create the client in CAS 360 from its saved details straight away. This works whether or not pushing is on, and shows a message if BGL can't take the client.
Once a client is linked, the BGL button opens it in CAS 360. Its menu also has View company & shareholders for companies and Trust beneficiaries for trusts, showing the current details from CAS 360.
Trusts
BGL needs more information to create a trust than it does for other clients. When pushing is on, Corporate secretarial client is ticked and the trust isn't linked yet, OnboardMe checks these before it lets you save.
What a trust needs
Field | Where | Notes |
|---|---|---|
Trust type | Client's Details tab, or Client services in an onboarding | Choose Discretionary (family) trust, Unit trust, Hybrid trust or Bare trust. These are the types CAS 360 accepts. |
Date Established | Client's Details tab | The date on the trust deed. |
A current Trustee | Client's Relationships tab | At least one trustee relationship to another client (a person or a company), with no end date or an end date in the future. |
Address | Client's Details tab | Used as the trust's address in BGL. |
For a new trust, save it first, then add the trustee on the Relationships tab and save again. OnboardMe reminds you to do this.
What OnboardMe creates in BGL
When the trust is created, OnboardMe adds the people from its relationships:
Relationship in OnboardMe | Added in CAS 360 as | For trust types |
|---|---|---|
Trustee | Trustee (a company trustee is created as a CAS 360 company where possible) | All |
Settlor | Settlor | All |
Appointor | Appointor | All |
Beneficiary | Beneficiary | Discretionary and Hybrid |
Shareholder or Unitholder | Unit holder, using the number of units on the relationship | Unit and Hybrid |
Relationships that have already ended are skipped. Add relationships on the client's Relationships tab with Add Relationship.
When someone can't be added
The trust is still created if BGL won't accept one of its people. You'll see Trust created in BGL. Not added: followed by who was skipped and why. The usual reasons are:
The person has no Date of Birth.
A trustee, settlor or appointor was under 18 on the appointment date.
A unit holder has no number of units.
The related client isn't a person or company.
Fix the details and add those people in CAS 360.
Note: After a trust is created, later saves only update its ABN, date established and trust type in BGL. Changes to trustees, beneficiaries or unit holders aren't sent again, so make those in CAS 360.
State of birth
BGL needs a State of birth for directors, trustees, settlors and appointors. Set it on each person's Details tab: choose their Australian state or territory, or Foreign (born overseas).
SMSFs
With Simple Fund 360 ticked, OnboardMe brings in your SMSFs and links them to your fund clients by ABN or fund name. Once linked, the client's BGL button opens the fund in Simple Fund 360. SMSFs can't be created in BGL from OnboardMe yet.
Reconnect or disconnect
BGL connections need renewing from time to time. If you see a message asking you to reconnect BGL, go to Settings > Integrations, click Disconnect on the BGL tile, then Connect and sign in again.
Disconnecting stops syncing and pushing. Your existing links are kept, so you don't need to link clients again if you reconnect.
Still need help?
Contact us