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What is a tax advisor and how to become one
A Tax Advisor is a financial expert with training and knowledge of tax accounting and tax law. A Tax Advisor is usually retained to minimize taxes payable while staying compliant with the law in complicated financial situations. Tax advisors may able be accountants, lawyers, or financial advisors. They may also work as a team consisting of these professionals. Tax Advisors also help with tax planning, inheritance issues, charitable giving, and tax situations.
As Tax Advisors, they advise clients on income tax returns and a range of financial matters, including trusts, estates, and retirement taxes. Tax Advisors need to stay informed about the most current tax requirements on federal and state levels. To become a Tax Advisor, you need to be an EA or a CPA. The requirements for becoming a CPA are set by a state's Board of Accountancy and incudes passing a 4-part national CPA exam and finishing 150 college hours of course work in accounting.
You will need a bachelor's degree in accounting or finance and become a CPA. It is also advisable to have experience as an accountant or an auditor for a private business, non-profit, or accounting firm. You could also gain experience working for the IRS or as a state revenue staff member. Being a Tax Advisor is a good career, and you can make an average yearly salary of $62,636 per year or $30.11 an hour.
What general advice would you give to a Tax Advisor?
Vivek Pande
Associate Professor, University of Wisconsin - La Crosse
Avg. Salary $58,252
Avg. Salary $59,228
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.55%
Asian 10.09%
Black or African American 9.65%
Hispanic or Latino 17.62%
Unknown 4.03%
White 58.05%
Genderfemale 63.36%
male 36.64%
Age - 48American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%
Asian 7.00%
Black or African American 14.00%
Hispanic or Latino 19.00%
White 57.00%
Genderfemale 47.00%
male 53.00%
Age - 48Stress level is manageable
7.1 - high
Complexity Level is challenging
7 - challenging
Work Life balance is very poor
6.4 - fair
Tax Advisor career paths
Key steps to become a tax advisor
Explore tax advisor education requirements
Start to develop specific tax advisor skills
Skills 
Percentages Local Tax Returns 7.66% Reconciliations 7.01% Customer Service 6.67% IRS 6.56% Income Statement 6.35% Complete relevant tax advisor training and internships
Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New tax advisors learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a tax advisor based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real tax advisor resumes.Research tax advisor duties and responsibilities
- Manage a staff of six for all aspects of tax compliance, tax accounting, research, planning and IRS audits.
- Provide payroll processing, invoicing and tax support services for small consulting business using QuickBooks software.
- Assist customers with IRS correspondence/notices.
- Advise companies on international taxation law and bilateral taxation recognition regimes to identify most cost effective strategies.
Prepare your tax advisor resume
When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your tax advisor resume.
You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a tax advisor resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.
Choose From 10+ Customizable Tax Advisor Resume templates
Build a professional Tax Advisor resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Tax Advisor resume.
Apply for tax advisor jobs
Now it's time to start searching for a tax advisor job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:
- Browse job boards for relevant postings
- Consult your professional network
- Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
- Watch out for job scams
How Did You Land Your First Tax Advisor Job
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Average tax advisor salary
The average Tax Advisor salary in the United States is $58,252 per year or $28 per hour. Tax advisor salaries range between $29,000 and $116,000 per year.
What Am I Worth?
How do tax advisors rate their job?
Tax Advisor reviews
Seasonal work and flexible schedule
Low pay, considering the knowledge required to do the work and the volume of work that has to be done in a limited amount of time.
Being able to assist people financially. Tell them how to keep must of their money and pay as little in taxes legally.
People get very upset because they have to pay more then they expected to pay IRS and their state taxes.
Tracking billable hours
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Updated January 8, 2025
