Tax accountants in short supply as Minnesotans file ahead of April deadline

Tax deadline day is less than a month away, and there’s a national shortage of tax accountants.

The shortage is forcing some Minnesota tax companies to not take on new clients, including Speiker & Company in Prior Lake.

The owner of the company, Sara Wintheiser, says if you don’t want to do your taxes and can’t find an accountant before the deadline you can protect yourself.

“At this point, you’re going to have to file an extension, which is fine, but just know that filing an extension only extends the filing, not the payments, so if you owe money, you still need to plan for that,” Wintheiser said.

There’s been a pandemic push away from the profession. According to numbers from the U.S. government, over the last two years, more than 300,000 accountants and auditors quit their jobs.