Finance Compliance & Accounting Specialist

Finance Compliance & Accounting Specialist

Location: Hyderabad (Remote)

Shift: Night shift aligned to US Central business hours (approx. 8:30 PM to 5:30 AM IST; one hour earlier during US daylight saving time)

Employment Type: Full-time

Role Summary

We are hiring an India-based accountant to own our US tax compliance and support day-to-day accounting, working fully on US business hours. Your first priority is cleaning up and then owning our multi-state payroll tax compliance: state accounts, agency notices, filings, and reconciliations. Alongside that, you will run accounts payable and support general accounting and month-end close. You will work directly with US finance leadership, our payroll provider, and our external CPA firm, and because you will be online during US hours, you will be able to call state agencies, join team meetings, and resolve issues in real time.

Key Responsibilities

State Payroll Tax Compliance & Cleanup (about 50% of time)

- Lead the cleanup of historical state payroll tax issues, including open notices, unapplied payments, missing or duplicate registrations, and prior-period filing gaps.
- Own state withholding (SIT), unemployment (SUI/SUTA), and local tax accounts across all active states.
- Register new state and local tax accounts before the first payroll in a new state, and close dormant accounts.
- Maintain a master tracker of all state accounts: account numbers, filing frequencies, SUI rates, portal access, and POA status.
- Review annual SUI rate notices and confirm rates are updated in the payroll system on time.
- Validate filings and payments prepared by the payroll provider, and reconcile state tax liabilities to the general ledger each quarter.
- Apply correct withholding for remote and multi-state employees, including reciprocity, convenience-of-employer rules, paid family/medical leave programs, and local taxes.
- Research and resolve federal, state, and local tax notices within agreed SLAs, including calls and correspondence with state revenue and workforce agencies.
- Request penalty abatements where grounds exist and track them to closure; escalate to the CPA firm when needed.
- Respond to state unemployment claims and wage verification requests.

Corporate & Entity Tax Compliance (about 15% of time)

- Monitor state nexus from payroll, contractors, and revenue, and flag new filing obligations early.
- Manage state foreign qualifications, annual reports, and franchise tax filings.
- Track sales/use tax obligations for services and SaaS revenue with the CPA firm.
- Review Forms 941, 940, and W-2/W-3 prepared by the payroll provider.
- Coordinate 1099-NEC/1096 reporting and W-9 collection.
- Prepare federal and state income tax workpapers and apportionment data for the CPA firm.

Accounts Payable & General Accounting (about 35% of time)

- Process vendor invoices end to end: coding, approval routing, and scheduled payment runs.
- Maintain vendor records and respond to vendor inquiries.
- Prepare bank and credit card reconciliations.
- Prepare journal entries for accruals, prepaid expenses, and payroll.
- Support month-end close, including payroll, payroll tax, and balance sheet account reconciliations.
- Review expense reimbursements and payroll registers for accuracy and policy compliance.
- Provide documentation to auditors and the external CPA firm.

What Success Looks Like (First 6 to 12 Months)

- Historical state tax issues cleaned up, with every open notice resolved or on a documented path to resolution
- A complete, current tracker of every state and local account
- Zero late state filings or payments
- Vendor invoices processed and paid on schedule and coded accurately
- Assigned reconciliations completed by the close deadline and tied to the general ledger

Requirements

- Education: Bachelor's or Master's in Accounting, Finance, or Commerce (B.Com, M.Com, MBA Finance)
- Experience: 4+ years in accounting, including at least 2 years of hands-on US multi-state payroll tax work and experience with US accounts payable and general ledger
- Tax knowledge: SIT/SUI registration, multi-state withholding, reciprocity, nexus, and notice resolution
- Accounting knowledge: US GAAP fundamentals, accruals, reconciliations, and month-end close
- Payroll platforms: ADP, Gusto, Paylocity, Rippling, or QuickBooks Payroll
- Accounting systems: QuickBooks Online, NetSuite, Xero, or Zoho Books
- Excel: Advanced (pivot tables, XLOOKUP, reconciliations)
- Shift: Able to work a permanent night shift aligned to US Central business hours
- Communication: Clear, professional written and spoken English, including phone calls with state agencies, US managers, and the CPA firm
- Work style: Highly organized, deadline-driven, and comfortable owning issues to resolution without close supervision

Preferred

- Experience at a US-based IT services, consulting, or SaaS company
- Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) or Enrolled Agent (EA), earned or in progress
- Experience with AP automation tools such as Bill.com or Ramp
- Experience with India–US intercompany accounting