Shiwen Gao, CPA

Shiwen Gao does a lot more than prepare taxes for individuals and businesses. She constantly stays up to date with new laws and Congressional legislative proposals that could affect her clients’ long-term well-being. With this knowledge, she looks forward to discussing the complexities of these developments to earn the trust of clients and help them recognize she is committed to creating the best tax situation for them possible.

It’s an interest that began years ago during Shiwen’s role as a tax intern for a law firm shortly after she left her homeland in China to study accounting and finance at Iowa State University. As her passion and experience with the profession grew over time, she moved to the East Coast to pursue a Master’s degree in accounting at the University of Maryland and earn her certified public accountant license.

In addition to helping individuals navigate the intricacies of their personal taxes, Shiwen enjoys working with businesses whose taxes overlaps with those of owners and executives, which is how she developed expertise supporting law firms, other professional services firms and automotive dealerships.

She finds it particularly rewarding helping businesses work through particularly complex situations. When one dealership switched its business type mid-year, Shiwen was able to file a short-year return and respond to a state query about the switch. The engagement included coaching a relatively new financial professional at the organization.

Although no longer in China, Shiwen regularly visits her family back home. She maintains strong ties with her country through many close friendships and participation in a book club with other women with similar backgrounds.