Jr Tax Accountant

Recruit CRM; Arlington Heights (IL); Remote; USD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

Optipeople-Resources is seeking a junior tax professional to join their remote-first team. You will prepare individual and small business returns, review ledgers, and hand off files for fast reviewer processing, while supporting extensions, estimates, and year-end filings.

The role emphasizes accuracy, accountability, and communication in a fully remote setup, with room to grow through CPA-oriented development and client partnerships.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in accounting.
• 1–3 years preparing tax returns, including at least one full busy season.
• Hands-on preparation experience with 1040s and corporate returns (1120 and 1120‑S). Partnership experience is welcome.
• Comfortable working in the general ledger, reading a balance sheet and P&L, and spotting what looks off.
• Working knowledge of professional tax preparation software and cloud accounting software.
• Solid Excel skills.
• Careful with details, and organized enough to keep several client deadlines straight at once.
• Able to work independently in a fully remote setup, and quick to raise a hand when stuck.
• A private workspace and reliable internet at home.

Responsibilities

• Prepare individual returns (Form 1040) and schedules, including Schedule C, Schedule E, rental activity, and investment income.
• Prepare business returns for small and mid-sized clients: Form 1120, 1120-S, and 1065, along with related state filings.
• Work in the general ledger; review account activity, propose adjusting entries, and clear reconciling items before building the return.
• Prepare and review financial statement packages, and tie the books to the return.
• Handle book-to-tax adjustments, depreciation schedules, and fixed asset rollforwards.
• Prepare extensions and quarterly estimates, and support year-end 1099 and W-2 filings.
• Draft responses to IRS and state notices and track them through to resolution.
• Build workpapers someone else can pick up and follow without calling you.
• Answer client questions by email and on calls, involve a senior when needed.
• Keep your due dates organized and flag risk to your manager early.

Job description

Our client partners with small, mid-sized, and nonprofit organizations to provide full-lifecycle enterprise support. Their services span accounting, controller, and CFO-level advisory, helping leaders understand not just where their business is today, but how to scale it for the future. They work alongside business owners as true partners advising on needs, priorities, and paths forward. From foundational accounting to strategic planning, root cause analysis, and framework design, their work helps clients transition from owner-operators to confident CEOs. The team operates in a collaborative, remote-first environment where accuracy, accountability, and communication matter. They value curiosity, professionalism, and people who want to grow alongside the clients they support.

About Us:

Our client partners with small, mid-sized, and nonprofit organizations to provide full-lifecycle enterprise support. Their services span accounting, controller, and CFO-level advisory, helping leaders understand not just where their business is today, but how to scale it for the future. They work alongside business owners as true partners advising on needs, priorities, and paths forward. From foundational accounting to strategic planning, root cause analysis, and framework design, their work helps clients transition from owner-operators to confident CEOs. The team operates in a collaborative, remote-first environment where accuracy, accountability, and communication matter. They value curiosity, professionalism, and people who want to grow alongside the clients they support.

About the role

This is a junior tax position for someone with a busy season or two behind them who wants to keep building. You will prepare individual and business returns, work through the general ledger to get to a clean set of financials, and hand off files a reviewer can move through quickly.

What you’ll do

• Prepare individual returns (Form 1040) and the schedules that come with them, including Schedule C, Schedule E, rental activity, and investment income.
• Prepare business returns for small and mid-sized clients: Form 1120, 1120-S, and 1065, along with the related state filings.
• Work in the general ledger. Review account activity, propose adjusting journal entries, and clear reconciling items before building the return.
• Prepare and review financial statement packages, and tie the books to the return.
• Handle book-to-tax adjustments, depreciation schedules, and fixed asset rollforwards.
• Prepare extensions and quarterly estimates, and support year-end 1099 and W-2 filings.
• Draft responses to IRS and state notices and track them through to resolution.
• Build workpapers someone else can pick up and follow without calling you.
• Answer client questions by email and on calls, and pull in a senior when a question runs past what you know.
• Keep your due dates organized and flag risk to your manager early.

What we're looking for

• Bachelor's degree in accounting.
• One to three years preparing tax returns, including at least one full busy season.
• Hands‑on preparation experience with 1040s and corporate returns (1120 and 1120‑S). Partnership experience is welcome.
• Comfortable working in the general ledger, reading a balance sheet and P&L, and spotting what looks off.
• Working knowledge of professional tax preparation software and cloud accounting software.
• Solid Excel skills.
• Careful with details, and organized enough to keep several client deadlines straight at once.
• Able to work independently in a fully remote setup, and quick to raise a hand when stuck.
• A private workspace and reliable internet at home.

Helpful, not required

• Public accounting experience at a small or mid-sized firm.
• CPA license, CPA candidate, or actively working toward the exam.
• Multi‑state filing experience.
• Payroll tax or sales and use tax exposure.
• Experience with QuickBooks Online or a cloud practice management platform.