(MONEY Magazine) – Don't wait until March or April to hire a tax adviser. Do it now, when there's still plenty of time to find ways to cut your 1993 taxes (for a few choice year-end tax moves, see Your Taxes on page 187). "Most people find professional tax planning a terrific bargain -- if it comes from the right source," says Gaylon Greer of the Memphis State University finance department. But, he cautions, many pros are "not qualified to give you advice worth their fees." To make sure you get what you pay for, MONEY polled the experts for essential questions to ask before hiring a pro: Is the tax adviser knowledgeable? Avoid any pro whose main services are simply preparing returns or handling auditing or bookkeeping for business clients. Also, says Keith Fevurly, director of Denver's College for Financial Planning, look for an adviser with at least five years of experience since 1986, the year Congress overhauled the tax code. Consider hiring a fee-only financial planner who doubles as a certified public accountant. Such a pro can combine tax planning and investment advice. Another good selection: enrolled agents, who get certified by the IRS only after working for the agency for at least five years or by passing a tough, two-day tax exam. Enrolled agents generally charge about a third less than accountants or financial planners. Is the advice impartial? "It's one thing for a tax adviser to tell you that a limited partnership might be a good idea. It's entirely another thing to tell you that you should buy into, say, the L&P Limited Partnership," says Greer. Ask the tax pro if he receives any fees or commissions when you purchase tax-sheltered investments that he suggests. If he does, walk away. A tax adviser should make recommendations but not put you into specific products with fees. Are the strategies aggressive enough? When planning, you should know every possible tax-busting move you can make -- that's what the adviser is paid for. Just make sure the pro fully explains any tactics you choose that may fall into the tax law's gray areas.