A tax accountant is a certified public accountant, and a licensed professional that offers a wide array of financial services, whereas a tax preparer is a non-licensed professional that only specializes in tax preparation. Most tax preparers are trained in basic tax preparation and have to take a formal exam to attain IRS employment. However, a tax accountant benefits from continuous and advanced education. They provide accounting services to the public as a financial expert that deals with finances based on their in-depth knowledge of local and national laws and regulations. Nevertheless, some tax preparers can also undertake complex tax returns.

            Tax accountants offering exceptional CFO services in Highlands Ranch handle bookkeeping and financial documents as well as sensitive data/information regarding loss statements and balance sheets. They can also audit your books and prepare tax reports. Conversely, a tax preparer can only detect possible errors within your tax reports. Some may also calculate tax payments and complete tax documentation by estimating expenses, tax returns and liabilities. However, a good tax preparer may even be able to collect data from expense documents and help you prepare monthly tax reports.

            All in all, the main difference between a tax accountant and a tax preparer is the level of education and the set of skills that they have achieved through training.