How Employers Should Prepare Their Tax Hiring Strategy for 2026 - A Year-End Guide for December

The end of the year is one of the most valuable planning windows for tax leaders, talent teams, and finance directors. Christmas might slow down day-to-day operations, but behind the scenes it’s the perfect moment to step back, look at the team, and prepare for the surge of hiring activity that January always brings. 

The businesses that use December well tend to snap up the strongest talent in Q1. Those that wait until February often find the best candidates are already off the market. 

Here’s how to approach your year-end planning if you want to stay ahead. 

Review Your Team’s Capacity, Workload and Pain Points From 2025 

Before you even think about adding headcount, take a frank look at how the year actually went. Every tax team has pressure points. The question is whether those pressures were one-off spikes or structural problems that will slow you down again next year. 

Perhaps you relied too heavily on one or two high performers who held everything together during the busy season. Maybe advisory work kept slipping down the priority list because compliance deadlines swallowed all available hours. Some teams struggled with inconsistent documentation and controls; others were hit with a wave of Pillar Two work that stretched capacity across multiple jurisdictions. These are not just operational issues. They are strategic risks if they repeat for another 12 months. 

It’s also worth looking for gaps that aren’t immediately obvious. Sometimes a role isn’t vacant, but it’s missing. No one owns operational Transfer Pricing, no VAT tech expertise, no clear succession plan for senior leadership, or simply no one with strong business partnering capability. These gaps quietly slow down decision-making, reduce efficiency, and create hidden strain. The earlier you spot them, the easier they are to fix. 

Assess Who Might Move in Q1 – Before They Surprise You 

January through March is always the busiest period for tax recruitment. People go home for Christmas, reflect, and come into the new year ready to explore their options. You’d be surprised how many resignations happen within the first ten working days of January. 

Use year-end reviews to get ahead of this. Look at those high performers who haven’t seen the progression they expected, team members who have been stuck in compliance-heavy portfolios with no path forward, seniors whose roles haven’t evolved, or anyone showing signs of burnout or disengagement. Even people who have quietly taken on significantly more responsibility without recognition might be getting ready to test the market. 

If you know who might leave, you can start pipelining potential replacements now before staffing becomes an emergency. 

Finalise Your 2026 Budget and Headcount Plans 

You’d be amazed by how many teams lose top candidates simply because internal approvals aren’t ready until well into February. Meanwhile, competitors who planned early have already made their offers. 

Use December to get clarity. Will the team be expanding? Do you need permanent hires, contractors or a blend of both? Which roles are genuinely business-critical? What salary ranges are you working with? And perhaps most importantly, how much of your budget can be used early in Q1 rather than later in the year? The clearer this picture is before the holiday break, the faster you can move when the right CV lands on your desk. 

Identify Your Must-Hire Roles for Q1 

Most tax teams have a small number of roles that will materially influence performance in the new year. You normally know what they are, even if you’ve not said them out loud yet. 

Perhaps you need a Transfer Pricing Manager with strong operational experience and Pillar Two exposure. Maybe you need a VAT Manager who understands digital reporting and can help with ERP implementation. It could be a Corporate Tax Manager who can strengthen governance and forecasting, or an R&D Senior with enquiry-defence experience. Or perhaps it’s an International Tax Manager who can support expansion or restructuring work. 

These roles tend to hit the market in January, and they are the first to be fought over. Identifying them now means you can quietly start warming up candidates before the crowd arrives. 

Strengthen Your EVP Before You Advertise Anything 

Candidates no longer make decisions purely based on the job description. They want to know where they could progress, what hybrid working really looks like, how supportive the culture is, and whether they’ll be exposed to international work, advisory projects or tax technology. 

So, December is the ideal time to review your EVP, your Employer Value Proposition. Is your hybrid policy competitive? Do candidates understand the progression path from Manager to Senior Manager to Director? Are there opportunities for genuine development and skill building? Is your team a place where people feel supported, recognised, and able to grow? When you clarify this upfront, you automatically become more attractive to top-tier candidates in Q1. 

Build (or rebuild) a Relationship with Your Specialist Recruiter  

The best tax hires rarely come from job adverts. They come from consistent talent pipelining and early conversations. 

December is an excellent time to reconnect with your recruiter. They already know which candidates are preparing to move in January. They can screen profiles long before you officially green light a role. They can advise where the market is heading, what salary ranges are competitive, and how attractive you're offering truly is compared to other employers. 

A short call in December can save weeks of delay in January and often makes the difference between hiring your first-choice candidate and losing them to a faster competitor. 

Map Out a January Hiring Timeline  

The most common hiring mistake is waiting until January to start planning. By then, everyone is back in the office; diaries are packed, and suddenly processes drag out far longer than they should. 

Create a simple timeline now. When will the job description be approved? Who needs to be involved in the interviews? How quickly can decisions be made? When do you want offers issued? And what does onboarding look like? Especially if you want someone to start in February or March? A clear plan keeps you fast, and speed is everything in Q1. 

December Planning = Better Hires in Q1 

Every January, the tax hiring market resets. Employers who spend December preparing almost always get ahead. They reach top candidates first, they move faster, they make cleaner decisions, and they avoid the usual cycle of reactive hiring. 

You don’t need to advertise roles in December, but you absolutely do need to plan them.