Reconstruction work drives it: retrieving old records, interviewing managers about earlier projects, and verifying an employment history that may cross payrolls, reorganizations, or entity changes. Legal analysis of the qualifying year in a complicated record is a separate item. Ask for the scope in writing before it starts.
Decide how far back to reconstruct
Not every year needs the same treatment. Agree which period the qualifying employment analysis depends on and which earlier work is only illustrative, then spend accordingly. Ask what happens if the review finds the knowledge description does not hold up, and whether that assessment is billed separately from preparing a filing.
Government charges change over time and should be confirmed at the step they apply to. Ask one further question before the work starts: what happens if the reconstruction shows the qualifying period does not hold together as assumed. A record crossing payrolls, a secondment to a customer, or an unrecorded leave period can each move the analysis, and the cost of finding out is far lower than the cost of building a file on top of it.
Agree whether such a finding ends the engagement, redirects it, or triggers a fresh estimate. Hypothetical example: a herd-management software specialist's twelve-year record includes eighteen months invoiced through a contracting entity, which is precisely the fact that should surface in week one rather than week nine.