Is It Easy to Get an Accountant Job in Canada? The Honest Answer
Is it easy to get an accountant job in Canada? The honest answer is no — but it is very doable. Canada needs accountants, the pay is solid, and the path is clear. What makes it hard for many newcomers is not a lack of jobs. It is a lack of Canadian experience, a resume that does not match how Canadian employers hire, and practical skills that employers expect on day one. Fix those three things and the job search changes completely.
This guide gives you the real numbers, what employers actually look for, and a 7-step plan that works — written from 20 years of helping newcomers build accounting careers in the Greater Toronto Area.
What the Numbers Say About Accountant Jobs in Canada
Accountants in Canada are classified under NOC 11100 — Financial auditors and accountants, a TEER 1 occupation. According to the Government of Canada Job Bank, the national median wage for financial auditors and accountants is $40.36 per hour, with a range from $25.00 per hour at the low end to $71.43 per hour at the high end (2023–2024 wage data, released November 19, 2025). That works out to roughly $52,000 a year at the low end and about $84,000 a year at the median, for full-time work.
The occupation also sits on IRCC’s high-wage occupations list at Level 3 (effective November 3, 2026), which means a qualifying job offer in this occupation can add Express Entry points. That is a strong signal: the government itself classifies accounting as a well-paid, in-demand occupation.
But here is the part most job seekers miss. The median wage is not the starting wage. A newcomer with no Canadian experience usually starts well below the median — often in an entry-level role — and works up. The good news is that the ladder is real: junior bookkeeper to accounting technician to accountant to senior accountant or CPA is a path thousands of newcomers have walked.
Why Getting an Accountant Job in Canada Feels Hard
If you have applied to dozens of jobs and heard nothing back, the problem is rarely your intelligence or your work ethic. In our experience, it is usually one of these five gaps.
1. No Canadian experience
Employers hire people they can trust to do the work without months of training. A degree and five years of experience from another country are valuable, but the employer cannot easily judge them. Canadian experience — even a co-op placement, a volunteer bookkeeping role, or a short contract — removes that doubt.
2. A resume that does not fit Canadian hiring
Canadian resumes are short (two pages at most), achievement-focused, and tailored to each job. A long CV that lists duties instead of results gets filtered out — often by software before a human ever sees it. Your resume is the first test, and many strong candidates fail it.
3. Missing practical skills
Many newcomers know accounting theory but have never used QuickBooks, never filed a Canadian T1 or T2 return, and never run a Canadian payroll. Employers in small and mid-sized firms need someone who can do the work from week one.
4. No professional network
A large share of accounting jobs in Canada are filled through referrals and recruiters, not public postings. If nobody in the local profession knows you, you only see a fraction of the openings.
5. Credential confusion
Some newcomers chase the CPA designation before they have any income, while others ignore it entirely. The CPA is the gold standard in Canadian accounting — a bachelor’s degree, the CPA Professional Education Program, the Common Final Examination, and 30 months of practical experience — but you do not need it to start working. You need a plan that earns money first and builds toward the CPA if that is your goal.
What Canadian Employers Actually Look For
After two decades of placing newcomers in accounting firms, here is what hiring managers tell us they want — in order.
- Someone who can do the work on day one. Bookkeeping, accounts payable and receivable, bank reconciliations, HST returns, payroll, and year-end working papers. Practical training beats theory on a resume.
- Canadian software skills. QuickBooks Online and Excel are the minimum. Experience with Sage or CaseWare is a bonus.
- Clear communication. You will explain numbers to clients and colleagues who are not accountants. Short, plain explanations matter as much as accuracy.
- A Canadian-style resume and interview. Results, not duties. STAR-format interview answers (Situation, Task, Action, Result).
- Reliability and honesty. Accounting is a trust profession. References — even from a volunteer role or a co-op — carry real weight.
7 Steps to Get an Accountant Job in Canada
Step 1: Get practical Canadian skills first
Before you send another application, make sure you can actually do the work a Canadian employer will hand you. A bookkeeping course that uses real client files, a personal tax (T1) course, or an accounting course built around Canadian rules will do more for your job search than another month of applying with the same resume.
Step 2: Rewrite your resume the Canadian way
Two pages maximum. Most recent job first. Five to seven bullet points per role, each one starting with an action verb and a result — “reduced month-end close from 10 days to 6 days” beats “responsible for month-end close.” No photo, no date of birth, no SIN. Tailor the top half of the resume to every job you apply for. Our resume writing course covers this in detail, and our earlier guide on how to start a career in accounting explains the routes in.
Step 3: Apply directly on company websites
Many newcomers rely only on job boards. But a large number of small and mid-sized accounting firms post openings only on their own websites. Make a list of 30 to 50 firms in your city — in the GTA, start with Mississauga, Toronto, Brampton, and Scarborough — and check their careers pages every week. Apply directly. It is slower, but the response rate is far higher than mass-applying on job boards.
Step 4: Register with accounting recruiters
Specialist recruitment agencies place a large share of accounting roles in Canada. Register with two or three reputable accounting recruiters, meet them in person if you can, and keep them updated. They work for the employer, but a recruiter who knows your skills will call you first when a matching role opens.
Step 5: Build your network — including through volunteering
Volunteering in a finance role at a charity or non-profit gives you Canadian experience, a Canadian reference, and people who know your work. It is one of the fastest ways to break the “no Canadian experience” cycle. Our guide on volunteering as a newcomer in Canada explains how to find the right roles. Also join local CPA Ontario events and newcomer settlement services — both are free or low-cost ways to meet people who hire.
Step 6: Target entry-level roles first
Do not hold out for a senior accountant title. The fastest route in is usually an accounts payable clerk, accounts receivable clerk, junior bookkeeper, or accounting technician role. Accounting technicians and bookkeepers (NOC 12200) earn a national median wage of $28.02 per hour according to Job Bank, and these roles are where most newcomers get their first Canadian reference. Six to twelve months in one of these roles changes your resume completely. Read our guide on becoming a bookkeeper with no experience for the full picture.
Step 7: Prepare for the interview like it is the job
Canadian accounting interviews test behaviour as much as knowledge. Prepare STAR-format stories for common questions: a time you found an error, a time you met a tight deadline, a time you dealt with a difficult client. Know the firm’s clients and services before you walk in. Our guide on how to prepare for an accounting interview covers the questions you will actually face.
How Long Does It Take to Get an Accountant Job in Canada?
There is no single answer, but here is an honest range based on what we see with our students. A newcomer who arrives with practical Canadian skills, a proper resume, and a focused search typically lands a first accounting role within 3 to 6 months. Someone who applies with an unadapted resume and no Canadian training can take 12 months or more — not because the jobs are not there, but because the application keeps losing to better-prepared candidates.
Two things shorten the timeline more than anything else: a co-op or placement that puts real Canadian work on your resume, and a recruiter or referral who puts your resume in front of a hiring manager. Our CO-OP package exists for exactly this reason — three weeks working on real client files under a Canadian expert’s supervision.
The Bottom Line
Getting an accountant job in Canada is not easy — but it is not a mystery either. The jobs exist, the pay is strong, and the path is proven: practical Canadian skills, a Canadian-style resume, direct applications plus recruiters, entry-level roles as your way in, and a network that knows your name. Start with the skill gap, not the job boards. The rest follows.
Reach out to Get Trained Get Hired to book a free 30-minute career counselling meeting. Our training is based on practical real-life cases. After the training, we work on your resume and try to place you in accounting firms through our network. You will also get access to like-minded individuals who are looking for jobs through our WhatsApp group. Please feel free to contact us at salman@gettrainedgethired.com or call us at 647-276-7150.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it easy to get an accountant job in Canada?
It is not easy, but it is very doable. Canada needs accountants — NOC 11100 is a TEER 1 occupation with a national median wage of $40.36 per hour (Job Bank). The main barriers for newcomers are lack of Canadian experience, a non-Canadian resume, and missing practical skills. Fixing those three things makes the search much shorter.
How much do accountants earn in Canada?
According to Job Bank, financial auditors and accountants (NOC 11100) earn a national median wage of $40.36 per hour, ranging from $25.00 per hour at the low end to $71.43 per hour at the high end (2023–2024 data). Entry-level roles such as accounting technicians and bookkeepers (NOC 12200) earn a national median of $28.02 per hour.
Do I need a CPA to work as an accountant in Canada?
No. You can start working in bookkeeping, accounts payable, accounts receivable, and junior accounting roles without a CPA. The CPA designation — a degree, the CPA Professional Education Program, the Common Final Examination, and 30 months of practical experience — is needed for senior roles and for signing off on certain work, and it raises your earning ceiling. Many newcomers start working first and pursue the CPA while employed.
What is the fastest way for a newcomer to get an accounting job in Canada?
The fastest route is usually: practical Canadian training (bookkeeping, QuickBooks, T1/T2 tax), a Canadian-style resume, and an entry-level role — accounts payable clerk, junior bookkeeper, or accounting technician — plus a co-op placement or volunteer finance role for a Canadian reference. Most of our students who follow this route land their first role within 3 to 6 months.
Does volunteering count as Canadian experience for accounting jobs?
Yes, for employers it does. A volunteer bookkeeping or finance role at a charity gives you real Canadian work to describe and a Canadian reference to offer. Note that volunteer work does not count toward the 1,560 hours of paid work required for the Canadian Experience Class (Express Entry) — for immigration purposes, the work must be paid. But for getting hired, volunteer experience is genuinely valuable.
Which entry-level accounting jobs should newcomers apply for first?
Accounts payable clerk, accounts receivable clerk, junior bookkeeper, payroll clerk, and accounting technician are the most realistic first roles. They are also the roles where employers are most willing to hire someone without Canadian experience, provided you can show practical skills and a willingness to learn.
