Enrolled Agent career path, salary insights, and job scope in the USA

👤 NorthStar Academy📅 18 Jun, 25⏱ 8 min read

Top Enrolled Agent Salaries, Career Path & USA / Career Scope

Finance and accounting are vast fields with numerous job opportunities and competitive salaries worldwide. However, the highly competitive world makes acquiring these opportunities with traditional graduation and post-graduation degrees challenging.

This is where professional certification programmes stand out, like ACCA courses, US CMA courses, and CPA US courses. But if you are interested in niche areas like tax systems, you should learn about the Enrolled Agent career path or consider becoming a certified public accountant. This blog explores Enrolled Agent salaries and career scope.

EA Agent Salary and Job Growth

Taxation is a field that stays busy even during the recession. This domain is perfect for you if you are a finance and accounting professional or an aspirant. The Enrolled Agent course offered by the Internal Revenue Service Board of the USA is your key to entering the dynamic world of US taxation. It equips you with all the skills and knowledge of complex tax laws. Employers like public accounting firms value the expertise and knowledge you gain through this certification. As a result, EA salaries are often lucrative, especially in popular companies.

The credential enhances your earning potential for several reasons. An Enrolled Agent is a tax professional licenced by the Department of the Treasury to represent taxpayers before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in all tax matters, including audits, collections, and appeals.

A non-credentialed tax return preparer can only represent clients on returns prepared and signed on or after January 1, 2016, after completing the AFSP for both the year of return preparation and the year of representation. CPAs and EAs, by contrast, have unlimited representation rights.

However, the Enrolled Agent career scope is not limited to this. You can find multiple job postings that exclusively involve taxes. You can work as a consultant for a company and help them with tax issues. Additionally, you can start your own tax consulting company and have multiple individuals and organisations as your client base.

The career of an Enrolled Agent is highly rewarding, even when working for smaller firms. It also allows you to access job opportunities in the Big 4 accounting firms, such as Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PwC.

Entry Level Enrolled Agent Salary Guide

Enrolled Agent salaries in the United States are quite attractive. There are plenty of career opportunities and demand for EAs to represent clients before the IRS. From the entry-level, EAs earn higher salaries compared to other non-certified tax professionals.

On average, the entry-level salary of an Enrolled Agent in the USA is around $58,000 per year. This pay scale increases based on various elements. The salary of an Enrolled Agent in India varies significantly for multiple reasons. Factors influencing this salary include experience, location, cost of living, and organisation.

Average Enrolled Agent Salary in the USA

The lucrative nature is one factor that attracts aspirants and professionals to pursue this certification course. After gaining considerable experience and expertise, EAs earn between $95,000 and $2,00,000 annually in the USA. According to Glassdoor, the average pay for experienced EAs in the USA is $126,282 per year.

EA Tax Preparer Salary Expectations

Tax preparers are among the most in-demand job roles for EAs. Their primary responsibility is tax preparation. On average, a tax preparer's starting salary in the USA ranges between $35,000 and $58,000 per year. However, you can command higher salaries with more years in the field.

Enrolled Agent Jobs: Salary Scope

In addition to experience and location, the salary expectations for Enrolled Agents also depend on your job role in a company. Below is a look at the average annual salaries of some of the most common and in-demand Enrolled Agent jobs.

Job Role	Salary Range (Per Year)	Average Salary (Per Year)
Tax Manager	$73,000- $ 1,45,000	$1,08,016
Tax Accountant	$ 46,000- $1,04,000	$65,637
Senior Tax Accountant	$ 60,000- $ 99,000	$77,435
Senior Tax Manager	$ 78,000- $ 1,93,000	$1,41,320
Senior Accountant	$ 53,000- $ 96,000	$ 76,794
Tax Director	$ 85,000- $ 2,35,000	$ 1,76,051
Senior Tax Associate	$ 67,000- $ 1,22,000	$ 80,750
Accounting Manager	$44,000- $ 1,12,000	$ 90,303

Top 6 Enrolled Agent Job Roles With High Salary

Although numerous job roles are available for Enrolled Agents, here are six of the highest-paying jobs for EAs worldwide.

Senior Tax Advisor or Consultant

Senior tax advisors or consultants help companies with strategic tax planning. These professionals are also responsible for tax audits to identify financial fraud within the company. A senior tax advisor usually works directly with CEOs, CFOs, and other executives within a company.

Average Base Salary in the USA: $ 86,000- $ 1,39,000 annually

IRS Enrolled Agent for Corporate Tax Services

Enrolled Agents can also work on corporate tax services. This role involves checking corporate firms' tax compliance and guiding them through U.S. tax laws and regulations.

Average Base Salary in the USA- $35,000- $ 92,000 annually

Enrolled Agent in Tax Litigation

After earning the EA designation, you can also help lawyers in litigation. This role involves assisting lawyers in court cases involving tax disputes in complex tax situations. This specialisation offers prestige and high salary prospects.

Average Base Salary in the USA- $ 67,000- $ 1,00,000 annually

Enrolled Agent in Estate and Trust Planning

Enrolled Agents play an important role in estate and trust planning. This role involves managing and advising on estate transfers, wills, and trust tax liabilities. Today's complicated financial world makes building and passing on a lasting financial legacy tougher, leading to better compensation for EAs in this role.

Average Base Salary in the USA- $ 67,000- $ 1,25,000 annually

Enrolled Agent With International Tax Expertise

The EA designation does not limit you to the USA. You can gain international expertise through this certification course. As a result, you can help global companies. This ensures that the organisation follows the specific country's tax regulations.

Average Base Salary in the USA- $35,000- $ 92,000 annually

Tax Director in Large Firms

Tax director is another highly reputed job role for EAs. It is also one of the highest-paying jobs. Through consistent performance and specialisation, you can work your way up to director-level positions.

Average Base Salary in the USA- $ 85,000- $ 2,35,000 annually

Conclusion

The rapidly evolving financial world requires you to gain advanced skills and knowledge to thrive in this industry. Specialised certification courses like the Enrolled Agent course are in greater demand today. Such courses allow you to stay updated with the latest rules and regulations. They also help gain international expertise, resulting in more and better career prospects. More importantly, Enrolled Agent salaries are generally high.

However, you can only become an EA when you pass the three-part Special Enrollment Examination (SEE) conducted by the IRS. NorthStar Academy can help you gain EA accreditation with its comprehensive Enrolled Agent courses that help in preparing and sitting for the exam. Enrol today to become an Enrolled Agent in India. We also offer the best faculty and coaching for the CMA USA exam preparation.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are typical enrolled agent salaries?

Typically, an Enrolled Agent earns around $40,000 to $1,25000 per year in the United States. The salary in India might be lower.

How much is the IRS-enrolled agent's salary?

An IRS Enrolled Agent earns between $35,000 and $92,000 annually. However, depending on their experience, they can earn upwards of $1,00,000. Credentialed Enrolled Agents make about INR 2.75 to 10 lakhs annually in India.

What is the average enrolled agent's salary?

The average Enrolled Agent salary in the USA for experienced professionals is $1,26,282.

How high can an EA's salary go?

In addition to experience, the salary for an Enrolled Agent can also increase to upwards of $1,00,000 by working in countries like the USA, Singapore, and the UAE.

What factors impact an EA certification salary?

Experience, location, and organisation level significantly influence the salaries for Enrolled Agents in India and globally.

What is the EA tax preparer's salary?

A tax preparer earns between $30,000 and $ 93,000 annually in the USA.