The debate over taxation laws is ongoing around the world. While it is clear that evading taxes is never appropriate, there are legitimate methods of reducing one’s tax liability through sound financial advice.
This is where the expertise of a professional accountant can help. Unlike a Tax Preparer who files tax returns, an Accountant such as the professionals at Eide Bailly consistently works with clients to shape their financial management strategy.
Preparation
A career as an accountant requires strong organizational skills. This is because accountants work with large numbers and documents, which can be confusing if they are not organized. As a result, they must be able to keep track of multiple financial statements and records and communicate effectively with clients about their findings.
In addition to organizing financial data, accountants help their clients make informed decisions about investments and financial planning. This may involve creating spreadsheets and forecasting future business performance. In some cases, accountants may be tasked with preparing budgets and analyzing cost-saving opportunities.
Accountants can find employment at companies of all sizes, government agencies, and non-profit organizations. They can also go into private practice and offer accounting services to individuals and businesses.
Accountants must have strong math skills and be comfortable working with complex numbers. In addition, they must work well under strict deadlines and adhere to reporting guidelines. Some accountants work in the public sector, while others prefer to take on more challenging projects and seek self-employment opportunities.
Tax Planning
Tax accountants work with clients annually to ensure they file accurate taxes. This includes interpreting changes in the law and helping clients understand what they mean for their finances. Tax accountants also help clients file efficiently so they can save money.
Tax accountants are also responsible for understanding and ensuring compliance with IRS regulations. This is particularly important during the busy tax season when many accountants prepare and file individual or corporate tax returns.
A tax accountant can help clients save money by advising them on the best timing of income and deductions. For example, whether to capitalize a purchase, expense it or use the first-in-first-out (FIFO) method of inventory accounting or last-in-first-out (LIFO) can have significant tax consequences.
Accountants can also help clients make smart investment selections and asset allocations to minimize tax liability. They can also advise on retirement planning, charitable giving, and business structure.
Effective tax planning enables individuals and businesses to save more earnings and avoid legal penalties. This provides a healthy flow of money that contributes to economic progress and helps people meet their financial goals, such as buying a home or saving for college. This also prevents individuals and companies from struggling to pay their bills and loans and putting themselves at risk of bankruptcy.
Tax Compliance
There has been much debate recently about the role of taxation in society and how to encourage compliance. While it is clear that tax avoidance is never appropriate and that there must be credible sanctions for citizens and businesses who attempt to do so, what needs to be clarified is how best to encourage compliance by reducing the frictional costs of compliance.
A professional accountant can help reduce the stress of filing your taxes and ensure you have all the information needed to complete your return accurately and on time. In addition to assisting with preparation and planning, an accountant can advise you on making the most of your deductions and credits. This can include tips on maximizing medical expenses, leveraging capital gains and losses to offset investment income, bundling spending to maximize deductions, or maximizing retirement plan contributions.
While some people choose to do their taxes, this can be a huge hassle and requires incredible patience and attention to detail. Accountants can assist you with your returns by preparing them, advising you on minimizing your debts and offering other services like tax projections.
A good accountant will have excellent communication skills to explain complex tax regulations in a way non-specialists can understand. They will also be comfortable with numbers and should possess at least a bachelor’s degree. Many accountants pursue a graduate degree to improve their career opportunities and earnings potential.
Bookkeeping
Whether or not you agree with the current state of taxation in our country, it’s a fact that government plays a critical role in regulating and implementing policies about how taxes should be collected. Taxation laws affect a wide variety of different activities, and ultimately, taxpayers must make the ultimate decisions about how their actions impact their tax liabilities. However, governments must be careful to ensure that their laws are well-written and clearly defined so that they do not have unintended consequences. Professional accountants have an equally important role in ensuring that the taxation systems they oversee are well-designed and functioning effectively.
In addition to assisting individuals and businesses in filing their tax returns each year, professional accountants are also involved in tax planning. They can offer strategic advice about the timing of income and deductions based on their client’s goals and objectives. This can involve determining which accounting method to use (cash vs. accrual), whether or not to capitalize certain purchases, and how to record inventory (e.g., first-in-first-out or last-in-first-out).
A qualified accountant with a bachelor’s degree can prepare accurate financial statements, audit reports, and tax documents. They must be familiar with national accounting standards and have excellent research and communication skills. They can also help their firm’s clients meet their tax compliance requirements and ensure that they file all required paperwork on time.
