Tax Graduate - Corporate International and Transfer Pricing

We’re BDO. An accountancy and business advisory firm, providing the advice and solutions businesses need to navigate today’s changing world.

We’ll broaden your horizons

In Corporate International Tax and Transfer Pricing team we provide UK and international tax advice to a multinational businesses across a wide range of sectors and jurisdictions. Our clients range from early-stage businesses taking their first steps outside the UK to multinational enterprises with complex operations and structures all over the world. They come to BDO for advice on navigating tax issues across different jurisdictions – and we deliver it through an extensive international network of 1,400 offices in 158 countries.

We advise clients on the full range of international tax issues, including transfer pricing. On joining the wider corporate international team you would become a part of either the corporate international sub-team or transfer pricing sub-team. A brief outline of the type of work you would undertake in our corporate international and transfer pricing teams is included below.

Our focus is always on broader business objectives and we develop tailored tax solutions to help achieve them. We operate in a dynamic and constantly evolving landscape as governments around the world make changes to their tax legislation. As a result we look for graduates who have good all-round intellectual and people skills – including the ability to understand complex ideas and interpret them in simple terms. You’ll also need to be ready to collaborate with colleagues from around the world and project-manage solutions with many different strands.

You’ll work towards a joint tax and accountancy qualification route (ACA/CTA Joint Programme) and you’ll be able to supplement your studies with broader in-house technical training. The ACA/CTA Joint Programme enabling you to become Associate Chartered Accountants (ACA) and Chartered Tax Advisors (CTA) . You will gain two qualification from two institutes under a Level 7 apprenticeship. The ACA/CTA Joint Programme gives you the opportunity to specialise in one of three areas – taxation of major corporates, owner-managed businesses or indirect tax. The duration of this programme is 36 months. The programme offers a fast-track route to become a specialist in tax - you’ll find your expertise is in high demand, with the possibility of a truly international career ahead.

Corporate international tax

Our work as corporate international tax specialists typically involves assisting and advising businesses as they plan to undertake significant cross-border transactions such as M&C, corporate reorganisations, financing and refinancing exercises, and UK inbound/outbound investment. A role within this team would provide an opportunity to learn about all aspects of UK business taxation and to gain exposure to a range of international tax issues including the expansion of businesses overseas, minimising the overall tax burden on those overseas companies, tax issues arising from the repatriation of profits back to the UK, consideration of foreign exchange and withholding tax issues, and the changing international tax landscape following the recent of the work of the OECD in respect of the BEPS initiative in 2015 and, more recently, its publications on the taxation of the digital economy.

In the early stages of your career in corporate international tax, your work will include:

• Building a portfolio of clients with the expectation of becoming a regular day-to-day point of contact for these clients, including attendance and participation at client meetings;
• Analysing international tax technical issues such as permanent establishments, cross-border withholding taxes, and anti-avoidance provisions such as the UK’s controlled foreign companies rules and also the UK’s diverted profits tax.
• Researching and presenting on key changes and new developments in the international tax landscape;
• Developing tax advisory skills and assisting with the preparation of reports, and having the opportunity to be involved in cross-border M&A transactions by providing support with tax due diligence exercises.
• Addressing corporate tax compliance issues, assisting with the preparation and review of UK corporate tax returns;

Transfer pricing

Transfer pricing is a specialist area within corporate international tax and an area that continues to be a high priority focus for tax authorities worldwide. The OECD’s work on BEPS has increased scrutiny around transfer pricing, making it more important than even for businesses to ensure they have suitable transfer pricing methodology and supporting documentation in place to articulate the alignment between value creation and where profits are taxed. A role within this team would provide the opportunity to work with international groups in order to understand how their operations are structured across different territories, how they are financed and how their international property is developed and managed. Following this you will then work with the group to ensure that their international transactions are in line with the reality of their operations which may take the form of working with other teams on corporate reorganisations or ensuring that the group has necessary documentation to support their transactions and comply with the laws of any countries they operate in.

In the early stages of your career in our transfer pricing team, your work will include:

• Attending and contributing to client meetings with key individuals in order to understand where the important group functions, assets and risks are located.
• Helping to draft transfer pricing reports and documentation. This may include working with BDO overseas offices to understand the local compliance requirements.
• Performing analysis to ensure that the transactions between Group companies are being carried out in accordance with the arm’s length principle.
• Developing an understanding of the key transfer pricing considerations for Group’s entering new territories.

We’ll help you succeed

The three-year Tax Graduate Programme is your opportunity to learn our sector inside out, get real experience on real projects and achieve a recognised professional qualification. We’ll cover your exam fees and give you the study leave and extra training you’ll need to pass them while you balance your own workload. That training isn’t just about passing the exams, you’ll learn a range of personal, management and client-related skills that will help you become a full rounded BDO advisor and achieve your full potential.

Programme & Qualification

BDO offer the ACA CTA Joint Programme enabling you to become Associate Chartered Accountants (ACA) and Chartered Tax Advisors (CTA) . You will gain two qualification from two institutes under a Level 7 apprenticeship. The ACA CTA Joint Programme gives you the opportunity to specialise in one of three areas – taxation of major corporates, owner-managed businesses or indirect tax. The programme offers a fast-track route to become a specialist in tax. The duration of this programme is 36 months.

A role within this team would provide an opportunity to learn about all aspects of UK business taxation and to gain exposure to a range of international tax issues including the expansion of businesses overseas, minimising the overall tax burden on those overseas companies, tax issues arising from the repatriation of profits back to the UK, consideration of foreign exchange and withholding tax issues, and the changing international tax landscape following the release of the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Actions in October 2015. A role in this team will also provide an opportunity to be involved in projects for advising businesses on UK and overseas cross-border mergers and acquisitions as well as internal corporate reorganisations.

Responsibilities

• Becoming a designated team member for a number of clients, supporting the manager, director and partner on each client team, and assisting with the day-to-day management of the relationships with these clients
• Managing the UK corporation tax compliance process for a portfolio of clients which will include preparing UK corporation tax returns and liaising with the client and the client’s auditors to obtain the relevant information for the returns
• Supporting managers and directors on international tax advisory projects by researching particular UK and overseas tax issues, drafting sections for tax advisory papers, co-ordinating input from BDO International member firms regarding overseas tax issues
• Assisting with the preparation of tax clearances (eg withholding tax clearances)
• Researching new pieces of UK tax legislation as well as international tax developments, and sharing relevant updates with clients
• Supporting managers and directors with the preparation of proposals and tender documents for new business opportunities
• Communicating with HMRC on behalf of clients
• Helping with the client take-on procedure when new projects are won
• Successfully study towards your professional qualification and, where relevant, corresponding apprenticeship

When you join us

When you join us, we’ll make your growth our priority. If you’re right for us, you’ll thrive in an environment built to help you succeed. We’re looking for someone with:

• A 2:2 degree in any discipline (obtained or predicted)
• Three A-levels or equivalent at A* to C excluding General Studies and Extended Projects (obtained or predicted)
• A* to C in Maths and English at GCSE/Scottish Standards or equivalent (non-UK qualifications also considered)

We’re in it together

At BDO, we believe that when our people feel valued and rewarded, their potential is unlimited. We offer highly competitive starting salaries and review remuneration packages regularly to ensure that our pay always positively reflects performance. As well as offering support with tuition and professional qualifications, we also provide the following benefits, as standard:

• 25 days’ holiday;
• access to a personal pension scheme, with matched employer contributions;
• life assurance cover;
• and income protection insurance.

For further information, and to apply, please visit our website via the “Apply” button below.