It’s tax time. It seems like it’ll never end.
I don’t do taxes, but boy, is tax preparation BIG business. In fact, there were three hundred, thousand people employed at over one hundred thousand firms in 2012 - generating nine billion dollars in revenue that year. Why; because of taxes. Revenues of eleven billion dollars are forecast for next year; and still there will be plenty of tax returns to go around – the IRS estimates that there will be over 250 million returns filed by 2018.
Despite politicians occasionally arguing for a flat tax, income taxes have remained as complicated as ever. There will always be a demand for tax preparers, even as computer software has become more user-friendly and accessible.
The industry, including other accounting services, is expected to grow by 4 percent per year, through at least 2018.
But, here’s the thing, tax preparation is unusual in that it provides a service to assist with a process that legally every single American is required to do: submit an income tax return. What a sweet gig! Because it’s required by law, tax preparation is mandatory through good times and bad times; and that’s just one reason why I don’t believe we’ll ever see the end of taxes – its big business!