BAS agents across the world

In Australia, the types of services you’re allowed to provide to clients for a fee depends on the level and type of training you’ve had. BAS agents, for example, are only allows to prepare and lodge activity statements for businesses; a tax agent is needed for the preparation and lodgement of tax returns.

Lately we’ve taken a look at how other countries apply value added taxes (what we call GST), and now we take a look at what incarnations BAS agents take on in other countries. 

BAS agents’ counterparts in Canada, the U.K. and Ireland

Canada

In 2014, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced that it would introduce a registration system for tax preparers, to come into effect in the 2016 / 2017 fiscal year.

The program would have required any tax preparer who files personal or corporate tax returns for a fee (tax preparers who prepared trust returns, partnership returns, or GST returns would have been excluded) to register with the CRA.

In November 2017, the CRA announced it had dropped its plans to implement a tax preparers registration program, saying that it’s “now considering other options.”

Ireland

In Ireland, tax advisors / consultants are typically required to complete a three-year Associateship of the Irish Tax Institute (AITI), though there’s no set requirement to become a tax advisor in Ireland. Alternatively, a tax advisor can also start out as a trainee at an established accountancy firm.

United Kingdom

In the U.K., there are no set requirements to become a taxation technician, though most working for one of the “Big Four” accountancy firms with have a qualification from the Association of Taxation Technicians or the Chartered Institute of Taxation.

That said, many tax technicians start out as trainees with a company, which requires not much more than 2 or 3 A levels (an “A level” is a subject within the General Certificate of Education that’s been completed at an advanced level).

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Need help setting up your accounting and reporting systems? 

Many small business people require the help of a professional to set up their business processes, even if they intend to do the day-to-day bookkeeping and accounting themselves. At National Bookkeeping you’ll find a list of qualified bookkeepers and registered BAS agents located across Australia.

Many of our bookkeepers are accounting-degree qualified and are looking to work from home or remotely; they are more than qualified and experienced to help you out on a once off or ongoing basis with your business’ bookkeeping needs. National Bookkeeping can also provide you and your business with a host of training options to suit your needs and budget, from one-to-one training (remotely or face to face), once-off quick fixes, and/or group training. Find out more