Finance & Accounting
A tax accountant prepares tax returns and provisions, researches tax rules and helps the business plan to reduce liabilities within the law. The role keeps filings accurate and on time across federal, state and local jurisdictions.
Median pay
$83,680a year
Accountants and auditors, U.S. BLS, May 2025
The role
Companies hire one when outside tax fees grow, when they expand into new states, or when tax work falls on an overloaded controller.
Typical responsibilities
Core skills
Tools and systems
Related titles
Typical background
Typically a bachelor's degree in accounting, two to five years in tax, and often a CPA license or master's in taxation.
At a glance
The essentials for planning the hire: level, background, how you can hire and what the role typically pays.
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FAQ
Straight answers to the questions employers and candidates ask about this role.
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A tax accountant prepares tax returns and provisions, researches tax rules and helps the business plan to reduce liabilities within the law. The role keeps filings accurate and on time across federal, state and local jurisdictions. Typical responsibilities include: prepare federal, state and local income tax returns; calculate quarterly estimates and income tax provisions; research tax law changes and assess their impact.
Look for corporate tax, tax provision, multi-state tax, tax research, sales and use tax and tax compliance. Experience with CCH Axcess, Thomson Reuters ONESOURCE, Bloomberg Tax, Excel and NetSuite is common in this role.
Yes. A tax accountant is one of the roles employers most often hire on contract, for projects, busy periods, leave cover and vacancies. Contract-to-hire is also an option if you want to work together before making a permanent offer.
Outside firms work well for simple returns and occasional advice. A full-time tax accountant makes sense when you have multiple states, entities or frequent notices, or when outside fees and slow turnaround are becoming a problem.
Seasonal peaks are the most common time, along with provision work, state filings or a cleanup of late returns. Bring them in early enough to plan, since contract tax staff are in high demand just before filing deadlines.
Related roles
Every role in the practice is recruited by the same specialist team.
