The information provided below is intended for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. It does not take into account your specific circumstances. This information should be read in conjunction with the Tax Practitioners Board website.

Each pathway to becoming a registered tax agent requires ‘relevant experience’ within a set timeframe. Under the: 

• Tertiary qualifications in accounting pathway (Item 201), at least 12 months of relevant experience is required within the past 5 year period.
  Australian degree or post-graduate pathway for registered tax agents
• Membership of a professional association pathway (Item 206), at least 8 years of relevant experience is required within the past 10 year period.
  Member of a professional association becoming a registered tax agent

Relevant experience

Relevant experience includes working for a registered tax agent or performing ‘work of another kind’ related to tax agent services or tax law:

• Working for a tax agent or in a tax role is typically considered to be ‘relevant experience’
• Tax-related work in a non-tax role, such as tax analysis in a financial accounting position, may also be classified as ‘work of another kind’
• Members who have joined CA ANZ through the Global Accounting Alliance (GAA) reciprocal arrangement, can include tax experience from other jurisdictions with similar tax regimes, such as the UK, combined with Australian tax experience
• Members in a non-tax role or with overseas tax experience will need to contact the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) to confirm that their experiences will qualify as ‘relevant experience’ or ‘work of another kind’.

Timeframes

CA ANZ has advocated for changes to the timeframes for members to gain relevant experience. CA ANZ supports the government’s 2025-26 Federal Budget proposal, which would give the TPB more flexibility to assess whether an applicant has sufficient relevant experience. This flexibility would consider scenarios such as overseas tax-related work, career breaks, parental leave, non-traditional tax roles and semi-retired.