tax advisor??? Is that what you call it?

I am looking to get someone to do my partners taxes.  He has a company car and fuel card and well his tax allowance has decreased dramatically.  How do I find someone who is trustworthy? and how much does it usually cost?  We live in Scotland

are you looking for an accountant?

your partner has recently received a company car & fuel benefit?  if so, these are benefits, of which a percentage is added to his salary.  this will effect his taxes.  the inland revenue site explains company car taxes & P11D (Where benefits in kind are reported)

my UK accountant charges approximately £300 to do my tax return.  for advice, i pay by the hour.

All tax advisers in the UK without exception will be regulated from December 15th 2007.  This regulation is no more than a licensing requirement.  No background checks will be made or required.

Therefore, the only way to be certain you have a competent adviser is to choose someone who is a member of a Scottish/English/British professional body such as the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Scotland, Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales, Association of Certified Chartered Accountants or Chartered Institute of Taxation.

All such advisers will have taken exams and have to undertake mandatory continuing education.  If they fail you for some reason you would have a route for complaints.

However, each will specialise in different topics & have different fee schedules.  So you need to ask what they specialise in, what they charge, how long they have been in business and what qualifications they have (& when they qualified).

Fees can range from the low hundreds to many thousands of pounds depending on the work involved.

If you want both US and UK advice then you'd be best advised to choose a dual US/UK qualified adviser.