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Be sure to consider additional factors alongside salary when planning your professional path. EAs are federally authorized to represent taxpayers before the IRS and have unlimited representation rights. This means EAs can represent any taxpayer, regardless of whether they prepared their income tax return. EAs can also represent any tax matter, as well as appeal to any office of the IRS. Compare enrolled agent salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.

Highest paying industries for enrolled agents

Managers are looking for new ideas and are prepared to provide the necessary on-the-job training to prepare new hires for success. This is a great time to go into accounting, and becoming an Enrolled Agent will help you land an even bigger starting salary than you could without it. Entry-level tax preparers make less, but can expect their salary to increase after gaining several years of experience, and gathering more clients. As of October 2021, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) recorded the national median salary for CPAs in the U.S. as $73,560. Jobs paying $58,500 or less are in the 25th percentile range, while jobs paying more than $83,000 are in 75th percentile. Enrolled Agent (or EA) is a tax advisor who is a federally authorized tax practitioner empowered by the U.S.

• Bookkeepers ensure that a business makes the most economically viable and safe decisions to keep finances tight and under control.
• Firms are looking to fill entry-level positions, so recent accounting grads and young professionals are in a great position to get their first accounting job.
• Considering becoming an Enrolled Agent, but curious about the salary prospects?
• As you progress in your career, your salary will naturally increase.
• The highest paying types of enrolled agents are insurance broker, licensed insurance producer, and insurance producer.

At the same time, some people dislike the bureaucracy that comes with larger organizations, and they’re happier at the end of the day if they have more freedom to pursue their own ideas. The most highly specialized Enrolled Agent probably isn’t going to be earning as much at a smaller organization as they could at a larger one. Some larger organizations pay their entry-level Enrolled Agents more than smaller organizations pay experienced Enrolled Agents. Compare enrolled agent salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.

What Do Enrolled Agents Do?

The lowest average enrolled agent salary states are Virginia, Tennessee, and West Virginia. According to the 2024 Robert Half Salary Guide, hiring trends in accounting and finance continue to favor the job candidate. Firms are looking to fill entry-level positions, so recent accounting grads and young professionals are in a great position to get their first accounting job. Firms are especially interested in candidates with technology skills that can be applied to growing areas like cloud systems and data analysis.

Office managers oversee several ongoing projects at once and work with staff to ensure that operations run smoothly. They must stay up to date on a wide variety of projects and report directly to higher-level executives. Especially in organizations that employ many tax experts, having an office manager with tax expertise is incredibly valuable. Tax preparers work with taxpayers to complete federal and state tax returns. This job usually involves a busy season, with the highest workload occurring from December to mid-April.

Enrolled Agent Salary by City

Once completed, you are listed on the IRS’ RPO database as an official “Annual Filing Season Program Participant”. In general, CPAs earn more than EAs in all career levels; however, the CPA credential requires significantly more schooling, time and up-front costs than the EA credential. Additionally, the EA credential is more client-focused, with a variety of career paths.

Enrolled agents represent taxpayers before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for tax issues including audits, collections and appeals. Attorneys and certified public accountants (CPAs) are licensed on a state by state basis, and are also empowered by the Department of the Treasury to represent taxpayers before the IRS. If you’re looking to speed up your salary gains in tax preparation, the best thing you can do is earn a professional designation, like the Enrolled Agent designation awarded by the IRS. Earning an EA confirms to clients the tax knowledge that you have, and keeps you up to date every year on any changes in taxation. Alaska pays Enrolled Agents the most in the United States, with an average salary of $74,649 per year, or $35.89 per hour.

Comments about Enrolled Agent

Offer some benefits (e.g., gyms, cafeterias, and daycare) that smaller firms can’t reasonably fit into their budgets. Offer more flexibility and greater access to management, giving individuals a greater say in the perks and fringe benefits available. Tax managers handle all the tax reporting and compliance with local, state, and federal tax laws for an organization. While this position is commonly filled by a CPA, the Enrolled Agent designation is a great way to secure your tax specialization. Bookkeepers ensure that a business makes the most economically viable and safe decisions to keep finances tight and under control.

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• The average Enrolled Agent salary in Texas is $52,562 as of January 26, 2024, but the range typically falls between $44,182 and $61,595.
• Enrolled agents earn the highest average salary in Alaska, Wisconsin, Washington, North Dakota, and Oregon.
• If your goal is to work at one of the Big 4 accounting firms, the Enrolled Agent designation is one way to stand out from other applicants.
• According to ZipRecruiter.com, the average annual salary for an Enrolled Agent as of December 2021 was $59,020.