What do the latest CIOT chartered tax advisor exam results tell us about the tax recruitment market coming into 2010?   With over twice the amount of people taking the exams being admitted to the institute than at the May 2009 sitting, what does this mean for the successful candidates and for those who haven’t passed? 

We have seen the in-house tax market pick up since Q3 2009, within banking and financial services in particular, although we’ve seen recruitment across a broad range of sectors.  We’ve also seen the ‘Big Four’ start to hire again into corporate tax teams in Q4 09.   There have been fewer redundancies during the same period and we have less people looking for jobs in tax who have been affected by redundancies which all indicates that the market is moving in the right direction. 

For people who have just passed their CTA, this is often seen traditionally as a career crossroads.  There are some good opportunities on the market but the best place to explore initially is at your own firm.   Will you get a pay rise or a promotion now that you have passed?  What options are available for you as an existing employee with a new qualification?   The external market is always worth exploring,  if only to benchmark your own package.

What if you haven’t passed?  My team have spoken to several people who haven’t passed their exams and none of these have had their contracts terminated by their employers (so far).   If this is widespread, then this is good news, as it will be yet another sign that confidence in the tax market is improving.

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