VAT Advisor

The Role

We are currently looking for a VAT specialist to be part of the largest and most successful VAT team in an international law firm. This is a fantastic opportunity where you will be expected to get stuck into complex VAT projects for the world's largest and innovative companies. There is no better role in the market if you like being able to concentrate on technical VAT work, delivering work to the highest quality and are committed to excellent client service.

The role will involve working on standalone VAT projects but much of our work involves collaborating with other tax colleagues (direct tax, transfer pricing or wealth management).  In addition, the role will involve multi-disciplinary projects with other teams (such as regulatory, corporate reorganisations or dispute resolution colleagues). Much of the work has an international element, and we work closely with colleagues globally.

The work is divided between advisory work, contentious work and transactional work. We have a large client base in the technology, digital, financial services, real estate and pharma sectors.

In terms of what we are looking for specifically:

• We need a confident person, who has excellent VAT technical skills, to help manage significant client projects and to deliver work of the highest quality.
• The team has a busy workload, but we need someone who is proactive and keen to assist in developing existing and new client relationships to continue the strong growth of the VAT practice.

Why should you apply for this role?

• You enjoy varied technical VAT work and want to be involved in cutting edge projects
• You have 2-4 years of VAT experience, ideally obtained from a market leading professional services organisation
• You want to be rewarded for your expertise and hard work 
• You want to work with the largest multinational clients and have opportunities to develop new and existing client relationships
• You enjoy being part of a global team with seamless interaction and strong relationships.

The Team

Baker McKenzie’s award-winning London tax team, comprising thirteen  partners and over 30 associates, is one of the largest law firm tax practices in the City. Within the tax department, we have specialist sub-teams of wealth management, corporate tax, transfer pricing and VAT. Working across and beyond tax, we help clients design, model, develop, implement and defend projects and are currently unique in the market. The London team is ranked in Tier 1 in the International Tax Review's World Tax Guide for Corporate Tax, VAT & Indirect Tax, Transactional Tax and Contentious Tax and Tier 1 for Transfer Pricing in the International Tax Review's World Transfer Pricing Guide. The London VAT Team has been ranked Tier 1 in the Legal 500 UK VAT & Indirect Tax section for the past 10 years. 

Globally our Tax Practice is ranked Band 1 by Chambers Global Guide 2025, and we’re also ranked Band 1 in Chambers Europe Guide 2024. Last year we won European Tax Disputes Team of the Year at the ITR European Awards - our VAT disputes work in London played a key role in this win.

An innovative, supportive and fun group of people to work with.

The tax department in London has a strong team culture and is a genuinely nice group to work with. Our people drive our success, so we aim to provide clear opportunities and support for personal development and career advancement for all team members. As we grow, we also take steps to protect our distinctive team culture - we all work hard but we also like to have fun along the way.

Key Skills and Experience Required

• 2-4 years of VAT experience, at least part obtained from a leading professional services organisation 
• Graduate - degree educated or comparable
• Professionally qualified: CTA, Solicitor, Barrister, Chartered Accountant or equivalent
• Excellent technical abilities and development potential
• Proactive and flexible, with an emphasis on reliability, responsiveness and delivery
• First class communicator - both strong verbally and orally - and able to develop relationships with key internal stakeholders and clients with ease
• Strong team player with a "client first" mentality
• Respects and enjoys the diversity of cultural, social and academic backgrounds found in the Firm. 

Why join us?

The strength of the firm and our culture is evidenced by a number of recent awards, including:

• Ranked in Law.com’s 2024 UK A-List of best firms to work at
• Included in The Times 2024 list of Best Law Firms
• Ranked in the Financial Times Most Innovative Law Firms in Europe 2024 list
• Listed in The Times Top 100 Graduate Employers 2024-2025
• Winner: Pro Bono Initiative of the Year – The Lawyer Awards 2024.
• Winner: Finance Team of the Year – Legal Business Awards 2024
• Ranked as one of the top 5 largest US law firms in London in The Lawyer’s 2024 US 50

Have a look at our YouTube channel to find out more about us!

To Apply

At Baker McKenzie we welcome direct applications.

Please click on the Apply icon to start the online application process for this role.  We will then be in touch with you once we have reviewed your application.  If you are unable to apply online, please contact the Recruitment Team on either 020 7919 1000 or Recruitment.London@bakermckenzie.com 

For more information about this position or to discuss any adjustments you may require during the process please contact in confidence, Vanessa Renforth, Recruitment Manager, on 020 7072 5731 or Vanessa.Renforth@bakermckenzie.com 

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NO AGENCIES PLEASE

Please note Baker McKenzie does not accept unsolicited CVs.  Please click here for details of our Agency Policy and commitment to sourcing directly.

Our Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion

As the first truly global law firm, diversity and inclusion are foundational to our culture and strategic vision. We are a Firm of individuals from across the globe with different backgrounds, ideas, and points of view who collegially work together to solve complex problems and design practical solutions for our clients. Our multiple perspectives come from many sources, including the diverse ethnicity, culture, gender, nationality, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability, parental status, education, social background and life experience of our people.

Our global strategy is focused on our people, our culture, our clients and the communities where we operate. In 2019 we enacted ambitious new targets related to gender, racial and ethnic diversity at the Firm. These targets are viewed as a floor, not a ceiling, to advancing underrepresented groups, and they are backed by a variety of strategic initiatives aimed at achieving our goals. Our strategic vision is supported in London by six active employee led networks which champion diversity, lead on a number of internal campaigns and deliver a range of activity to celebrate differences in identity, inclusion, and key dates throughout the year including: LGBT+ History Month, International Women’s Day, International Trans Day of Visibility, Mental Health Awareness Week, Pride, Black History Month, Social Mobility Week, International Day of Disabled Persons and many more!