Staff Accountant

Summary The position is located within the Financial Services Center and reports to various levels of management. The Staff Accountant assists with internal controls, policy, processes and procedures for VA; interprets and applies laws, regulations, decisions, rulings and policies to accounting systems and procedures to ensure conformity and proper application; and analyses and resolves systemic obstacles, recommends changes and updates, and coordinates with other offices in accomplishing these tasks. Duties Major Duties: Determines accounting and financial requirements to be met in the design, re-design and adaptation of existing automated and manual processes to meet financial reporting needs. Reconciles and validates a variety of accounting data, and prepares financial reports and other financial management/accounting documents. Identifies, researches, and investigates common and unusual occurrences including out of balance conditions, makes corrections as needed, and develops new or updates existing processes. Prepares standard operating procedures, business cycle memos, analyses, financial reports, reconciliation reports, documentation of Treasury data, and other reports; provides explanations to auditors. Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: Available with supervisory approval. Telework: AD-HOC Telework available with supervisory approval Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Staff Accountant/PD14283A and PD14282A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Requirements Conditions of employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. Physical Requirements:Work is primarily sedentary in nature. May require walking and standing in conjunction with travel and meetings and conferences away from the office. Some light lifting may be required. You may be required to serve a probationary period Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 03/20/2026. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Individual Occupational Requirements: This position includes an Individual Occupation Requirement. Individual Occupational Requirements are requirements that must be met, in addition to the specialized experience and/or education requirement. Applicants who do not meet it are ineligible for further consideration. Evidence of the Individual Occupational Requirement must be reflected in your application materials (resume/transcript). The Individual Occupational Requirement for this position is: Degree: accounting; or a degree in a related field such as business administration, finance, or public administration that included or was supplemented by 24 semester hours in accounting. The 24 hours may include up to 6 hours of credit in business law. (The term "accounting" means "accounting and/or auditing" in this standard. Similarly, "accountant" should be interpreted, generally, as "accountant and/or auditor.") OR Combination of education and experience: at least 4 years of experience in accounting, or an equivalent combination of accounting experience, college-level education, and training that provided professional accounting knowledge. The applicant's background must also include one of the following: Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses of appropriate type and quality. This can include up to 6 hours of business law; A certificate as Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor, obtained through written examination; or Completion of the requirements for a degree that included substantial course work in accounting or auditing, e.g., 15 semester hours, but that does not fully satisfy the 24-semester-hour requirement of paragraph A, provided that (a) you have successfully worked at the full-performance level in accounting, auditing, or a related field, e.g., valuation engineering or financial institution examining; (b) a panel of at least two higher level professional accountants or auditors has determined that the applicant has demonstrated a good knowledge of accounting and of related and underlying fields that equals in breadth, depth, currency, and level of advancement that which is normally associated with successful completion of the 4-year course of study described in paragraph A; and (c) except for literal nonconformance to the requirement of 24 semester hours in accounting, your education, training, and experience fully meet the specified requirements. AND In addition to the above, you may qualify based on your experience as described below: GS-12 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-11 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as experience applying accounting theories, practices, methods, and techniques; preparing financial reports or billing statements; analyzing financial and accounting activity; maintaining accounting and financial systems; providing financial advice and performing financial assistance activities; and validating and analyzing accounting data, reconciling accounts, and interpreting and preparing reports. GS-13 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-12 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as experience independently applying accounting theories, practices, methods, and techniques; preparing financial reports or billing statements; analyzing financial and accounting activity; maintaining accounting and financial systems; providing financial advice and performing financial assistance activities; and independently validating and analyzing accounting data, reconciling accounts, and interpreting and preparing reports. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Principles of Accounting Analytical Thinking Communication Control of Funds Customer Service For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. Local Commuting Area: The local commuting area for this position is defined as a radius of 50 miles from Austin,Texas. This includes all locations that fall within a 50-mile driving distance from Austin, Financial Services Center, 7600 Metropolis Dr, Building 5 Austin, TX 78744. Education A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing part of your qualifications on education. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional information Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act. Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/. To be qualified for this vacancy, you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location), Individual Occupation Requirements and meet the well-qualified criteria below: Conduct complex accounting analyses to identify trends, anomalies, and problem areas and recommend solutions.? Evaluate and improve accounting systems and internal controls to ensure accurate, reliable financial data and reports. Interpret and apply federal accounting standards, laws, OMB and GAO directives, Treasury and VA policies, and other high-level guidance to resolve complex accounting issues and ensure compliance across multiple programs and reporting requirements. Serve as a technical expert and advisor to program managers and senior leadership on financial policies, accounting data interpretation, and system capabilities, leading or facilitating decision-making sessions and preparing recurring and special financial reports for internal and external stakeholders. Collaborate with systems accountants, analysts, programmers, and auditors to design, implement, and refine automated accounting applications and financial management processes, ensuring timely, accurate, and consistent data for management use and external reporting Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution. Benefits A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits. Review our benefits Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.