Updated on 28 July 2024

The biggest question people ask when it comes to filing their taxes is whether they should hire someone to do their taxes. Hiring an accountant for taxes is a great way to help yourself out, and it provides more benefits that you may not have known about.

Doing your own taxes can help you save time, save money, and learn more about how to file taxes, but it can also get you in some sticky situations if you do not know how to do taxes. There’s more to it than meets the eye, and that is why we hire an accountant for taxes. Here is why you need to hire an accountant to file taxes.

Benefits to Choosing a Tax Professional

Why should you choose a tax professional instead of doing your taxes yourself this year?

Comply with set legal standards

There are certain legal standards you must meet when filing taxes. The professionals are experienced and have knowledge on all the tax rules and regulations you should meet.

Before filing your taxes, the professional will ask you several questions to ensure you are complying with the laid down laws. They help ensure you do not make mistakes that might end up being costly for you in terms of penalties and fines by the tax authorities.

Saves time and effort

Tax filing is a process that requires a lot of time to be done in the correct way. If you try to do it yourself, it means you may waste a lot of time.

Having the knowledge to properly and thoroughly do taxes yourself takes years of experience and education, hence why CPAs are so valuable. Not to mention, your life obligations, such as running a business, can make it hard to find the time to sit down and do your taxes.

When you hire a professional, you save yourself all these hassles since they take full responsibility for the entire process. They have the knowledge on how to file your tax fast and in an efficient time. Thus, you will be able to focus more on other profitable tasks in your business.

Provide tax knowledge

Filing tax involves a lot of issues that require to be handled by someone with rich knowledge in this field. No one else can do it better than a tax professional with several years of experience in this area.

They know all the nuisances involved and will handle all issues that arise amicably. In case there is a question that arises on your return, they will deal with it in the right manner. They will be responsible for answering all questions that might occur during an audit.

Assist in business planning

A tax professional can assist you in planning for the following year. Most people have a tendency of filing taxes and forgetting that they need to do it the following year. With a tax professional, this does not happen.

They will help come up with a plan that works perfectly for you. They give advice on how to monitor things such as donations, so you just pay what you can account for. In addition to this, they also ensure you pay the right amount, so you avoid overpaying. At the end of the year, they will help you get more money in the process.

How to Choose a Tax Professional in 2024

Once you have decided to work with a tax professional instead of filing taxes yourself, you have the daunting task of choosing from the dozens or hundreds of options available. How can you choose the most suitable tax expert for your needs?

When looking for a tax professional to prepare and file your taxes in Canada, there are a few specific things you should look for and consider.

How long they have been practicing?

While not the only indicator of skill, looking for a tax filing firm with an experienced team or working with a tax filing individual with many years under their belt can give your filing more accuracy and attention.

Are they trustworthy and licensed?

Are they certified CPAs with credentials and designations? When searching to hire someone to do my taxes, qualifications aren’t a plus, they’re a must.

You can verify their identification number, you can look up their license, and in most cases, find reviews and testimonials from real clients to help. Accountor CPA shows you testimonials of real clients to ensure your tax filing needs are met by only the best.

How well do they know your needs?

Some tax experts and advisors focus only on small businesses, personal taxes, or large corporations. Does this professional specialize in your unique situation?

For most individuals, income tax filing is the biggest need and readily available tax help. Make sure that your accountant for taxes is qualified in other areas if you plan on starting a small business or expanding your income options. It helps to have a CPA that has a well-rounded skill set.

Great accounting services will offer a wide range of services, like bookkeeping or payroll services.

Do they provide good communication?

Do they return your emails and answer your phone calls promptly? Are they available to meet and discuss your accounts regularly?

Some tax professionals show up in time for tax filing, have very little input or communication, then leave until they’re needed. Make it a requirement for yourself, your business, or your family to find a tax professional that wants to work with you, not just for you!

Be wary of promises and guarantees

A skilled tax expert can do a great job to ensure you receive a good, or better than expected, return from taxes which is harder to do on your own. Be wary of high promises for overly large returns

This may be a sign they aren’t following legal guidelines for tax filing and could cause problems for you or lead to a tax audit.

Issues with Doing Your Own Taxes

Even for single individuals with one income stream and seemingly uncomplicated tax filing, there are risks associated with preparing your own tax documents.

Small errors can be costly

• Whether you’re a business owner, a freelancer, or an individual, it is extremely easy to miss one important document that can have severe tax consequences. Forgetting about an RRSP account, missing an investment transfer, or simply making a data entry error on your income or expenses can lead to reassessments, audits, and hefty penalties from the CRA.
• On the other hand, something you may not think can be claimed as a business expense, or a tax credit you may not be aware you qualify for, can lead to you missing hundreds or thousands of dollars in a tax return.

Tax filing is usually more complex than we know

• Tax situations aren’t as straightforward as we like to think. Personal income from pay stubs isn’t the only tax obligation. Tax credits, GST/HST, tax claims, and many more make it more complicated than we truly know.
• A professional tax accountant can easily spot any missing information and help rectify problems when it comes to tax filing to simplify it for us.

Lifestyle changes can change tax filing needs

• Lifestyle changes can mean plenty of things. A new job, buying a house, starting a business, having kids, starting school - all of which change our tax filing needs.
• Major life changes are reflected in how we have to file our taxes, and hiring a professional accountant to help with taxes provides us the help needed to keep things organized and avoid mistakes without the chaos of life changes getting in the way.

Tax software isn’t always perfect

• Inputting your own numbers and earnings into a tax software system can get the job done, but it does not tell the full story. What are the goals you’re working towards with these numbers? Is there room for improvement? What do these numbers mean?
• Working with a tax professional gives you a chance to reflect on and update your financial goals each year to better suit your changing lifestyle.
• Tax software isn’t always perfect either, so it helps to have someone to discuss your tax goals and needs with, rather than a simple tax software.

Why You Wouldn’t Hire An Accountant

Hiring an accountant to help file taxes is almost always the smart choice, but not everyone wants to go this route. For that, it should be addressed why you wouldn’t hire an accountant for tax help.

1. Budget Concerns

Hiring a professional service isn’t always the most cost-efficient method. The expertise and ability to help with taxes from an accountant is valuable - hence the cost.

Not always will the need to hire a tax professional cost a lot, but it’s a budgetary consideration if you want to learn to do them yourself, save money, or use an alternative like tax software for tax filing.

2. Building Tax Filing Knowledge

On that note, learning how to file taxes yourself is something that is important so you can feel confident when the tax filing deadline is. It’s not always a guarantee you’ll learn something from your accountant.

When to hire a tax professional could be determined by how much you want to learn for tax filing yourself. Many times though, tax experts can help you learn to build tax filing knowledge yourself.

3. Limited Availability

Depending on when you file your taxes, they may have limited availability. More often than not, good tax pros will be able to get to your tax documents in time.

Choosing the best time to file taxes is a crucial matter, so consider when you hire accountant for taxes and whether they will have more or less time for you.

Work With the Tax Professionals at Accountor CPA

The complexity of tax filing can be hard to figure out, so choosing experienced, reputable, and reliable tax professionals is a must. Why worry about tax preparation yourself? Work with a certified tax professional to meet your filing obligations and get the proper return.

Accountor CPA has a highly-qualified, confidential, and trustworthy team of tax experts. They have years of experience in filing taxes for small businesses, SMEs, large corporations, freelancers, individuals, and families.

Contact Accountor CPA today for a free consultation and learn how you can gain all the benefits of working with a skilled tax professional and none of the risks. Trust us, we know taxes.

Additionally, Accountor CPA offers plenty of free resources in terms of blog posts to help address issues, that includes helpful articles on understanding GST/HST payment, top accounting tools for small businesses, and many, many more.

Conclusion

Hiring an accountant isn’t always necessary, but the need to reduce stress on filing, ensure a professional level of competency, and avoid any costly or legal issues with tax filing, then hiring an accountant is highly recommended.

Many of the benefits of hiring a tax professional include earlier return periods, a better understanding of legal standards, and time-saving work making hiring an accountant a decidedly smart choice come tax season.

One compelling reason to hire a tax professional rather than doing it yourself in 2024 is the expertise they bring in navigating complex tax laws and identifying deductions and credits that could be easily missed by individuals. For instance, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) constantly updates tax regulations, and professionals are adept at leveraging these changes to optimize tax outcomes. Statistics indicate that businesses using tax professionals are less likely to face audits and penalties. For more detailed guidance, visit the CRA's tax information page.