Tax specialist vs tax consultant

The differences between tax specialists and tax consultants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a tax consultant has an average salary of $66,737, which is higher than the $57,168 average annual salary of a tax specialist.

The top three skills for a tax specialist include IRS, customer service and tax compliance. The most important skills for a tax consultant are CPA, tax planning, and tax issues.

Tax specialist vs tax consultant overview

	Tax Specialist	Tax Consultant
Yearly salary	$57,168	$66,737
Hourly rate	$27.48	$32.09
Growth rate	-7%	6%
Number of jobs	46,937	39,379
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	-	-

What does a tax specialist do?

A tax specialist is responsible for handling the tax compliance and correspondence of an organization, finalizing tax audits, and resolving discrepancies. Tax specialists should have excellent knowledge of tax laws and federal regulations, ensuring the accuracy of tax statements, and filing it accurately and efficiently. They should also be highly-analytical and communicative, especially on explaining tax-related documents to the management or the clients, as well as analyzing tax computations and managing the company's financial transactions.

What does a tax consultant do?

Tax consultants are experts in providing commercially centered tax advice and tax services to wide-ranging clients who function in all sectors of the economy. The work they do involves devising tax-efficient strategies for international and domestic-based clients in various business situations, including takeovers, company merges, and corporate reconstructions. They work continually to help clients ensure that the best business decisions are met. They also monitor and get ahead of possible changes concerning tax legislation and responding fast with guidance specific to their clients' tax requirements.

Tax specialist vs tax consultant salary

Tax specialists and tax consultants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Tax Specialist	Tax Consultant
Average salary	$57,168	$66,737
Salary range	Between $36,000 And $88,000	Between $47,000 And $93,000
Highest paying City	Stamford, CT	Hartford, CT
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	Rhode Island
Best paying company	STMicroelectronics	Cargill
Best paying industry	Finance	Finance

Differences between tax specialist and tax consultant education

There are a few differences between a tax specialist and a tax consultant in terms of educational background:

	Tax Specialist	Tax Consultant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of Southern California

Tax specialist vs tax consultant demographics

Here are the differences between tax specialists' and tax consultants' demographics:

	Tax Specialist	Tax Consultant
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 30.8% Female, 69.2%	Male, 52.7% Female, 47.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 10.0% White, 57.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 10.4% White, 57.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between tax specialist and tax consultant duties and responsibilities

Tax specialist example responsibilities.

Operate industry-specific taxation software to complete the tax returns.
Author of several articles on topics of international taxation.
Prepare and electronically file accurate and timely individual tax returns base on IRS regulations and company policies.
Conduct confidential interviews with individuals/couples using current IRS and state laws and manually or electronically file returns through proprietary software.
Prepare quarterly and annual tax accruals and return-to-provision calculations.
Analyze historical property tax for multiple internal divisions to accurately forecast current year expenses and support annual accruals.

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Tax consultant example responsibilities.

Manage the training and use of new FactSet products and enhancements with various client bases including portfolio management and performance teams.
Maintain and generate the process of structuring and conducting business transactions to ensure that GAAP procedures are followed.
Develop, maintain, and ensure accounting policies and procedures are in accordance with company member agreements & GAAP.
Prepare returns and consult on tax and accounting issues for own clients as well as contract work for other CPA firms.
Work closely with CPA on data verification and documentations processing.
Save customers thousands of dollars on Mexico-U.S. cross-border taxation advisory.

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Tax specialist vs tax consultant skills

Common tax specialist skills

IRS, 11%
Customer Service, 8%
Tax Compliance, 8%
Tax Issues, 7%
Taxation, 6%
Appeals, 6%

Common tax consultant skills

CPA, 13%
Tax Planning, 7%
Tax Issues, 6%
Taxation, 6%
Tax Research, 5%
Income Tax Returns, 5%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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