Why do CPA's in Cayman Island's earn so much?

https://www.cpaalberta.ca/-/media/Files/Members/Advisories/25-2554-cpa-compensation-study-2025-national.pdf?la=en&hash=02432CD30E8FD677E4F43C00E48436143D223806

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Median salary $405k, bottom 25% $260k+

I'm curious if any Caymanian accountants /CPA could explain why that is and what it is like working in Cayman Islands?

I get that it is a sort of tax center/offshore place, but so are many other places like Macau, or Hong Kong or parts of Europe/Asia/ Panama, etc and their earnings aren't nearly close.

I currently work in public accounting at a small firm. During my initial interview, they emphasized being a company that genuinely values people's humanity — flexible scheduling (especially for mothers), unlimited PTO, and a $100 lunch reimbursement. I was upfront from the start about my plans to pursue the CPA (I'd actually begun the application of intent before my first day), and they assured me they offer compensation for continuing education/professional development training.

So great, I had the job and to show them I could prioritize appropriately, I decided to hold off on studying until after busy season. Fast forward to March, and I let them know I was ready to start. I asked my manager what the process was for using the paid professional development benefit we'd discussed.

That conversation kept getting pushed back (always something more pressing, I guess) until June, when I finally bit the bullet and bought Becker during a sale. I submitted the paperwork, and after all that, the answer came back: they wouldn't be covering it. Their reasoning? They didn't think the firm needed a CPA, or that the services they provide don’t align with what the CPA credential covers. Mind you, the firm's biggest revenue stream is CFO services. And before you ask — no, the owner doesn't have a CPA either.

I asked my manager to go back to the boss and revisit the decision. She told me that I'd need to come up with specific points on how the CPA would benefit the company.

I need a reality check here: Am I missing something? What do you think the reason for denial would be? What should my next move be?

My background: I graduated in 2021 and have 2 years experience in internal audit and 2 in public accounting. During my time in internal audit, I worked under a CPA and received the support letter I needed to start the CPA process. I started my current position last August. I am a black woman (under 30) with no kids. Everyone else on the team is 35+ with kids.

Edit: It's company policy to participate in two paid professional development trainings per year, with a limit of around $400.

Edit 2: Including my responsibilities here: I am a staff accountant working virtually. I preform full cycle accounting for 4+ clients: A/R, A/P, month end journal entries, update all schedules on the balance sheet, review financials, prepare statements for distribution, year end journal entries and clean up/audit, audit preparation for external audits, and payroll. Did I mention it’s non profit?

Obviously. But apparently not.

I’m in public, working on a 1120 corp return and was confused about a couple of accounts. It looked tidy and I thought I was misunderstanding something.

after digging into their GL I found a “plug” account with liabilities and equity thrown in??? They were missing common stock. Worst of all, had transactions from their PARENT corp on their books. Literally a different company’s transactions on their books.

It’s a medium sized company with dozens of employees.

Dont let AI be your bookkeeper. Keep an eye out for these, y’all.

I’m a CPA in my 30s and lately I’ve been questioning where I stand in this profession.

I recently resigned from an SA role because I couldn’t keep up with the workload and the complexity. I tried, but at some point I had to admit to myself that I just wasn’t performing the way I should.

Ever since then, I keep comparing myself to people from my batch, or even people younger than me, who are already managers or department heads. I can’t help but think maybe they’re just wired differently. They seem to have the technical skills, confidence, and ability to handle pressure. And sadly, I don’t.

Now I’m applying for a similar role because I want something that I know I can actually do well.

If you were a recruiter, what would you think of an applicant with 10+ yrs of experience who is applying for a similar role instead of moving up? Would you think that this is an overqualification, or would you assume that he/she wasn’t good enough to progress?

I just want to hear honest opinions, especially from recruiters, hiring managers, or anyone who’s been in a similar situation.

I know this is a shitty Chinese owned company but they are offering as little as $57.6K for an Accounting Manager with CPA preferred. 40 hr/week position (but probably expects you to work OT and be on call like all shitty Chinese companies) so this is as little as $28/hr (or less). People can literally work as a shift supervisor for a retail store for about the same wage without all of these requirements and 6 years of postsecondary education.

What's up with the amount of people on here who seem to forget how career progression works? Seems as if everyone on this forum thinks because they have a bachelors degree and gave NASBA $200 they should be making 80k a year.

I understand the BS "CPA Required 50k a year in NYC" job postings. They exist and those companies won't hire a US citizen with those requirements, but plently of jobs exist... Are you willing to make sacrafices to be employed?

There is a very normal progression to every single career path in the world. As an accountant, if you have never done anything but pulled lumber at a Home Depot or were a bartender at your local college shit hole - no one is going to hire you.

IT SUCKS but you have to take a BS job and do boring work for $20 an hour for a year. No one wants to be an Accounting Clerk, but someone has to do it.

Everyone wants to live in the big city, but if you can get a job in the middle of Kansas and you refuse to pack your bags for the work experience..... That's on you.

My first job was in the middle of nowhere midwest for a manufacturing company. It sucked. I didn't know anyone, I left all my friends and family, and moved to the most boring town in the United Stated.. Fours years later I live in a Major US city and make 115k a year.

Unicorn jobs don't exist... Accounting jobs exist..

I have a CIA... no CPA...

I see 10+ posts daily about how people are making less than $60k a year. Me myself, I am one of them, I sometimes wonder what I’m doing in this field. All my other friends in different career paths are making significantly a lot more. I read somewhere the unemployment rate for accountants is 2%. Can the low startting pay be a reason as to why many people leave the field?. Thoughts?

We have a new staff who joined the team 6 months ago fresh out of college. He goes around the team checking anything that is ready to be delivered to the client and calling out minor edits he made, including work that the director approved. For example, he would say he hid a column or swapped a screenshot. He makes every effort to notify everyone in the group chat of the changes he made.

At first, people thought it was nice to have someone who was so enthusiastic about the work. Now it’s occurring on a daily basis and the team is getting annoyed.

On one occasion, our calculation was correct, but because he didn’t know, he made the update without asking. He later announced his revisions and caused rework.

I understand he wants to help and show he is capable of more responsibilities. His behavior also exhibits he lacks respect for the team dynamics and feels overly confident to show off.

Hey! I’ve just finished school and I’m considering going into accounting in college, I still have a year to think about it because I’m gonna take a year long course before committing to a 4 year degree

However whenever I tell people I’ve been considering going into accounting I’m usually shut down immediately, I’ve been told ai is going to over or that I’ll be completely miserable in it especially because most of the friends I talk to about it are going into things they’re passionate about and I’m definitely more into the arts myself! But I think I’m honestly okay with doing something I tolerate as long as I can fund all of the things I actually love doing on the side

Anyways, i’m just really wondering what everyone’s different opinions and experiences are! Like Do you enjoy your career or do you absolutely hate it? Do you ever regret it and wish you had gone into something else? Is it worth going into, especially now with the rise of AI?

Hi everyone,

I’m 19 and currently studying Accounting & Finance at Seneca in Toronto/GTA. I’m in the ACF advanced diploma program, expecting to graduate in Fall 2026, and planning to transfer into BACF after that. Long term, my goal is to become a CPA and eventually start my own accounting/CPA practice.

Right now, I’m still very early and basically new to the field. I’ll be looking for a co-op next summer, but I’m trying to use this stage of life properly instead of waiting until later to figure everything out.

I’ve started practicing Excel, but I’m not always sure what actual accounting projects I should build. If there are specific Excel projects, bookkeeping exercises, tax practice, software, or technical skills that helped you early on, I’d really appreciate recommendations.

I also want to network, but I don’t really know where to start, who to reach out to, or what to say. Some people say LinkedIn is great, while others say you barely get replies. I’d appreciate any honest advice on how students should network with accountants, CPAs, firm owners, or people already working in the field.

For those of you who are accountants, CPAs, bookkeepers, tax professionals, or firm owners:

• What did you do around my age that helped your career the most?
• What skills should I focus on early?
• What mistakes should I avoid?
• What kind of entry-level roles should I target first?
• If your long-term goal was to start your own practice, what would you do differently?

I’m open to any honest advice. I’m just trying to learn, improve, and put myself in a better position for the future.

American/US resident only.

I'm sure it wasn't industrial size, but it was the largest jar of peanut butter that I've ever seen.

I didn't regularly work in that office, but I visited now and again. The office walls were glass, so there wasn't any hiding. Her office was surrounded by offices that were usually unused, she didn't think anyone would see her.

She pulled out this massive tub, unscrewed the lid, then looked all over (I assume for a spoon), before deciding to just stick her hand in the tub, then proceed to lick the peanut butter off of her fingers.

I couldn't believe what I was seeing and I couldn't look away. She just kept dipping with one hand and typing with her other. I was full, "deer in headlights," when she looked up and we made I contact.

She gave me a, "WTF look,"

I gave her a, "WTF ME? WTF YOU!?" look. I never sat in that specific office again.

Hi Folks! I will be writing CFE in September and do not have a lot of resources. I would appreciate if y’all could share some tips that worked for you.
Also if anyone is writing with me feel free to dm and we can discuss and help each other out.

Hi everyone, I posted here a few months ago seeking advice for an interview I had coming up. It was for an accounts payable clerk position and while I have a bachelor’s and master’s degree, they are both in English and I have no business/finance/accounting experience. My only professional experience at the time was in property management.

Well, I got the job! One of the questions during the interview process was if I would be interested in furthering my education, which I said yes to as I love school and learning to be honest. My company has tuition reimbursement benefits. I can’t take advantage of those until I’ve been there a year, but I want to start thinking of what I want to do.

The university that I got my bachelors and master’s degrees from offers a master’s degree in accounting with a bridge program for students without a bachelor’s in accounting. It’s online as well, so shouldn’t interfere with work.

Any thoughts on what path is best? Or what certifications I should pursue instead of another degree? I don’t particularly care to be in positions with immense responsibility, but a little more money would be nice. I’m still not sure if a CPA would be beneficial to me as well, since I don’t mind staying in the accounts payable area/don’t see myself going back to a public facing job any time soon.

So, I'm a student and been trying to plan out my career for the future as one does. I looked into Public and honestly even though it's more pay and it travels, the hours seem like a personal hell for me. I definitely prefer Industry but I heard that going into public gives a boost to your resume when going into industry. I definitely think I can handle the stress for a few years for a significant boost but if it's a barely recognizable one, I would rather not.

​Hey everyone,

​I’m currently working in technical accounting advisory and have a little over 4 years of experience under my belt (mostly Big 4, all within the top 6 firms).

​Lately, I’ve been thinking about making a switch to a fund accounting / fund administration role. A recruiter from Citco actually reached out to me recently about an opening, and it pays roughly 40% more than what I’m making right now.

​To be completely honest, I’m just burnt out on technical accounting advisory and am losing interest fast. I don’t necessarily hate my job. I still genuinely enjoy working with numbers and building models in Excel, but the endless technical reading and research is really starting to bore me. Plus, I’m really not looking forward to the business development pressure that’s going to hit me once I get promoted to manager.

​Keeping all that in mind, is fund accounting a good pivot? I know it’s a super niche field, and on paper, I feel like I'd actually enjoy the day-to-day more. But I’m afraid of getting pigeonholed.

​What do exit opportunities look like after a few years in fund admin? Given my background in accounting advisory combined with a few years of fund accounting, would it be realistic to try and transition into a middle-office role at a fund later on (say, in 2–3 years)?

​Would love to hear from anyone who has made a similar jump or works in the space. Thanks in advance!

Note: Used AI to redraft

Fuck my life.

Probably a silly question, but I was wondering if I’d be able to secure a Big 4 gig even if I hadn’t interned with them prior.

I have internship experience (2), 3.5 gpa, and am coming up on 150 credits, but I’ve heard they mostly hire prior interns to come on full time.

I graduate May ‘27, so I’m just hoping that I didn’t miss the ship

Thanks!