Skip to content

Studies & Degrees in Tax Consulting

Tax consulting is the professional practice of advising individuals and companies on the taxes they owe: working out what is due, preparing and filing returns, planning transactions within the law and dealing with the tax authority when it inspects or disputes a return. The Chartered Institute of Taxation in the United Kingdom describes tax as a mixture of law, accountancy and administration, and courses in the subject combine all three.

A typical programme goes through the tax system tax by tax and then turns to procedure. The Máster en Asesoría Fiscal of ENAE Business School in Murcia, for example, is built from courses on corporate income tax, indirect taxes linked to business activity, personal income and wealth taxes, regional and local taxes, and tax procedures and dealings with the Spanish tax agency. Among its aims is a sound knowledge of the taxpayer's rights, duties and guarantees. The Curso Superior de Tributación of AFIGE, an online institute in Barcelona, follows the same order and adds local taxes, excise duties and customs duties.

Qualifications and levels

Tax consulting is rarely a first degree. Most students take a bachelor's degree in law, economics, business administration or accounting and specialise afterwards.

  • Official master's degrees in Spain. A bachelor's degree (grado) has 240 ECTS credits and a master's degree 60, 90 or 120. The Universitat de València lists among its official master's degrees the Máster Universitario en Derecho de la Empresa. Asesoría Mercantil, Laboral y Fiscal, which combines commercial, employment and tax advice.
  • Lifelong-learning and school programmes. Spanish universities also award their own qualifications: the Máster de Formación Permanente (60, 90 or 120 ECTS credits), the Diploma de Especialización (30 to 59 credits) and the Diploma de Experto (fewer than 30). The rules require universities to distinguish these expressly from official degrees. Business schools run their own programmes as well. The ENAE master's programme has 60 ECTS credits and its next edition starts on 19 October 2026, with a face-to-face format (classes on Monday and Tuesday from 16:30 to 21:30) and a live online format. AFIGE states that its courses can be extended into a master's programme that is the school's own qualification (título propio de Afige). Where a page does not say, ask the school what recognition the qualification has.
  • Professional qualifications abroad. In the United Kingdom, the Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA) qualification has seven modular exams, which most students complete in two to three years; it is awarded only after three years of relevant professional experience. In the United States, an enrolled agent earns the right to represent taxpayers before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by passing a three-part IRS test or through experience as a former IRS employee, and must complete 72 hours of continuing education every three years.

Where to study it

SpainExchange lists 10 active schools for tax consulting: nine in Spain and one in France. The Spanish schools are spread across the country, in Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia, Murcia, Granada, Salamanca and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. They include university-linked institutions such as ADEIT, the university-business foundation of the Universitat de València, the Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca and the Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, and business schools such as ENAE Business School, ESADE and the Escuela Internacional de Gerencia (EIG).

Tax rules are national, so a programme teaches the tax system of its own country in that country's language: the Spanish programmes are taught in Spanish and deal with Spanish taxes. A student who plans to work elsewhere should check how much international and European taxation a programme includes.

Careers

Graduates work as tax advisers in consultancies and law or accounting firms, in the tax or finance departments of companies, and in the public tax administration. The Chartered Institute of Taxation notes that qualified advisers commonly move between tax consultancy, commerce, industry, the legal profession and the tax authority.

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish a separate outlook for tax advisers. Its closest categories are accountants and auditors, whose duties include computing taxes owed and preparing tax returns, and who typically need at least a bachelor's degree in accounting or a related field. It projects their employment to grow 5 percent from 2025 to 2035. For tax examiners, collectors and revenue agents, who work for government, it projects a decline of 1 percent over the same period. These figures describe the United States only.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a law degree to study tax consulting?

Usually not. Programmes are aimed at graduates in law, economics, business or accounting, and some courses are open to working professionals. Check the entry requirements of each programme.

How long does a master's in tax consulting take?

In Spain, master's degrees have 60, 90 or 120 ECTS credits. The Máster en Asesoría Fiscal of ENAE Business School has 60 ECTS credits.

Is every master's in tax consulting an official degree?

No. Spain has official master's degrees and universities' and schools' own qualifications, and the rules require universities to keep the two clearly apart. Ask the school which kind it offers before enrolling.

Can I use a Spanish tax qualification in another country?

The content is tied to Spanish tax law, so it is most useful for work related to Spain. Professional titles such as the CTA in the United Kingdom or enrolled agent status in the United States have their own exams and requirements.