What is the best position to work in an Accounting Firm, at the Start, is it "Tax" or "Audit"?

March 24th, 2010


I am currently applying for some internships in a few accounting firms, I am stuck as in I do not know which role to apply in these accounting firms. I am confused between two, either "Tax" or "Audit".
I would like to know which is the better one in terms of Salary, Progression, Benefits etc.
Please Help!
Thank-You

There are many branches of accountancy, but between taxation and auditing, I would look at what exactly you will be responsible for.

Giving good taxation advice is lucrative, but if you are just checking numbers, it will become boring.

Equally although auditing accounts and putting your name to them would be more satisfying, it will not pay as much.

Compare and contrast GAAP and tax accounting?

March 21st, 2010



GAAP applies to tax accounting in practice.It is the set of conventions and practises that are standard and need to be followed by companies while they are auditing their accounts.

Reccommend a book on UK tax/accounting for newly self-employed?

March 18th, 2010

Can anyone reccommmend a book that will guide me through basic accounting and record keeping and UK tax deductions, I am just going self-employed. Most of the books on Amazon seem to be aimed at an American audience.

HI

Just read this book and its very simple and easy to follow.I have had a small business for many years (now closed ) so it was good to learn the basics again.

It is ACCOUNTS DE MYSTIFIED by Anthony Price .

Should be able to get it from your local library.The ISBN is 9780273714927 if that helps

Good luck

josh

I want to become more knowledgable on tax law. Should I study law or accounting?

March 15th, 2010

I already have a degree (in Finance), but I could go back to school and take some more accounting classes. Or would it be more useful to go to law school and do an emphasis in tax law? In case you’re wondering, this is what I work on at my job, I didn’t just wake up one morning and become interested in tax law.

Attend a school that offers a JDMBT. The masters in business taxation along with your JD will be the most comprehensive program on tax law that you can find.

Accounting journal entry for estimated tax payments?

March 12th, 2010

Help!! I am trying to figure out the bookkeeping entry for estimated tax payments that a company would make four times a year. I know I would have to CR cash but what do I debit? A reserve account? What type of account is that?

The debit side of the account would be a tax expense, the specific account depends on what is in the chart of accounts.

I can’t tell from your question whether the cash is spent or is going to be spent, so just so we’re clear…there is a credit to cash only when the company actually spends the money to make these payments. If these are "estimated tax payments" with no money spent then you should credit a taxes payable account. Later, you would debit the payable and credit cash.

Is working experience in the tax authority valuable in the private sector for tax accounting?

March 9th, 2010


Any practical work experience in that field or something related is valuable. Why? Because you have some working knowledge of the industry and how things work.

And if you have experience in the same job as say an IRS Auditor, then you could pretty easily transfer that to the private sector, say Corporate Auditor. Auditing is auditing, and the only difference is where you’ve done it and who’ve you audited. Yet the principles are the same.

What is the journal entry for accounting service tax paid for labour charges in our books of accounts?

March 6th, 2010

I should do the service tax related job. Kindly brief m

Don’t know what you mean, so I’ll give you some possibilities:

When you pay your peeps, this is what you enter:

wages expense…1000 (dr)
fica tax payable…77 (cr)
fed withholding…100 (cr)
cash in bank…….823 (cr)

payroll tax expense…277 (dr)
futa tax payable…80 (cr)
suta tax payable…120 (cr)
fica tax payable…77 (cr)

The first entry pays out your cash, the second entry records employer taxes.

(Damn, you’re in India. I should have looked first. The first answer looks right.)

What is the difference between depreciation for accounting purposes, and depreciation for tax purposes?

March 3rd, 2010

Is it because you can write off more in your accounts, than technically claim in your company tax return?

Depreciation for accounting purposes is designed to reflect the economic life of an asset and so spread its value over that life. It is based on the principle of matching income with expenses incurred in the same period – so if you used 1/5 of the ‘value’ or ‘life’ of an asset then the idea is that you charge 1/5 of its cost to that financial period.

The tax regime is driven by political and economic considerations, and as such any ‘allowable depreciation’ (called capital allowances in the UK) is designed to reflect different emphases – such as the desire to encourage investment by certain types of business incertain types of asset. For instance in the 2008 tax year in the UK companies can claim an Annual Investment Allowance of up to £50,000 for investment in assets regardless of their estimated life in one go (put very crudely, and with the usual caveats that things are never quite that simple). In this case, for instance, you can claim back more through the tax allowance than you do via your accounts – in the year of purchase – but less in later years until it balances out.

how to figure out net of tax in accounting?

February 28th, 2010

how to figure out net of tax in accounting

Here’s the formula

Description $ %

Gross Sales 100 100

Cost of Goods Sold 50 50

Gross Profit 50 50

Expenses 40 40

Profit before Tax 10 10

Taxes 5 5

Net Profit 5 5

It’s the percentage of Gross Sales

I need some ideas for a clever, yet professional tax prep/accounting office?

February 25th, 2010

I want something catchy, not boring and normal.

In accounting, catchy doesn’t fly. Accounting is expected to be boring, staid, conservative and professional. I want to puke every time I see the "cyclops" or "money suit" tax prep ads and the ones with the "green presidents" who don’t know an exemption from a deduction have convinced me that that’s a company that I don’t want to do business with. Stick with competence and professionalism.