Tax Preparer Career Assessment
Preparing tax returns for people and small businesses
Welcome
Tax preparers fill out and file tax returns for other people. It is the easiest career in this whole group to get started in, because the IRS does not require a college degree to do it.
It is also the most seasonal. You will explore both sides honestly and decide whether it fits you.
This takes about 15 minutes.
What is a Tax Preparer?
A tax preparer collects a person's tax documents, asks questions about their year, enters everything into tax software, and files the return. To do this for pay you need a PTIN, which stands for Preparer Tax Identification Number. It is a number the IRS gives you so your name can go on returns. Getting one takes about 15 minutes online.
The Reality: Two things you must hear clearly. First, this is the most open door in this group. There is no degree requirement and no license exam. Anyone who prepares federal returns for pay must have a valid PTIN from the IRS, and that is the real gate: an online application, about 15 minutes, and an $18.75 fee. Second, this is seasonal work. Most tax returns are filed between late January and April 15. Many tax preparer jobs are only for those weeks, with long hours, and then the work stops. If you need income twelve months a year, plan a second job, a year-round employer, or bookkeeping work for the off-season before you start.
Your Responsibilities:
- Collect W-2s, 1099s, and other tax documents
- Interview the client about their year
- Ask about income, children, school costs, and medical bills
- Enter everything into tax software
- Find credits and deductions the client qualifies for
- Check the return for errors before filing
- Explain the refund or the amount owed in plain words
- Keep every client's information private
You get people the refund they are actually owed.
A Day in the Life
9:00 AM — Open the office. Review appointments. Three walk-ins already waiting.
9:15 AM — First client: a couple with two jobs and a child. Enter their W-2s.
10:00 AM — Ask about childcare costs. Find a credit they did not know about.
11:00 AM — A client brings a shoebox of receipts for a small lawn care business.
12:30 PM — Quick lunch at your desk. It is March.
1:00 PM — Call a client about a missing 1099. You cannot file without it.
3:00 PM — Review two returns a newer preparer completed.
6:30 PM — Last evening appointment. File four returns and close up.
Fast and people-heavy from late January to April 15, then very quiet.
Training in North Dakota
No degree required. A PTIN and good training are what you actually need. You can legally prepare federal returns for pay with nothing but a PTIN. But nobody should prepare a stranger's taxes without real training first, and there are free and low-cost ways to get it. Most national tax offices run their own basic tax course each fall and hire from the class.
Training Pathways:
- Get a PTIN and take a basic tax course (a few months): The fastest route. Apply for the PTIN online, take a tax preparation course in the fall, and work your first season with a review by an experienced preparer.
- Volunteer first, then get paid (one season): The IRS trains volunteers free through its VITA and TCE programs, using the online Link and Learn Taxes tool with certification tests. You practice on real returns with supervision, then take that experience to a paid job.
- Two-year accounting degree (2 years): An accounting or business associate degree makes you far more useful year-round, adds bookkeeping and payroll work in the off-season, and stacks toward a bachelor's degree later.
Where to Train in North Dakota:
- IRS VITA and TCE volunteer program — free IRS training, online or in a classroom, with certification tests through Link and Learn Taxes. Sites run nights and weekends. No prior tax experience assumed — irs.gov
- Bismarck State College (Bismarck) — Financial Technologies, AAS, online or on campus, with a stackable Accounting certificate; also a Liberal Arts Accounting pathway AA for transfer — catalog.bismarckstate.edu
- Minot State University (Minot) — Accounting, AAS, 60 credits, 2 years, built for bookkeeping and accounting clerk work — minotstateu.edu
- Lake Region State College (Devils Lake) — Business Administration, AA, plus a short Accounting Certificate — lrsc.edu
- North Dakota State College of Science (Wahpeton and Fargo) — Business Management, AAS, face-to-face or online, including Elements of Accounting I and II — catalog.ndscs.edu
Before You Start: High school diploma or GED is normal, though the IRS does not require one for a PTIN. You need to be comfortable with regular math, careful with numbers, patient with nervous people, and able to type. You must be able to keep a secret, because you see everything about a person's money.
Tip: Start with financial aid, scholarships, and any help an employer offers — that is where the money starts. After that, ask a career counselor or Job Service North Dakota whether WIOA or other programs can help with what is left over, like training, tools, work boots, or exam fees. What can be paid for depends on the program and on your own situation, so ask before you sign up rather than after. Registered apprenticeships let you earn a paycheck while you learn — see jobsnd.com/job-seeker/apprenticeships for ND programs.
Certification & Licensing
The PTIN is required. Everything above it is voluntary. The IRS runs all three levels. You can stop at the PTIN, or climb to Enrolled Agent, which is the highest credential the IRS awards.
IRS Credentials, Smallest to Largest:
- PTIN (required) — anyone who prepares or helps prepare federal tax returns for pay must have a valid PTIN. Most first-time applicants can apply online in about 15 minutes. The fee is $18.75 and is not refundable. It is renewed every year. A paper application on Form W-12 exists but takes about 6 weeks (irs.gov)
- Annual Filing Season Program (voluntary) — 18 hours of continuing education a year, including a 6-hour federal tax law refresher course with an exam. People who passed certain recognized tests need only 15 hours. You receive a Record of Completion and your name, city, state, and ZIP appear in a public IRS directory of preparers. Renewed every year (irs.gov)
- What the Annual Filing Season Program lets you do — you may represent clients whose returns you prepared and signed, but only before revenue agents, customer service representatives, and similar IRS employees, including the Taxpayer Advocate Service. You cannot handle appeals or collections (irs.gov)
- Enrolled Agent (voluntary, the top IRS credential) — get a PTIN, pass all three parts of the Special Enrollment Examination within three years, apply on Form 23 through Pay.gov with the fee, and pass a suitability check. Enrolled Agents have unlimited practice rights and may represent any taxpayer on any tax matter before the IRS (irs.gov)
- The Enrolled Agent suitability check — the IRS verifies that you have filed all your own required tax returns and have no unpaid tax debt, and it reviews your criminal background. Get your own taxes current before you apply (irs.gov)
- No state license — North Dakota does not require a separate state tax preparer license. Preparing returns is not the same as being a CPA, which is a separate license from the North Dakota State Board of Accountancy (ndsba.nd.gov)
The Exams: There is no exam for a PTIN. The Annual Filing Season Program includes a test at the end of its 6-hour refresher course. The Enrolled Agent exam has three parts and you must pass all three within three years.
Cost: The PTIN is $18.75 a year. Annual Filing Season Program continuing education courses are sold by approved providers at varying prices. Enrolled Agent exam and enrollment fees are set by the IRS and its testing company, so check irs.gov for current amounts. Compared to every other career in this group, the cost to start is very small.
Keeping It Current: Renew the PTIN every year. The Annual Filing Season Program Record of Completion is earned again each year. Enrolled Agents renew every three years and complete 72 hours of continuing education over that period, and still renew the PTIN annually.
Salary & Job Outlook
North Dakota Tax Preparer Pay (May 2025):
- Starting out (bottom 10–25%): $17.83–$21.09/hour ($37,080–$43,870/year)
- Middle (median — half earn more, half earn less): $27.43/hour ($57,060/year)
- Experienced (top 25–10%): $37.72–$42.94/hour ($78,460–$89,310/year)
What that means: Read these annual numbers carefully, because they are the most misleading in this group. The annual figures assume year-round, full-time work. Most tax preparers do not work year round. If you only work the season, your actual yearly income will be far below the annual number shown, even when your hourly rate matches. The hourly numbers are the honest ones to plan with: the middle North Dakota tax preparer earns about $27.43 an hour, which is above the US middle of $26.40. Experienced preparers and Enrolled Agents who work year-round for an accounting firm are the ones at the top of this table. Some offices also pay a bonus per return.
Jobs in North Dakota: About 330 people do this work in ND today. By 2034, that should be about 370 (about 14% growth). Expect about 40 job openings every year in ND from growth and people retiring or changing jobs. Across the U.S., the change is about 5% growth — faster than average.
Outlook: Good, and better in North Dakota than nationally. About 40 openings a year in the state. Offices hire a wave of seasonal preparers every winter, so the real number of chances to get in is larger than the openings figure suggests.
Who Hires in ND: National tax preparation offices, local accounting and bookkeeping firms, CPA practices, banks and credit unions that offer tax help, and self-employed preparers working from home.
Work Setting: An office, a storefront, or your own home office. Sitting at a desk with a computer and a client across from you. Some preparers now work fully remote.
Physical Demands: Low. Sitting and typing for long stretches. In season, the hours are long, which is tiring in a different way. A good chair and screen magnification are common and reasonable requests.
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, North Dakota, May 2025 (SOC 13-2082); North Dakota and U.S. long-term employment projections 2024–2034, via O*NET OnLine. Numbers are rounded.
Where This Leads
Path 1: Seasonal Tax Preparer — Your first winter. Returns are reviewed by someone senior.
Path 2: Experienced Preparer — Harder returns, small businesses, your own client list.
Path 3: Annual Filing Season Program Participant — Listed in the IRS public directory.
Path 4: Enrolled Agent — The top IRS credential. Unlimited practice rights.
Path 5: Bookkeeper or Payroll Clerk — Year-round work that pairs with tax season.
Path 6: Own Tax Practice — Your own clients, your own schedule.
The Real Talk
What's Great:
- Easiest career here to start
- No degree required
- Very low cost to get going
- You can work from home
- Clear ladder up to Enrolled Agent
- People are grateful for the help
What's Hard:
- Strongly seasonal work
- Long hours from January to April
- Income may stop in the summer
- Mistakes cost clients money
- You must keep learning tax law changes
- Nervous, stressed clients
Be Honest: Can you handle work that is intense for three months and then stops? Do you have a plan for income the rest of the year? Are you careful enough that a typo will not slip past you?