7 Highest Paying Countries for Accountants

Accounting can be a great career choice for anyone looking for stability and opportunities for constant professional advancement, especially in these 7 highest paying countries for accountants.

It is usually perceived as a boring and monotonous profession by those who are looking from the outside. Accountants are often imagined as uncreative, rigid, rules-obsessed individuals who prefer sitting in some secluded corner, crunching numbers and making endless, tiring reports. While it is essential for accountants to have solid math skills, their role is so much more than this. To be a sound accountant you don’t have to be Sherlock Holmes, but one must possess just the right blend of analytic, problem solving and investigative skills. Above all, and as opposed to Sherlock, one must have highly developed communication skills and ability to deal with people as well as with numbers. As such, the scope of this job is much more diverse and comprehensive than it is normally assumed. The reality is that it can actually be one of the most intellectually, but also financially rewarding jobs. And you can do it being employed in actually any type of the business.

The role of the accountant is not something any company can overlook. It is a necessity for the functioning of any private, public or nonprofit organization. Without it, companies would not be able to provide their shareholders, clients and the general public with reliable financial reports and thus would be limited in their intent to go bigger and larger. Professional accountants will be using their deductive and inductive reasoning to draw sensible and useful conclusions out of a number of different financial reports. Throughout the business world, based on the conclusions of accountants, numbers of operational, executive or strategic decisions are taken every day, thus their honest and expert voice is regarded as a prerequisite.

The list of job opportunities for accountants is almost endless. This makes it an attractive career option. Most importantly, regardless of how well the economy is doing, accountants are always in high demand. Governments’ bodies, large and small businesses, NGOs and sometimes even individuals are in continual need for accountants to manage their books and budgets, compute taxes and tax returns, organize and maintain financial records, and so on and so forth. Depending on the obtained education level, chosen career path and gained experience there is a wide salary range for professionals in the accounting field. If you are interested in cities offering opportunities for employment in accounting, you can read our article 11 Cities With The Highest Demand for Accountants.

Our list of 7 highest paying countries for accountants was based on the Global Salary Survey for 2015 by recruitment agency Robert Walters plc. It is a world-leading specialist in professional recruitment consultancy established in 1985. For the last 16 years, the company publishes a comprehensive overview of salaries and recruitment trends around the world. The Global Salary Survey for 2015 is an analysis of the permanent, interim and contract placements made across 25 countries company is doing business in, including the UK and Ireland, Continental Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Australia and New Zealand as well as North and South America.

In the making of this list following positions have been taken into consideration: general accountant, financial accountant, management accountant, cost accountant, senior accountant, chief accountant and group accountant. Final ordering of 7 highest paying countries for accountants has been made according to the lower band of the pay scales presented in the Survey. Also, all of the conclusions about current standing, future outlook, and opportunities for the prospective job seekers were taken from the aforementioned Survey.

A career in accounting has a lot to offer. Let us look what it offers in the following 7 countries.

7. Luxembourg

Average yearly salary: $59-70K
Position: Accountant
Years of experience: 3 – 5

Overview of the trends: Luxembourg is a country with the constant need for skilled foreign professionals to compensate for the scarcity of its local labor force. This trend has been prevailing for years, and it was crucial in making Luxembourg one of the most international and multicultural environment there is.

Foreign professionals are expected to be, of course, fluent in English with the high demand of bilingual candidates. Additional French and German language skills are considered as a great advantage. As the largest private banking/ financial center in the Eurozone, professionals with international experience are particularly in demand. What makes Luxembourg so appealing to foreign workers is its impressive quality of life and more than competitive salaries.

6. The USA

Average yearly salary: $60-80K 
Position: Senior Accountant
Years of experience: not defined

Overview of the trends: If you are an accountant in the USA which ranks 6th in our list of highest paying countries for accountants, or planning to become one, then you should know that trends in the recruitment of accountants and finance professionals were extremely positive throughout 2015. Candidates in greatest demand were proven professionals from eminent consulting firms, as well as MBAs graduates who have finished one of the prestigious colleges across the USA.

5. Australia

Average yearly salary: $63-97K 
Position: Accountant
Years of experience: not defined

Overview of the trends: During 2015 unemployment rate in Australia remained steady, at over 6%. The recruitment market for accounting and finance professionals experienced significant fluctuations throughout 2015. In the light of many overseas opportunities and lack of good openings locally, many ambitious accountants sought employment opportunities outside of Australia in 2015. In an attempt to stop this outflow, companies made an extra effort to retain the essential workforce. This is, for sure, positive outlook for Australian job market.

4. New Zealand

Average yearly salary: $64-85K
Position: Financial Accountant
Years of experience: 5+

Overview of the trends: Middle of our list of the highest paying countries for accountants is reserved for New Zealand with its still strong demand for qualified professionals from many different areas. Companies in New Zealand are usually very inclined to find and retain professionals who could act as true partners, add value to their business and enrich their corporate culture. Particularly those who can offer essential improvements in decision-making and provide sound analytical and financial reasoning are most welcomed. As a result, demand for chartered accountants continued to grow in 2015.

Available workforce is not an appropriate response to the existing demand, especially for candidates who have had experience of working in a corporate environment, whether within New Zealand or overseas. You can also count on generous remuneration packages since base salary rises alone are not treated as satisfying offers in New Zealand labor market.

3. The UK

Average yearly salary: $69-87K
Position: Fund Accountant
Years of experience: not defined

Overview of the trends: Hiring environment of the UK recruitment market became more competitive, especially when it comes to financial services. Employment process for professionals in financial services is traditionally very lively, and companies respond very quickly when a specific skill set is required. Demand for qualified accountants was not any different in 2015. On the contrary, it rose notably.

If you are a newly-qualified accountant, one with up to three years of professional experience or specialized in commercial advisory, then 2015 was your year in the UK that ranks third in our list of highest paying countries for accountants. If we are to talk about salaries, mid-level professionals had the best negotiation position regardless of what were their particular preferences: financial services or commerce firms. Demands were listened carefully as many employers showed a considerable flexibility while attracting candidates they wanted. All in all, employees had a considerable advantage since they were usually offered a number of positions to choose from.

Agency Robert Walters expects that talent shortages are likely to persist in 2016. Employers will work even harder to obtain and retain good staff while newly-qualified and mid-level accountants will continue to be a highly desirable resource for some time to come, across both financial services and commerce. So, London is definitely calling!

2. Switzerland

Average yearly salary: $80-100K
Position: Accountant
Years of experience: 3 – 7

Overview of the trends: Even though the Switzerland is the second in our list of highest paying countries for accountants, overall employment trends were mixed to negative. On the one hand, there was an ongoing debate in the country about limiting the number of foreign professional workers in Switzerland. On the other hand, strong Swiss Franc and slower domestic growth meant that approach to hiring was very cautious.

The accounting and finance job market was pretty challenging during 2015. Due to high employment costs and concerns over the strength of the Swiss Franc against the Euro companies were reluctant to maintain their operations in Switzerland but were rather choosing to move to the lower-cost locations in Europe.

With demand still in green and high salaries in 2015, Switzerland is still deservedly in the second place of our list.

1. Japan

Average yearly salary: $87-160K
Position: Financial/Management Accountant
Years of experience: 4 – 8

Overview of the trends: The Japanese jobs market was extremely active in 2015, with constant improvement in country’s economic outlook thus creating an optimistic attitude among local companies and foreign multinationals. Agency Robert Walters predicted continuation in levels of hiring activity, especially in searching for bilingual professionals. Since Japanese language fluency is one of the most searched for employment requirements, for most jobs, opportunities for foreign workers are pretty limited.

On the other side, there is a significant gap between the growing numbers of vacancies and available local staff. There is a sizable shortage of bilingual, qualified accountant and junior candidates as well. If you do not speak Japanese, you can find your place in the Japan business world, primarily thanks to your technical and product-specific knowledge and skills. Or maybe you should consider if learning Japanese is a good investment in your future.

This was our list of 7 highest paying countries for accountants, but there are many more opportunities all around the world if you are or willing to become one.