Can An Accountant Work From Home?

Are you self-motivated? Do you have good organisational skills? Can you stay focused working by yourself? If you answered yes to all of these questions, working from home may be a good option. Keep in mind that some companies may require that you occasionally come into the office for meetings or training sessions. But, with the right tools and mindset, most accountants can successfully work from home.

There are a lot of misconceptions about accounting. For example, some people think that all accountants do is crunch numbers all day. The truth is, accounting can be a very versatile profession, and accountants can work in a variety of different settings. One of these settings is working from home. So, the question is, can an accountant work from home? The answer is yes, but there are some things you need to know before making the switch. Read on to learn moree.

In these days of remote work and constant communication, can an accountant really work from home? For example, accountants are responsible for tracking and recording financial transactions for their clients. This job function can be done from virtually anywhere with an internet connection. So, the answer is yes - accountants can definitely work from home!

Can Accountants Work from Home?

Many accountants have entered their busiest time of year with tax season fully upon us. But accountants often do much more than file taxes. Accounting work can encompass handling financial records and documentation, analyzing data, and helping to ensure the smooth financial operation of an organisation—all duties that can be done remotely.

Much of accounting work is digitised, which means it can be done online, often from anywhere. And if you’re a job seeker with an accounting or related degree, CPA certification, experience, or other qualifications, you can find a range of employers offering remote accounting work.

Remote Work and Accounting

Accountants can take on a variety of specialised roles such as financial accounting, auditing, budgeting, government accounting, forensic accounting, and certified public accounting. This means accounting professionals can work across a range of private and government employers, and it’s often work they can do from home.

The major accounting firms, known as the Big Four, are leaders in work flexibility. Those firms are Deloitte, EY – Ernst & Young, KPMG, and PricewaterhouseCoopers. In addition, many smaller accounting organisations offer fantastic remote accounting jobs for qualified candidates.

The accounting and finance field was one of the most represented career fields on FlexJobs’ list of the top 100 companies with remote jobs. In addition, this list of employers posted the most remote jobs on our site over the last year. Accounting and finance came in as the sixth most popular field for remote work.

Note: FlexJobs is a subscription service for job seekers that features flexible and remote, work from home jobs. With an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau, the monthly subscription costs allow us to fully vet and verify all of the jobs on our site—ensuring that customers have a safe and positive job searching experience.

Great Remote Opportunities and Job Growth

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projected a job growth outlook for accountants at 6% from 2018 to 2028.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) also noted that while the work environment for accountants and auditors is often a traditional brick-and-mortar workplace, accountants often work from home. In addition, many accountants are self-employed and enjoy work and scheduling flexibility as independent contractors, too.

Accounting and finance jobs can also pay well. Nationally, the median annual wage for accountants was more than $70,500 in 2018, according to the BLS. In addition, the top 10% of accountants and auditors earned more than $122,840 a year. Across the U.S., about 1.4 million people worked in the profession in 2018.

Common Remote Accounting Jobs

Bookkeeper

Bookkeepers maintain financial books by using accounting software such as QuickBooks. They will record transactions and provide monthly quarterly, and annual reports. However, bookkeepers do not analyse financial reports or give tax advice compared to an accountant.

Accountant

An accountant’s main function is to review financial documents for accuracy and completeness and to make recommendations based on a company’s or individual’s financial status. Accountants can work from home, staying in touch with clients via phone or email.

Accounting Manager

This managerial role oversees the operations of the accounting department, such as accounts payable and receivable, general ledger, payroll, cash forecasting, etc. They may also work with other departments to discuss budgets and expenses.

Auditor

An auditor works to ensure the information reported on financial statements is accurate and in compliance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). The auditor will gather information from a company, speak with departments as needed, and develop recommendations and action items for an organisation.

CPA

A CPA, or Certified Public Accountant, prepares and reviews financial statements, prepares tax returns, and represents tax payers for audits. CPAs have passed certain examinations and met licensing requirements to be certified in their state.

Financial Analyst

Financial analysts assist businesses and individuals with making investment decisions, such as stocks and bonds. They assess investment performance and make recommendations. This type of role can be found at banks, mutual funds, insurance companies, and more.

Payroll Accountant

The duties of a payroll accountant involve ensuring timely and accurate payroll operations. They calculate employee paychecks, track time cards and requests for leaves of absences, assess payroll and tax documents for accuracy, and more.

Can Accountants Work from Home?

Accountants can work from home, and there are many jobs for telecommuting accountants.  These include auditor, bookkeeper, controller, CFO, financial analyst, and manager.  Accountants who telecommute can work for small or large companies, either as employees or contractors.  They can even start their own accounting firms!

Requirements

To be an accountant, there are different requirements for education and experience to be an accountant, depending on the role.

Education

If you join the family business, they may hire you as a bookkeeper with a high school diploma as a bookkeeper.  However, most small companies will require at least an Associate’s Degree, along with some bookkeeping experience.

In order to work as an accountant at larger companies, you will likely need a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting.  If you want a pay boost and more opportunities, consider becoming a CPA, or Certified Public Accountant.  To become a CPA, you must pass the CPA exam.  Usually, this involves studying for 300 to 400 hours before the test.

You can go even further and earn a Master’s Degree in Accounting.  This can boost your pay even further, although you should probably gain some experience before pursuing an advanced degree.

Experience

The experience required for a remote accounting job will depend on the responsibilities and pay.

In a bookkeeping job, you will be updating and maintaining a company’s general ledger.  This general ledger is a record of the company’s financial transactions, including income and expenses.

If you work as a personal tax preparer, you should know all about the 1040s.  This includes knowledge about different types of income and the associated taxes.  It also involves knowledge about personal tax deductions and credits.  You should also be familiar with income taxes and applicable rules in your state.

If you work for a business or corporation, you will need to know about depreciation schedules and possibly payroll.  You should also have the ability to schedule payments and keep track of bills.  If you pay late, you can hurt your company’s credit.  If you pay everything too early, the company can run short of cash for emergencies.  Figuring out a schedule for paying bills consistently, and adapting based on unexpected expenses, is part of your job.

Jobs and Companies

There are many different jobs in the accounting world.  Some, like bookkeeping for a small company, some may only require a high school diploma.  Other jobs, like high-profile positions in a large corporation, will require you to be a CPA.  They will also require many years of experience, an advanced education, and detailed knowledge of the company.

Jobs

There are several different jobs that you might hold as an accountant.  This list is not exhaustive, but should give you an idea of the variety of available roles.

Bookkeeper

As a bookkeeper, you will probably only need a high school diploma or Associate’s Degree for small companies.  In many family enterprises, the ledger will not be complex.  In this case, a reasonably hard-working high school graduate could learn the job from family members.  You might also do payroll processing, in addition to paying and sending out bills.

CPA

A CPA who runs his own accounting firm can prepare personal and business taxes for clients.  However, he also has a good understanding of legal entities, such as Limited Partnerships, LLCs, S Corporations, and C Corporations.  He also understands the benefits and drawbacks of each.  A good CPA offers advice on structuring a business to minimize taxes paid.

Financial Auditor

In this role, you will analyze financial records to make sure that they are accurate.  You will note any discrepancies, in addition to searching for unusual patterns.  An auditor can uncover fraud on income claimed, taxes owed, or business income reported to partners or investors.

Forensic Accountant

Companies and courts call upon a forensic accountant when expecting a lawsuit.  This will involve investigating the financial records of a company.  You might be looking for include payroll fraud, tax fraud, or some other type of discrepancy in records.  In this role, your work must be impeccable so that it will be admissible in court.  You might also testify in court regarding your findings.

Chief Financial Officer

A CFO prepares and presents reports on a company’s historical financial data.  This gives company management or potential investors a look at how the company has fared over a specific time period.  A CFO also looks after a company’s assets, deciding how and when to invest.

In addition, he decides whether to take on debt or use equity financing.  Finally, a CFO provides projections and forecasts for the company’s probable future growth.

Keep in mind that if you have a higher-visibility role in the company, you are less likely to work remotely.  The reason is that company leadership wants to see high-ranking lieutenants in the office.

They don’t want investors to have the wrong idea!

Working from Home: Virtual Accounting Jobs

The internet has revolutionized what the daily grind is like for people in a host of occupations and industries. In fact, based on the most recent statistics available, close to 40% of full-time employees perform 100% of their traditional work-related duties from their house, according to Gallup polling.

That’s up from an average of just 4% in 2019. Even prior to the coronavirus pandemic, 39% of Australians worked from home at least once per week, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers survey. That rate has since risen to 77%.

Some of these telecommuting workers are accountants. As with several other positions that have become available — due in part to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic —accounting jobs are increasingly common among firms of all sizes, given the fact that their job responsibilities are easily done remotely.

How can you find these accounting jobs? Are they primarily in only certain parts of the country, or are these virtual positions available in all 50 states? Are the assignments that accountants perform virtually the same as those who work in a traditional office setting?

What Does a Virtual Accountant Do?

Whether it’s verifying financial transactions, bookkeeping, preparing tax documents, reviewing transactions or preparing statements, accountants are involved in numerous tasks that are largely administrative in nature. The key distinction isn’t what they do, but where they do it from.

Through enterprise resource management software, cloud computing and a reliable internet connection, accountants that work remotely can log on from just about anywhere to complete their work. Traditionally, remote work is done from individuals’ homes, mainly because of the convenience and seamlessness of the transition. Home offices may also have other equipment that can help make their jobs easier.

For example, if someone needs to have their taxes reviewed or completed, tax preparers might leverage copiers or printers so they can print out what their clients send them electronically.

Here are a few other common duties of accountants, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

• Suggest ways clients or businesses can reduce costs or improve profits
• Make best-practice recommendations to managers or executives
• Identify potential external and internal risks for fraud
• Assess and evaluate the efficiency of financial operations and decision-making

Given where these duties are conducted, it’s common for employers to seek experienced accountants who are familiar with accounting software and how to use it via cloud computing.

How Much Do Virtual Accounting Jobs Pay?

Just as accountants may be involved in several different tasks on any given day, the salary possibilities are wide-ranging and frequently influenced by accounting experience, not where they’re performed from.

On average, an accountant that works part or 100% remotely can see yearly salaries run around $57,525, according to the best estimates of ZipRecruiter. That’s the case nationally.

In certain cities, wages can be considerably higher. In California, annual salaries for virtual accounting jobs range between approximately $60,000 and $70,000. For a senior accounting manager that works from home, the average annual salary is $102,700. Again, the location of the job doesn’t affect the rate of pay.

The rate of pay is usually influenced by supply and demand, cost of living, job experience and whether the position is full time or part time.

Where Can You Find Virtual Accounting Jobs?

Given that work situations have changed for so many people and businesses, virtual accounting jobs are available all around the country.

Many accounting firms have gone entirely remote. In situations where certain tasks require reviewing receipts, clients and accountants may need to make arrangements to meet or to have documentation sent digitally.

Since more businesses are sending receipts via email, receipt collection can often be done without paper ever exchanging hands.

While BLS’ list is for all general accountants, 99% of accounting firms nationally offer remote work programs, according to a 2018 report from ConvergenceCoaching.

Job search websites and remote apps offer job alert functions that allow users to receive notifications when certain virtual accounting jobs become available. These job alerts can be customized based upon location, type of accounting (e.g. public accounting), or if they’re part time or full time.