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By Nsim Team
A career as a revenue officer could be a great fit for you if you have an interest in accounting, tax compliance, and working with the public, and you can keep tactful and assertive in stressful situations.
This field can offer a chance to work independently but as part of a team, a consistent work schedule, good pay, and plenty of room for career advancement.
Who is a Revenue Officer?
A revenue officer, you would work for a government or 3rd party collection agency that collects taxes and other revenue on behalf of the government. Your main working objectives would be to enforce the tax code and to collect on delinquent accounts.
You would be responsible for inspecting accounts and tax returns, looking for signs of noncompliance, as well as issues such as late payments or delinquent accounts.
Your work may be desk-based, trying to settle accounts via phone or email, or it may be field-based, which would involve meeting directly with taxpayers in addition to conducting third party interviews.
General Job Duties
Your duties as a revenue officer could vary, depending on the scope of your job, and your level of responsibility. In general however, you could expect to perform some (or all) of the following duties:
• Investigate and collect delinquent taxpayer accounts
• Send notices to taxpayers regarding collection of delinquent funds
• Work with taxpayers to develop a payment plan
• Conduct independent field audits and investigations of income tax returns to verify or amend tax liabilities
• Examine specific tax returns to determine the nature and extent of audits to be performed
• May serve as member of regional appeals board to re-examine unresolved issues in terms of relevant laws and regulations
• Examine accounting systems and internal controls of organizations
• Provide advice on reporting and evaluation methods for goods subject to taxation
• Prepare briefs and assist in searching and seizing records, and in preparing charges for court cases
Education Needed to Become a Revenue Officer
Most employers require that you have a bachelor’s degree in accounting, or in a related field such as finance, math, economics or business administration.
Skills Needed to Work as a Revenue Officer
In order to do the job of a revenue officer effectively, you’ll need to have a mixed bag of accounting, collection and interpersonal skills, including:
• Skilled at interviewing so you can get to the bottom of a taxpayer's issues
• Able to maintain tact and assertiveness in the face of aggression and hostility
• The ability to understand complex rules and explain them clearly to customers
• Able to keep multiple accounts properly organized
• Competent with various tax preparation and bookkeeping software used by individuals and businesses
• Working knowledge of relevant tax law
• Able to identify questionable claims for tax credits and deductions
Who Employs Revenue Officers?
Municipal, provincial/state or federal government revenue agencies employ most revenue officers. Some governments choose to contract revenue collection and related administration services to 3rd party companies, with whom you may also be able to find work.
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