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Global Settings - Users

Overview​

User management controls access to Abacus, defining who can view and perform actions within the system. The user structure follows the account-entity-jurisdiction hierarchy.

Core Concepts​

Inviting Users and User Roles​

Users are added to Abacus by an administrator. The process is as follows:

  1. An existing user with the appropriate permissions creates a new user in the system by providing their email address and name.
  2. The new user is assigned one or more roles, which determine their level of access and what actions they can perform.

Abacus has a flexible role-based permission system. A User Role grants a user a set of permissions.

Available User Roles:

  • Admin: Has full access to all functionality and administrative features within their scope.
  • DIY Admin: An administrator role specifically for "Do It Yourself" clients, with potentially tailored permissions.
  • Client: A standard client user who can view and manage their filings.
  • Client Without Approval : A client user who can manage filings and may not require an explicit approval step in certain workflows.
  • Client Read Only : A client user with read-only access to filings and data.
  • Client Processing Data: A client user with permissions related to processing their own data.
  • Client Sales Tax : A client user with specific permissions for sales tax related functionalities.
  • Account Manager: Manages client accounts and relationships.
  • DIY Account Manager : An account manager role for "Do It Yourself" clients.
  • Compliance Manager : Oversees and manages the overall compliance process.
  • Team Lead : Leads a team involved in tax compliance operations.
  • Filer : A user primarily responsible for the actual submission of filings.
  • API : A role for automated systems or integrations to interact with Abacus via its API.
  • Tax Admin Analyst : An internal role focused on analyzing tax data and compliance. Tax Admin Manager : An internal management role overseeing tax administration.
  • Finance Associate : A role with permissions related to financial aspects of filings, such as payments.
  • External Integration Client : A role for external systems integrating with Abacus.
  • Manual Determination Client : A client whose tax determinations might involve more manual processes.

A user's role can be scoped to a specific level of the company hierarchy:

  • Managed Service Provider: The highest level, for accounting firms or other service providers that manage multiple clients.
  • Account: A single client account, which may contain multiple companies.
  • Entity: A single company or legal entity.
  • Entity Jurisdiction: A specific tax registration for a company in a particular jurisdiction.

This hierarchical permission model allows for very granular control over user access. For example, a user can be given access to all filings for a specific company, or only to the filings for that company in a single country.

Expanded Details​

Filing State Flow and User Roles​

Tasks Allocated to User Roles: The allocation of tasks to user roles is implicitly managed through the filing modal and the movement of the filing through the process. Specific roles are granted permissions to perform tasks on the filing modal that trigger state transitions.

User Hierarchy​

Access Levels​

Account Level (Highest)
  ├── Can access all entities
  └── Can access all jurisdictions

Entity Level (Middle)
  ├── Can access specific entity
  └── Can access all jurisdictions within entity

Entity Jurisdiction Level (Lowest)
  └── Can access specific jurisdiction only

User Invite Process​

Prerequisites​

Only users with appropriate permissions can invite new users:

Step-by-Step Invitation​

1. Navigate to User Invite​

Path: Global Settings → Users → Invite User

2. Enter User Information​

Required Fields:

  • First Name: User's given name
  • Last Name: User's surname
  • Email: Must be unique in system
  • Level: Access scope selection
  • Role: Permission set selection
  • Start Date: Access beginning

Optional Fields:

  • Known As: Preferred name/nickname
  • Phone Number: Contact number
  • Department: Organizational unit
  • End Date: Access expiration

3. Select Access Level​

For Account Level:

  • User sees all entities
  • Access to all jurisdictions
  • Full account visibility
  • Can manage Account Settings

For Entity Level:

  1. Select specific entity from dropdown (entities created in Salesforce)
  2. User sees only selected entity
  3. Access to all entity jurisdictions
  4. Can manage Entity Settings

For Jurisdiction Level:

  1. Select entity first
  2. Select specific jurisdiction (configured in Entity Settings)
  3. User sees only that jurisdiction

4. Assign Role​

Choose appropriate role based on user's responsibilities

5. Send Invitation​

  • Click "Send Invite"
  • System sends email to user
  • User receives setup instructions
  • One-time login link provided

Invitation Email Process​

  1. User receives welcome email
  2. Clicks secure setup link
  3. Sets password
  4. Configures security settings
  5. Accesses Abacus

Managing Existing Users​

Access User Management​

Navigation: Global Settings → Users (or Account/Entity → User Roles)

User List View​

Displays:

  • User name
  • Email address
  • Role type
  • Access level
  • Entity/jurisdiction assignment
  • Last login
  • Status (Active/Inactive)

Modifying User Access​

Edit User Role​

  1. Click pen icon next to user
  2. Options available:
    • Change role type
    • Modify access level
    • Update entity assignment
    • Set end date
  3. Save changes
  4. User notified of changes

End-Dating Access​

Purpose: Access removal with audit trail

Process:

  1. Edit user role
  2. Set end date
  3. Access automatically removed on date
  4. Historical record maintained

Use Cases:

  • Employee leaving company
  • Temporary contractors
  • Project completion
  • Role transitions

Deleting User Role​

Warning: Immediate and permanent removal

Process:

  1. Click trash icon
  2. Confirm deletion prompt
  3. Access immediately revoked
  4. No historical record

When to Use:

  • Incorrect user setup
  • Duplicate accounts
  • Security concerns
  • Immediate termination

Integration with Tax Associate Workflow​

Tax Associate Access​

Tax Associates (Account Managers) typically have:

  • Entity or jurisdiction level access
  • Client role with full permissions
  • Transaction processing capabilities (see Transaction Wizard)
  • Filing management rights (see Filings)

Workflow Permissions​

Tax Associates need permissions to:

Client Collaboration​

Clients and Tax Associates interact through:

Configuration​

Operations​