What is taxation?

Taxation is the examination of how taxes are designed, implemented and administered, as well as the impact of taxes of individuals, businesses and the economy as a whole. Studying taxation involves analysing tax policies through various lenses such as fairness, efficiency and revenue generation in order to develop recommendations to improve the tax system. Further, the study of taxation also involves the examination of how different countries and jurisdictions approach the process of taxing individuals and businesses, and the ways in which tax laws and policies can be used to achieve specific economic or social objectives.

Skills needed in Taxation

Career Pathways in Taxation

Tax Accountant

A tax accountant is responsible for preparing and filing tax returns for individuals, businesses and organisations. As financial professionals, they are responsible for ensuring that clients are compliant with tax laws and regulations, whilst maximising their clients’ tax savings by taking advantage of available deductions, credits, and other tax benefits. These responsibilities could also fall under the titles of financial advisers and planners

Payroll Specialist

A payroll specialist is a professional responsible for managing an organisation’s payroll process, including calculating and distributing employee pay checks and ensuring that organisations are compliant with tax laws and regulations. They must have a thorough understanding of tax laws and regulations, and proficient with payroll software to calculate and process employee pay checks. Further, they may also be responsible for preparing and filing payroll tax returns, tracking and reporting on employee benefits and managing other payroll-related task

Auditor

The role of a tax auditor is to ensure businesses are compliant with laws and regulations financially. By evaluating their financial records, auditors are able to identify whether the company has committed fraud, mismanagement of funds, laundering or other tax errors.  Auditors can be classified into either internal, external, or government auditors, and their position must remain unbiased to maintain objectivity in their findings and results.