Named people with qualifications you can check

Claims are prepared by people, not firms. Knowing who will do the tax work, who will write the technical case and who will review it, with their qualifications and any professional registration, tells you what standards they have agreed to and who you can hold to them. In countries where advisers must be registered, you can check the register yourself.1Source 1How to check an adviser's registration or credentials: IRS, "Understanding tax return preparer credentials and qualifications" and "PTIN requirements for tax return preparers" (United States); HMRC, "Tax advisers to register with HMRC and meet minimum standards" and manual MTAR10100 (United Kingdom); Revenue, Tax and Duty Manual Part 37-00-04b, which says Revenue does not approve tax agents or advisers (Ireland); CRA, "Using a professional tax preparer" (Canada); Tax Agent Services Act 2009, Part 3, the code of conduct for registered tax agents administered by the Tax Practitioners Board, and the Board's complaints form (Australia); Inland Revenue, "Tax agents" and "Tax agent status" (New Zealand); IRAS, "IRAS-Tax Agent relationship" (Singapore). More detail on your country page.

• Ask for the names and roles of everyone who will work on the claim, in the engagement letter.
• Check professional qualifications with the body that awards them, and registrations with the register for your country, on the country pages.
• Ask what experience the technical reviewer has in your field.
• Ask whether the same people will handle a review, and what happens if they leave.
• Treat a team described only as "our experts" as a question still to be answered.