Explore by Career/Business and Financial Operations
Tax Preparers
Prepare tax returns for individuals or small businesses.
- Median pay
- $50,560
- per year
- 10-year outlook
- +4.5%
- Stable
- Typical entry
- High school diploma or equivalent
Key skills
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Speaking
- Mathematics
- Active Learning
- Monitoring
- Writing
What they do
- Use all appropriate adjustments, deductions, and credits to keep clients' taxes to a minimum.
- Compute taxes owed or overpaid, using adding machines or personal computers, and complete entries on forms, following tax form instructions and tax tables.
- Interview clients to obtain additional information on taxable income and deductible expenses and allowances.
- Review financial records, such as income statements and documentation of expenditures to determine forms needed to prepare tax returns.
- Prepare or assist in preparing simple to complex tax returns for individuals or small businesses.
- Check data input or verify totals on forms prepared by others to detect errors in arithmetic, data entry, or procedures.
- Furnish taxpayers with sufficient information and advice to ensure correct tax form completion.
- Consult tax law handbooks or bulletins to determine procedures for preparation of atypical returns.
- Explain federal and state tax laws to individuals and companies.
- Answer questions and provide future tax planning to clients.
Majors that lead here
No mapped majors yet.
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS, Employment Projections) and O*NET, used under CC BY 4.0.