Counter-offers in tax are more common than ever. Here's an honest guide to navigating them, from someone who has seen hundreds of candidates face this exact decision.
You have been offered a new role. You hand in your resignation. Your current employer makes a counter-offer, more money, a promotion, a promise that things will change. You are flattered. You are torn. What do you do?
Having guided hundreds of tax professionals through this exact moment, I want to share what I have seen, honestly and without the bias you might expect from a recruiter.
Why Counter-Offers Happen
Let us start with the uncomfortable truth: counter-offers are almost never about you. They are about the firm. Replacing a qualified tax professional is expensive, disruptive, and time-consuming. A counter-offer is a retention tool, not a recognition of your value.
If your employer valued you at the level they are now offering, they would have offered it before you resigned. The fact that they only match or exceed your new offer after you have handed in your notice tells you something important about how proactive they are in rewarding their people.
The Statistics
The data on counter-offers is remarkably consistent across our industry:
Approximately 40% of tax professionals who resign receive a counter-offer from their current employer. Of those who accept the counter-offer, around 60% leave within 12 months anyway. The reasons are revealing, the underlying issues that prompted the job search (career progression, quality of work, management, culture) rarely change just because the salary has increased.
When a Counter-Offer Might Make Sense
I am not going to tell you that counter-offers are always wrong. There are situations where accepting one can be the right decision:
The offer addresses the real issue. If you were genuinely happy in your role but underpaid, and the counter-offer brings you to fair market value, it might be worth considering. But be honest with yourself, was salary really the only issue?
The timing was wrong. Sometimes candidates begin a job search during a difficult period (a challenging project, a team reorganisation) and receive an offer before the situation at their current firm has had time to resolve. If the counter-offer comes with genuine structural changes, a new team, a new partner to report to, a different type of work, it might warrant consideration.
You have genuinely new information. If your employer shares plans that were previously confidential, a restructuring, a new team, an imminent promotion that was already in the pipeline, this might change your calculus.
When a Counter-Offer Is a Mistake
In most cases, accepting a counter-offer is a mistake. Here is why:
The relationship is damaged. Once you have resigned, your employer knows you were looking to leave. Even if they make a generous counter-offer, trust has been eroded. You may find yourself excluded from key projects, passed over for future promotions, or first on the list in any future restructuring.
The money is a sticking plaster. A higher salary does not fix a bad manager, limited career progression, or a culture that does not suit you. If those were the reasons you started looking, they will still be there in six months, and you will be back on the market, but now with the complication of having turned down a genuine offer.
You have made a commitment. The firm that offered you the new role has invested time, effort, and trust in the recruitment process. Pulling out at the last moment damages your professional reputation and burns bridges that may be difficult to rebuild.
How to Handle It Well
Make your decision before you resign. The best time to think about counter-offers is before you hand in your notice, not after. Be clear about why you are leaving, and decide in advance whether any counter-offer would change your mind.
Be honest about your motivations. Write down the three main reasons you are leaving. If a counter-offer does not address at least two of them, it is not worth considering.
Respond quickly and professionally. If you receive a counter-offer and decide to decline it, do so promptly and graciously. Thank your employer for the offer, reaffirm your decision, and leave on the best possible terms. The tax market is small, and you will likely cross paths again.
Talk to your recruiter. A good recruiter will help you think through a counter-offer objectively. They have seen dozens of these situations and can offer perspective that is difficult to find when you are in the middle of it.
The Honest Answer
The honest answer is that most counter-offers are not worth accepting. Not because recruiters want you to move, but because the reasons that led you to look for a new role almost never go away just because your salary has increased.
If you are facing a counter-offer and want to talk it through with someone who has seen this situation play out hundreds of times, I am always happy to have a confidential conversation.