Hiring a tax consultant - factors to consider
- By David de Souza
- Published 03/24/2010
- Auditing
- Unrated
Hiring a tax consultant - factors to consider
If you are like the majority of taxpayers, there are many things that you don't know about, but which may affect the amount of taxes that you need to pay. The untrained taxpayer reads IRS publications and makes little sense of the legal and accounting jargon. Since understanding related laws and ethics may mean the difference between facing a jail sentence and receiving credits from the IRS, hiring a consultant may be the only way out.
But what should you look out when hiring one?
Qualifications and Registration
The first thing that you need to check out when hiring a consultant is the qualifications of the professional. Ensure that the person that you want to work on your accounts is both qualified (having undergone the required training,) and registered with the relevant professional body. See whether the person you want to hire is a member of the National Association of Tax Consultants or can be found in the Online Database of Certified Public Accountants.
Experience and Reputation
You want to deal with someone who knows more than just what can be found in college accounting textbooks. This means that apart from being qualified and registered, your adviser needs to have reasonable experience in related matters and an established reputation as an expert in the field.
Degree of Specialization
Tax laws are broad and certain cases may require that he be a specialist in the particular field. For example, issues relating to winding up of companies, accounting for offshore assets, and expatriate tax, are not things that your next-door financial professional deals with everyday. When handling such cases, it is always advisable that you deal with a someone who specializes in them. This way, you are sure that your work will be done properly.
Affordability
Regardless of how good an adviser is, he is useless to you if you cannot afford him. That's why you need a person who will do the work at an affordable price. After all, the most important thing is to have your tax returns properly filled and filed with the IRS.
Integrity and Ethics
Though listed last, this is one of the most important characteristic of a good expert. If your he is unethical or lacks integrity, you may find yourself paying for it with a jail term or stiff penalties from the IRS. Apart from defrauding the government and landing you in trouble, unethical tax specialists can easily betray your confidentiality and cause you great losses and embarrassment. To determine whether one is ethical, try to talk to those people who have worked with him before and see what their feedback is.
If you follow the guidelines that I have outlined above, you will find it quite easy to pick a good tax consultant. The good thing is that good tax consultants are able to form solid relationships with their clients. This means that you won't be looking for new tax authorities every time you want to deal with the IRS.
But what should you look out when hiring one?
Qualifications and Registration
The first thing that you need to check out when hiring a consultant is the qualifications of the professional. Ensure that the person that you want to work on your accounts is both qualified (having undergone the required training,) and registered with the relevant professional body. See whether the person you want to hire is a member of the National Association of Tax Consultants or can be found in the Online Database of Certified Public Accountants.
Experience and Reputation
You want to deal with someone who knows more than just what can be found in college accounting textbooks. This means that apart from being qualified and registered, your adviser needs to have reasonable experience in related matters and an established reputation as an expert in the field.
Degree of Specialization
Tax laws are broad and certain cases may require that he be a specialist in the particular field. For example, issues relating to winding up of companies, accounting for offshore assets, and expatriate tax, are not things that your next-door financial professional deals with everyday. When handling such cases, it is always advisable that you deal with a someone who specializes in them. This way, you are sure that your work will be done properly.
Affordability
Regardless of how good an adviser is, he is useless to you if you cannot afford him. That's why you need a person who will do the work at an affordable price. After all, the most important thing is to have your tax returns properly filled and filed with the IRS.
Integrity and Ethics
Though listed last, this is one of the most important characteristic of a good expert. If your he is unethical or lacks integrity, you may find yourself paying for it with a jail term or stiff penalties from the IRS. Apart from defrauding the government and landing you in trouble, unethical tax specialists can easily betray your confidentiality and cause you great losses and embarrassment. To determine whether one is ethical, try to talk to those people who have worked with him before and see what their feedback is.
If you follow the guidelines that I have outlined above, you will find it quite easy to pick a good tax consultant. The good thing is that good tax consultants are able to form solid relationships with their clients. This means that you won't be looking for new tax authorities every time you want to deal with the IRS.
David de Souza
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