Senior tax associate vs tax associate

The differences between senior tax associates and tax associates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a senior tax associate has an average salary of $91,872, which is higher than the $62,466 average annual salary of a tax associate.

The top three skills for a senior tax associate include CPA, tax compliance and client relationships. The most important skills for a tax associate are strong customer service, CPA, and tax planning.

Senior tax associate vs tax associate overview

	Senior Tax Associate	Tax Associate
Yearly salary	$91,872	$62,466
Hourly rate	$44.17	$30.03
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	28,339	42,019
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 56%
Average age	44	47
Years of experience	4	-

What does a senior tax associate do?

A senior tax associate is responsible for assisting the accounting and finance department in processing tax requirements and analyzing documents for accurate completion of tax filings. Senior tax associates also support the analysis of financial transactions and account statements, resolving billing discrepancies, and performing account reconciliations. They handle tax disputes immediately to mitigate complications on tax systems and coordinate with the management and clients for the updates. A senior tax associate must have excellent analytical skills, as well as extensive knowledge of the financial and taxation industry.

What does a tax associate do?

Tax associates are responsible for helping businesses and individuals with state and federal income tax preparation and compliance. These professionals often work for accounting firms and financial services companies. They perform varied tasks that include reviewing income statements, financial records, and expenditures, interviewing clients about income and expenses, and minimizing their clients' tax liability. Tax associates also conduct research on tax issues and assist with tax audits, advise clients on compensation and tax information, and maintain accurate and current client records.

Senior tax associate vs tax associate salary

Senior tax associates and tax associates have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Senior Tax Associate	Tax Associate
Average salary	$91,872	$62,466
Salary range	Between $66,000 And $126,000	Between $40,000 And $95,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Las Vegas, NV
Highest paying state	New York	Nevada
Best paying company	Lord Abbett	Ropes & Gray
Best paying industry	Finance	Finance

Differences between senior tax associate and tax associate education

There are a few differences between a senior tax associate and a tax associate in terms of educational background:

	Senior Tax Associate	Tax Associate
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 56%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of Southern California

Senior tax associate vs tax associate demographics

Here are the differences between senior tax associates' and tax associates' demographics:

	Senior Tax Associate	Tax Associate
Average age	44	47
Gender ratio	Male, 49.7% Female, 50.3%	Male, 36.4% Female, 63.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.1% Asian, 17.8% White, 60.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 10.2% White, 57.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	7%	8%

Differences between senior tax associate and tax associate duties and responsibilities

Senior tax associate example responsibilities.

Prepare and review tax exempt-bond arbitrage rebate calculations; communicate findings to managing director and clients.
Identify book-tax differences to reconcile GAAP basis income to tax basis income.
Prepare and audit year-end/quarterly provision for public and private companies (ASC [].
Maintain tax and GAAP capital accounts for investors and respond to limit partner requests when necessary.
Assist in the booking of in-transit, and audit invoices, to ensure sales tax bill accurately.
Register all new DG store locations for sales and use tax with the appropriate jurisdiction within each assign state.

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Tax associate example responsibilities.

Provide tax planning and preparation services for corporate, individual and high net-worth clients of this midsize CPA firm.
Implement process to identify and prepare the balances for W2 purposes at year end.
Prepare customer taxes from w-2's and other tax information, answer phones, print checks, filing
Resolve a major system problems with split process level errors so employee W2's and companies returns are correct.
Respond to inquiries from the IRS and other tax authorities regarding reconciliation of filings, liabilities, and other associate matters.
Advise clients on questions they have pertaining to their tax liabilities and ensure that they are compliant to the IRS regulations.

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Senior tax associate vs tax associate skills

Common senior tax associate skills

CPA, 24%
Tax Compliance, 12%
Client Relationships, 5%
Taxation, 4%
FAS, 4%
Tax Planning, 3%

Common tax associate skills

Strong Customer Service, 26%
CPA, 13%
Tax Planning, 6%
Taxation, 5%
Tax Research, 4%
Local Tax Returns, 4%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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