With the end of 2011 just around the corner, career opportunities with the IRS are growing. Despite the the high unemployment rate and the economy falling fast, the IRS is in the process of filling jobs, and they have been for the past year. The IRS’s job growth is not all that surprising considering everyone has to file taxes.

The efforts of the IRS to enforce their laws and codes have made it necessary for them to hire more staff to help in getting taxpayers to pay their fair share. In 2009 alone, the number of “Enforcement Agents” was at 21,059. That same year, Deputy IRS Commissioner, Linda Stiff, projected a 10% increase in IRS agents each year for the next few years. In a statement, Ms. Stiff said, “We cannot allow an environment to develop where wealthy individuals or companies can go offshore and avoid paying taxes with impunity.” The current level of job creation in IRS is quickly becoming a common occurrence.

The Health Care Bill, tax preparer oversight detection and enforcement efforts is making more work for the IRS. The IRS has been diligently working to make all taxpayers compliant, which has lead to the need for more agents. Last year, the IRS hired approximately 16,000 new agents across the U.S. to help with their efforts to find taxpayers who were not paying their taxes. Also, with the new requirements for testing and certification of tax preparers, more agents are needed to oversee compliance on these requirements. There are nearly 1.2 million tax preparers in the United States, and that means there needs to be many more agents inside the IRS to supervise. With the stronger enforcement efforts in getting hidden overseas money back into the states, more agents need to be hired to assist in that effort. With so many new laws in effect, it has been necessary for the IRS to hire new agents, and the growth seems to be continuing.

It may be safe to say that job growth at the IRS is likely to continue in the next few years. This is a major opportunity for accountants who have been struggling to find work, especially those who have expertise in tax preparation and auditing. Even though many other industries aren’t showing growth in the job market, the IRS seems to be the exception to the rule.

You can check out more information about employment with the IRS on their website: www.irs.gov.

Daniel Stoica Accounting Professional