Forensic Accountant

Job content

Location

Belfast - Carne House, 20 Corry Place, Belfast, Birmingham Regional Centre- 3 Arena Central, Broad Street, Birmingham, Bristol Regional Centre- 3 Glass Wharf, Avon Street, Temple Quarter, Bristol, Cardiff Regional Centre- Central Square, Cardiff, Croydon Regional Centre- 1 Ruskin Square, Croydon, Gartcosh - Scottish Crime Campus, Craignethan Drive, Gartcosh Business Interchange, Gartcosh, Leeds Regional Centre- 7&8 Wellington Place, Wellington Street, Leeds, Manchester Regional Centre- 3 New Bailey Square, New Bailey Street, Salford, Newcastle Regional Centre- Benton Park View, Longbenton, Newcastle, Portsmouth - Lynx House, 1 Northern Road, Portsmouth, Stratford Regional Centre- 14 Westfield Avenue, Stratford, London

About The Job

Job summary

Are you a qualified accountant who loves problem solving, analysing financial records and developing your own independent opinion?

Do you want to showcase your accountancy expertise to UK Criminal courts?

Do you want to be part of a team where flexible working is the norm?”

If the answer is Yes, then we can offer you a leadership role with your work principally providing independent accountancy opinion on HMRC Fraud Investigation Service (FIS) cases. FIS is responsible for both civil and criminal investigations in tackling the most serious tax evasion and fraud.

Our Forensic Accountants enjoy a wide range of work, primarily relating to criminal prosecutions and anti-fraud interventions. You will play an active role in high-profile issues and ultimately your work will touch the lives of everyone in the UK.

Some experience of Forensic accounting, Money Laundering issues and Illicit Finance issues would be beneficial to the role.

 

We are running an additional campaign for Advisory Accountants.  If you wish to apply for both, you will need to submit applications for each campaign.  However, if you are successful at sift then you will only need to sit one technical assessment and interview and we will use your outcomes from this, for both campaigns.

See what it’s like to work at HMRC : find out more about us or ask our colleagues a question . Questions relating to an individual application must be emailed as detailed later in this advert.

Job Description

As a Forensic Accountant you will give objective, independent and professional advice relating to criminal investigations and anti-money laundering interventions. We want you to use your knowledge and experience to understand and explain financial and accounting transactions to investigators, lawyers and the courts.

You will provide clear and concise analysis of relevant accounting, financial and transactional information to clearly communicate complex financial issues to non-accountants including investigation teams, lawyers and the Courts.

You will demonstrate your abilities to utilise your accounting knowledge and commercial experience to identify risks, critically assess financial evidence and provide expert opinion.

You will support litigation, acting as an expert witness or witness of fact and will proactively assist others involved in criminal prosecutions or civil investigations of tax fraud and Proceeds of Crime (PoCA) interventions including confiscation orders and cash seizures. You will prepare and review professional reports with both factual and opinion evidence, attend case conferences, meetings and court acting with professionalism, integrity and independence.

Our team undertakes regular Continuing Professional Development. We will provide you with opportunities to share knowledge, develop and provide quality accountancy training to both colleagues and tax professionals.

Person specification

The candidate will have strong financial accounting experience gained in either practice, industry, public sector or private sector and specifically including:

• analysing and interpreting a range of financial records; and
• preparing or reviewing financial statements;
• considering the appropriate accounting treatment of a variety of specific transactions; and
• delivering high quality written and verbal accountancy outputs to key stakeholders
  

Responsibilities:

• Provide objective and independent accounting advice relating to criminal and civil investigations and anti-money laundering interventions, including acting as an independent expert witness.
• Support activities targeting alcohol, supply chain and duty evasion fraud utilising your commercial experience.
• Communicate, meet with and advise internal and external stakeholders
• Develop, support and provide quality bespoke accountancy training to key partners.
• Coach and mentor colleagues
• Share knowledge and best practice, using innovative methods and digital tools.
• Demonstrate expertise, experience, and authority to credibly engage with courts, tribunals, accountants, colleagues, customers, and senior HMRC officers.
  

Essential Criteria:

You must already have full and complete qualification from, and continuing membership of, one of the following professional accounting bodies:

• The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).
• The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS)
• Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI)
• The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
• The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA)
• The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA)
  

Please Note: Part qualified accountants are not eligible for these posts.

Desirable Criteria:

• Some experience of Forensic Accounting, Money Laundering issues and Illicit Finance issues would be beneficial. This could be in the public or private sector.
  

Qualifications

• The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW)
• The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS)
• Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI)
• The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
• The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA)
• The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA)
  

Behaviours

We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Making Effective Decisions
  

Technical Skills

We’ll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Candidates will carry out an accountancy based technical assessment (to include both a presentation and a written output) – unless you have an exemption (see selection process details)
  

Benefits

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%
  

Find more about HMRC benefits in ’Your little extras and big benefits handbook’ for further information or visit Thinking of joining the Civil Service.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window) , and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths, Experience and Technical skills.

All Criminal Record Checks applications are considered fairly in accordance with the DBS Code of Practice and the Recruitment of ex-offenders Policy.

As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete a name blind CV.

Your CV will be tailored to the role advertised, detailing your relevant job history and including for each role: 

• A brief summary of your role, including dates. 
• Skills and experience gained; and key achievements. 
  

When giving details in your CV, you should be explicit in highlighting your experience to address all of the essential criteria and person specification requirements listed in the advert. You should therefore include details of the work you have been involved in, and the roles you played.  

We recommend that your CV is no more than 3 pages.

The sift will be carried out against the CV, with the successful candidates being invited to interview.

If you are successful at sift, you will be invited to a technical interview which involves: 

Experience questions to understand your suitability for the role advertised.

Questions seeking examples of the selected behaviours ‘Communicating and Influencing’ and ‘Making effective decisions’ and you will be asked strength-based questions to also explore what you enjoy and your motivations relevant to the job role.

This is an example of a strengths-based question:

“It is often said that the customer’s needs should come first. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?”

There is no expectation or requirement for you to prepare for the strengths-based questions in advance of the interview, though you may find it helpful to spend some time reflecting on what you enjoy doing and what you do well.

An accountancy based technical assessment (to include both a presentation and a written output) – unless you have an exemption (see below).

You may be eligible for an exemption from sitting a technical test as part of the interview process for this post if you demonstrate you fulfil one of the following criteria:  

 1) You are a current member of the HMRC Advisory and Forensic Accountant’s (AFA) Profession and previously passed the technical test at Grade 7 level  

 2) You were, within the last 3 years (from the closing date of the advert you are applying for) a member of the Advisory and Forensic Accountants Profession and previously passed the technical test at Grade 7 level  

• You successfully passed the Grade 7 technical test in the last 3 years as part of a previous HMRC Advisory and Forensic Accountants recruitment campaign or the SO Talent Programme. You should submit proof that you previously passed the technical test, this may be in the form of written interview feedback you received or confirmation information from Civil Service Jobs.  
  

If you are seeking an exemption under criteria 2 or 3 above, you are also required to demonstrate that 20 hours of accountancy-related CPD has been undertaken on an annual basis (since you left the AFA Profession, or since you passed the Grade 7 technical test).

If you believe you have a technical test exemption for any of the above reasons please send details to: investigationservicesrecruitment@hmrc.gov.uk within 7 days of the closing date of this campaign. Your details will only be shared with any person involved in the recruitment process if you are successful at sift and after the sift results are released.

Those who pass the technical assessment, or who have a valid exemption, will be invited to a panel interview.  The interview will follow the Success Profiles Framework used for all Civil Service recruitment, and will comprise the following:

Full details will be provided to those candidates invited to interview.

Interviews will take place via video link. Interview dates to be confirmed.

Technical tests are expected to take place in mid-November.

Interviews are expected to take place between 4th and 15th December 2023.

The above dates are estimated at this time.

We reserve the right to raise the score required at any stage of the process in order to manage numbers.

A reserve list may be held for a period of up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made for the same or similar roles – if this applies to you, we’ll let you know via your Civil Service Jobs account.

After interview, merit lists will be created for each location advertised within the vacancy. If you are successful at interview, you will be placed on the merit list for any locations you have expressed an interest for. Appointments from each merit list will be made in strict merit order.

Eligibility

To check that you are eligible to apply, review this eligibility information

Important information for existing HMRC contractual homeworkers:

This role may be suitable for existing HMRC employees who are contractual homeworkers. Occasional attendance to the office will be required where there is a business need, so please review the advertised office locations for this role when applying and only select locations from the ‘location preferences’ section that you are able to travel to.

Reasonable Adjustments

We want to make sure no one is put at a disadvantage during our recruitment process because of a disability, condition, or impairment. To assist you with this, we will reduce or remove any barriers where possible and provide additional support where appropriate.

If you need a reasonable adjustment or a change to be made so that you can make your application, review this information on reasonable adjustments , and contact hmrcrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible.

Diversity and Inclusion

At HMRC we are committed to creating a great place to work for all our colleagues and creating an inclusive and respectful environment that reflects the diversity of the society we serve.

Diverse perspectives and experiences are critical to our success and we welcome applications from all people from all backgrounds with the experience and skills needed to perform this role. We’re committed to creating a great place to work for all our colleagues here at HMRC. We want everyone to feel valued and supported to achieve their potential at HMRC.

For more information on how we make this happen, review this information on our culture and values

Applications received from candidates with a criminal record are considered fairly in accordance with the DBS Code of Practice and the Recruitment of ex-offenders Policy.

We welcome applications from those who need to work a more flexible arrangement and will agree to requests where possible after considering operational and customer service needs. We can’t guarantee that we can meet all requests to work flexibly, as agreement will be subject to business ability to accommodate, and any request to work a more flexible arrangement should be made prior to your acceptance of the provisional offer.

Customer facing roles in HMRC require the ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English and/or Welsh where required. Where this is an essential requirement, this will be tested as part of the selection process.

The Civil Service runs a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Locations

HMRC has a presence in every region of the UK. For more information on where you might be working, review this information on our locations .

Security Update

For more information on the level of security checks we will carry out, review this information on security checks

Additional Security Information

Please note: in addition to the standard pre-employment checks for appointment into the Civil Service, all candidates must also obtain National Security Vetting at Security Check (SC) clearance level for this vacancy. You will normally need to meet the minimum UK residency period as determined by the level of vetting being undertaken, which for SC is 5 years UK residency prior to your vetting application. If you have any questions about this residency requirement, please speak to the vacancy holder for this post.

Further Information

The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. The evidence you provide in your application must relate to your own experiences.

Any instances of plagiarism or other forms of cheating will be investigated and, if proven, the relevant application/s will be withdrawn from the process.

Duplicate applications for the same vacancy will also be withdrawn.

Transferring into HMRC from Civil Service If you are currently working for an ‘Other Government Department’ (OGD) and would like to consider the impact on your pay when joining HMRC, please see the attached document "Combined T&C and OGD Pay English”, found at the bottom of this advert. Further information on staff transfers can be found on gov.uk

Problems during the application process

If you experience accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the ’Contact point for applicants’ section.

If you think you’ve made a mistake on a short application form (e.g. you’ve ticked the incorrect eligibility box), please contact hmrcrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk at least two working days before the vacancy closes. After this, we won’t be able to reopen your application.

Please use the subject line to insert appropriate wording e.g. Please re-open my application - 320710 & vacancy closing date 07/11/2023. Please note that we cannot amend or re-open your application if you have submitted your full application in the interests of fair and open recruitment.

For reasonable adjustments queries or requests, please see details within reasonable adjustments section above.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window) . See our vetting charter (opens in a new window) .

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality Requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
  

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission’s recruitment principles (opens in a new window) .

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : Rachel Poole
• Email : Rachel.poole@hmrc.gov.uk
• Telephone : 03000 592360
  

Recruitment team

• Email : hmrcrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
  

Further information

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. You have the right to complain if you feel a department has breached the Recruitment Principles. In the first instance, you should raise the matter directly with the department concerned via complaints.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk If you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: Click here