Mostly Asked TAX Accountant Interview Preparation Guide

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If you can prepare a list of all important/major documents for the sector in which you are going to accounting interview, then it will help you win very good brownie points with the interviewer.

A physical verification of fixed assets should be done on a regular basis and comments from these verifications should be updated accordingly. There are times when the asset is recorded in the books but physically there is no such asset.

If you’re still early in your career, you may not have developed any processes yet, but you should be ready to demonstrate that you can innovate. Think about something you’ve helped change or develop over the past few years.

Accountants will often outsource work to a third party. This doesn't mean their services are bad, but you want to be sure they are forthright about who is doing the work., CPA. If you want to talk with someone familiar with your bookkeeping and that's a third party, it likely will be difficult to speak with him or her directly.

Discuss how data or a chart or graph helped you make your case, and how the outcome worked in the organization’s favor.

I have experience working with several accounting software programs. I'm most comfortable with Netsuite, abila and Zoho, although I've recently started using Intacct as well since it offers a few forecasting and performance management features other applications don't have. I found Intacct the most difficult to learn, but it's still pretty straight forward and easy to understand once you're familiar with their interface. Which accounting software do you use?

You have to look at all the information first. Genrally starting at the employee's new hire paperwork is the best place. With that you can confirm that there was not a data entry error in the HR department. If it's a matter of tax payment, you should have records on day the payment was submitted and a copy of the certified mail for any returns sent by mail.

There are countless accounting software packages out there, and you can’t possibly know them all.

That said, if you only know how to use one software package, that could look bad, even if the application itself is well-regarded. Know enough about the tools of your profession to have an opinion on which are good, and which are not so good and be ready to defend your answer. Know about recent developments in relevant software, even those you don’t use regularly.

I don't pretend to be perfect, but I don't make many mistakes--at least not when it comes to financial reporting. I recognize that such mistakes are costly, and never acceptable. If I'm not 110% sure about a calculation, assumption, or financial record, I consult with a colleague or other experienced accountant. I seek confirmation of alls results through IAS and IFRS. I always double check my work, and if it's really important, I'll have someone else check it too.

You should know how to respond to this based on the job description and whether the position requires experience doing financial audits, operational audits or something else

I have knowledge of income tax, but not sales tax.

☛ What attracted you to tax accounting versus other fields, like forensic or auditing?
☛ How do you stay on top of regulatory changes?
☛ How do you keep up to date on global economic issues?
☛ Describe a time you saved your client/employer money.
☛ Have you ever faced an ethical dilemma at work? If so, how did you manage it?

☛ What would you do if you received a B-Notice on behalf of your client?
☛ What information would you use to create a forecasting report for next year’s tax returns?
☛ You thought the deadline for tax payment submission was in a month, but it’s actually in a week. How would you handle this?
☛ How would you inform your manager that your company needs to pay a fine because you weren’t aware of a regulatory change?

☛ What accounting software are you familiar with?
☛ What monthly and annual reports do you create?
☛ What information do you need to submit a 1096? What’s different when you e-file a 1099?
☛ What is an IRS Backup Withholding Notice?
☛ How do you avoid numerical errors in your reports?

First, answer whether you have knowledge of accounting standards such as Generally Accepted Accounting Principles – GAAP – and Sarbanes-Oxley,” said Bill Driscoll, the president of the New England district at Robert Half International and a national spokesperson for Accountemps. “Then explain the depth of your knowledge, how it applies to the role and how you stay up-to-date.

Again,36-thousand. This involved a combination of State, Federal and Local taxes. Some were filed manually on paper, some filed electronically online and others were submitted on disc in electronic file format.

I've been following you're company for a long time. I've always been impressed with your philosophy of honesty and integrity over everything else. When John (company contact) told me a position for an experienced tax accountant had opened up I couldn't pass up the opportunity. I believe I can help you solve many of tax issues you're currently facing and would look forward to joining your team.

Some of the key documents which should be thoroughly verified during the accounting process are:

☛ Purchase Requisition
☛ Purchase Order (and Contract where there is pre-existing contract with the vendor)
☛ Vendor Invoice
☛ Material Receipt Note
☛ Delivery Challan
☛ Documentation for evaluation of rates at which product is procured
☛ Tax related documentation, if any

Some accounting firms shut their doors after April 15 and only reopen for the following tax season. But when you're running a small business, you're going to need help all year, director of taxation at the American Institute of CPAs in New York. "If something comes up, you don't want to wait until tax season in order to get your issue addressed."

Be prepared to share specific examples of the pros and cons of the accounting software you’ve used.

I haven't had much experience reducing cost for corporations, but I have worked on several high profile case studies where cost reduction was a key element of the financial strategy. In a recent case study that dealt with a struggling KFC franchise I was able to identify several cost reducing strategies that helped minimize expenses, reduce equipment financing costs, and decrease the overall burden of the companies debt through restructuring.

Having just graduated from college, I haven't faced a lot of tough accounting tasks in the real world. However, I'm graduating at the top of my class from the University School of Accounting, which is ranked one of the top schools in the nation. And I'm confident I can solve any accounting problem as well, if not better, than any of my fellow students--and probably as well as most first or second year associates. This last summer I worked as an intern with Ernst & Young on their tax consulting team based in San Francisco. Over 200 students applied for the internership. Myself and one other student were selected to participate. While working with Ernst & Young I was assigned several challenging accounting tasks including one where I was required to make recommendations for restructing the debt of a multi-national corporation...

Very simply put, provision is an amount of profit which is put aside on the books to cover an expected / potential expense in the foreseeable future. In day-to-day accounting, there is a high chance that expenses already incurred in the given period may not be booked. The reasons for this could vary e.g. the vendor is yet to raise an invoice, or let’s say that the invoice is raised once in 6 months only and at the year end we have already availed services of 3 months. A provision should be created in the books for these expenses which have already been availed by us. Expenses incurred in a given financial year should be booked in the same year to maintain the true and fair view of the financial statements. But if can’t book expenses for any reason, then provision is the next best thing to do.

It is important to make yourself clear about the size of the organization and then correlate the usage of the ERP with the size. This is required because if you are interviewing for a start-up where survival is the focus rather than the effectiveness of controls, they will prefer using Tally which will be very cost efficient for them.

If you don’t have a professional example to share, a relevant experience from college might work. Regardless of the example you pick, do not exaggerate or over-dramatize for effect.

Your interviewer will notice and might decide that you’re being less than honest.