RAGS TO RICHES | Finding the CA of your Dreams
A monthly dose of finance for creative professionals, freelancers, artists, heavily aided by stories, puns, memes and examples.
Written by Ragini Singh Khushwaha, founder of ArtNowThus and subject matter expert on the arts, media and content, cats, random factlets from around the world and productivity hacks.
With inputs from Sakina and Husein Merchant, Chartered Accountants who attempt to bring out their best selves by combining their professional skills and their love of being around and learning from other creators.
I mentioned in my last article on tax planning, that “Speak to your CA” was the holy grail of my tax advice.
“But Ragini, what if I don’t have a CA and have never had one.”
“How do I go about finding the right CA?”
My personal opinion is that you don’t absolutely need a CA. I know plenty of people who aren’t necessarily from a finance background or even the most financially savvy, and have been managing their own taxes for years. What I do think is helpful though, is having someone you can talk to about this stuff who can help out when you have a question, or if you need a little guidance. This could be a friend, your dad, your friend’s aunt who knows about this stuff, your dad’s CA - you get the picture.
For me it made sense to get a CA on board when I started the company. But until then I basically asked my dad and did what he told me to. And I got lucky - the money gods smiled on me during my hunt and my current CA was pretty much just handed to me with very little work on my part.
Unfortunately there isn’t a tried and tested step-by-step guide to finding the right CA ( believe me I tried hard to find it while putting this together). But from what I can tell you, finding the right CA is a little bit like dating around until you find “the one” (or whatever akin to that you do manage to find).
If you think you need a CA but aren’t having a lot of luck finding one, here are a few things that might help streamline the process - in dating lingo that too!
Like any good potential first date, a set-up through people who know you has a much higher chance of working. Chances are that people who know you, will know what you need from someone helping you with your finances and are more likely to be able to recommend someone suited to you and your needs. Put the word out to everyone you know that you’re looking for a CA. If they have someone good that they could recommend, ask them to introduce you two.
While this is essentially a blind set-up, you don’t want to walk into it blind. Have a list of questions - what do you need them to help with, what are you looking to get out of this. And get your basic research in place - what’s your annual income, how have you been filing your taxes so far, what are your current investments. This much information is good to get going. But keep on hand anything you think may be relevant.
Now set that first date up. Give them a call and set up a meeting. I always recommend having the first meeting in-person as far as possible. But if it’s not doable, set aside an hour over a video call.
Once you’re at the meeting, it’s all about the conversation from here. A good CA fit is someone you can talk to easily without feeling awkward or stupid. Talking to a financial professional, especially when you don’t feel confident talking about money, can be very intimidating. If you’re feeling like you’re having trouble asking them questions, or if there’s a sense of being talked down to - I can already tell you, it’s not going to work out.
If this is going well and the conversation is flowing, congratulations you might just have found the one. Now all that’s left is to get the bill and know what this is going to cost you. This does vary based on all that the CA is doing for you, but on average somewhere between 5k and 10k annually is a reasonable range to pay for basic tax filing and consultation for tax planning and investments.
If it isn’t going well, that’s completely fine. There are plenty of CA in the sea and you just need to give another a shot until you find a match. What’s most important is that you are able to have a conversation with them, even when you feel overwhelmed and are out of your depth. If this works out, you’re paying for a service. And for that service to be performed well, you need to be able to understand what’s going on. It is their job to answer your questions and help you get there. I’m not saying be a dick about it. But you can still ask questions and expect reasonable answers while being respectful. So do that. And if you’re still not getting what you want, bounce and look for the next one.
Honestly, it’s not going to happen overnight. But if you feel like you need someone right now to help you with taxation and money - it makes sense to find a CA. This doesn’t need to be a lifelong investment though. Once you feel like you have a handle on things, you could easily do this by yourself.
But until then, I hope this helps you find the CA of your dreams.
