With rapid changes in the speed of digitisation, due to the pandemic and shifts in how we now work, accounting and tax firms have been profoundly impacted.
How will these changes affect tax preparation and lodgement? We break down the industry trends that tax professionals need to know about.
Increasing complexity of tax legislation
It’s vital that tax accountants must stay abreast of the latest news on tax law and policy and support services for both individuals and small businesses, particularly in the wake of COVID-19.
These changes are occurring more often and throughout the year – not just during the tax season.
This means tax accounting practices often have less time to familiarise themselves with the relevant tax legislation and, therefore, less time to support their clients and deliver true value for their practice.
A paperless future for tax practices
In addition to the huge numbers of tax accounting firms adopting hybrid work models, there is a significant push to go paperless.
The reasons to do so vary, with some taking a purely environmental and sustainability point of view, while others are leveraging the value of a paperless workplace for their environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria – because getting it right can attract top talent to your business.
Smart and scalable tax and compliance software
Protecting your sensitive data – particularly client information – is even more essential in a digital-first workplace.
This means adopting accounting practice software that provides secure access, anywhere and anytime, as well as further investment in staff training on those platforms.
Best of all, with smart, scalable tax and ledger compliance software for accountants you’ll have the combination of integrated data collection, ledger, tax preparation and lodgement software in one single platform to perform your compliance work in one place.
Accounting practice automation
The adoption of automation tools for tax and accounting firms continues to rise each year.
Tax accountants can win back more time with automated data pre-filling and broad system integrations, which frees them up to focus on more income-generating tasks.
With general ledger software for accountants, you can automate your client data collection from different accounting software providers to prepare financial statements without having to rekey data.
Shortage of skilled tax accountants
Despite the benefits that tax practice management software is bringing to the table, many tax accounting firms are struggling with a shortage of skilled talent.
There are multiple reasons for this, from COVID-related migration in Australia and NZ, to fear of job security when switching roles, to the much-publicised Great Resignation.
Outsourced accounting
To combat the after-effects of state-travel bans and migration shortages, firms that are struggling to scale their tax accounting practice as quickly as they need to, especially for high-volume and transactional work, are instead outsourcing their work.
This frees up their staff to perform more consulting and business advisory services.
New ways of preparing and lodging tax and dealing with tax providers
The introduction of single-touch payroll (STP) has greatly lifted the reporting burden on business owners, and how tax is managed continues to improve.
Thanks to new tax solutions, accountants can provide virtual, one-on-one tax guidance and on-demand preparations.
Empower your tax practice for today and tomorrow
With increasing demands in the field of taxation, firms need to bolster their skill sets and adopt the right technology to better connect their people with refined processes.
Our whitepaper, transforming tax time for today and tomorrow, shares practical knowledge on the state of the industry, why the tax landscape is shifting, and highlights the signs your firm needs to transform its tax processes.
From accounting and tax accounting professionals to directors, practice owners, partners and business advisors at large, these insights will help you navigate the future of tax time.