Tax pros, is it time to raise your fees or pricing structure?

With tax season fresh in the rearview mirror, it’s time to ask yourself: Does my pricing match the work I’m doing?

If your services have expanded or your pricing has not kept pace with the reality of the work, now may be the right time to adjust.

Start with what changed in your practice this year

A fee review works best when it starts with a simple season debrief. Ask yourself:

• What changed in your practice this year? 
• Where did you underprice complexity? 
• Where did scope creep show up? 
• What broke that you never want to repeat? 
• What worked and should be protected or scaled?

Maybe you underpriced complex returns and resented the work by March. 

Maybe a return that looked straightforward picked up rentals, crypto activity or property sales, or added W-2s or brokerage statements halfway through the filing process. 

Maybe your business return pricing felt better because you used a value-based approach, and clients accepted it without much pushback.

Legacy clients can outgrow legacy pricing

A long-time client may have been easy to price years ago. Maybe it started as a basic Form 1040. But over time, that same client may now have rental activity, investments, crypto transactions, multiple states, more schedules, extra hand-holding and year-round questions.

The relationship stayed the same. The return did not.

It can feel uncomfortable to raise fees for loyal clients, especially if they have been with you for years. Legacy clients can outgrow legacy pricing.

Match today’s fees to today’s scope, judgment, complexity and risk. If a client’s return now requires more from your firm, the pricing should reflect that reality. 

Remember to handle the conversation with care and confidence, so the client understands the change is intentional and fair.

Use the NATP Fee Study to benchmark

A return’s price should reflect the actual work involved, as well as your credentials, experience, market, service model and risk tolerance.

Our study can help you check if your pricing structure still makes sense. It can also help you see how other firms approach pricing. Nearly half of respondents use a structured method that starts with a minimum fee and then layers in complexity or value. This practical framework provides consistency without overlooking the facts of the return.

NATP also has a partnership with SmartPath. SmartPath has a pricing engine that recommends the perfect price for any tax or accounting client in seconds.

Price for the firm you want to run next season

Don’t wait until fall to start thinking about pricing conversations. Summer is the time to rebuild your fee structure and put a plan in place while the pressure is off.

Use this window to design pricing that supports the kind of practice you want to run next season. That may mean setting clearer minimums, defining what’s included and what’s not, or building in pricing for advisory work and ongoing client support.

Then follow through. Start communicating the changes early, so clients are informed, not surprised. When pricing reflects the full scope of your work, including tax planning and responsiveness outside of filing season, it reinforces your role as more than just a tax preparer.

A well-rounded tax professional does not disappear after April. Your pricing should reflect that.