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| An applicant for enrollment as an enrolled agent who is requesting such enrollment based on former employment with the Internal Revenue Service must have had a minimum number of years of continuous employment with the Internal Revenue Service during which the applicant must have been regularly engaged in applying and interpreting the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code and the regulations relating to income, estate, gift, employment, or excise taxes. Minimum years of continuous employment must be 5 years. |
| The director of the Office of Professional Responsibility must inform the EA enrollment applicant as to the reason for any denial of an applicant for enrollment. The applicant may file a written appeal of the denial with the Secretary of the Treasury or his or her delegate within 30 days after receipt of the notice of denial of enrollment. |
| Each individual applying for renewal of their EA enrollment must retain for a period of 4 years following the date of renewal of enrollment the information required with regard to qualifying continuing professional education hours. Include the name of the sponsoring organization, the location, title and description of the program. Also include written outlines, course syllabi, textbook or material required for the course. You don't need to include the publisher information of the study material used. |
| Subject to certain limitations, an individual who is not a practitioner may represent a taxpayer before the Internal Revenue Service, even if the taxpayer is not present, provided the individual presents satisfactory identification and proof of his or her authority to represent the taxpayer. First, an individual may represent a member of his or her immediate family. Also, an employer may be represented by his or her regular full-time employee. Additionally, a general partner or a regular full-time employee of a partnership may represent the partnership. |
| Any individual who prepares the tax return, may appear as a witness for the taxpayer before the Internal Revenue Service, or furnish information at the request of the Internal Revenue Service or any of its officers or employees. |
| An individual who prepares and signs a taxpayer's tax return as the preparer, or who prepares a tax return but is not required (by the instructions to the tax return or regulations) to sign the tax return may represent the taxpayer before revenue agents, customer service representatives or similar officers and employees of the Internal Revenue Service during an examination of the taxable year or period covered by that tax return. However, this right does not permit such individual to represent the taxpayer before the appeals officers, revenue officers, counsel or similar officers or employees of the Internal Revenue Service. |
| A practitioner must, on a proper and lawful request by a duly authorized officer or employee of the Internal Revenue Service, promptly submit records or information in any matter before the Internal Revenue Service. The individual can decline and notify the IRS that he or she as a practitioner believes in good faith and on reasonable grounds that the records or information are privileged. |
| Penalty Information for Authorized IRS e-fileProviders |
| Providers are not tax return preparers for the purpose of assessing most preparer penalties as long as their services are limited to "typing, reproduction or other mechanical assistance in the preparation of a return or claim of refund". If an ERO, Intermediate Service Provider, Transmitter or the product of a Software Developer alters the return in a way that does not come under the "mechanical assistance" exception, the IRS may hold the Provider liable for income tax return preparer penalties. |
| A penalty may be imposed on a return preparer who endorses or negotiates a refund check issued to any taxpayer other than the return preparer. The amounts can add up since there is a penalty of $500 for each check endorsed. The prohibition on return preparers negotiating a refund check is limited to a refund check for return they prepared. |
| The prohibition on return preparers negotiating a refund check is limited to cash a refund check and remit all of the cash to the taxpayer, accept a refund check for deposit in full to a taxpayer's account provided the bank does not initially endorse or negotiate the check and to endorse a refund check for deposit in full to a taxpayer’s account pursuant to a written authorization of the taxpayer. A preparer that is also a financial institution or preparer bank, may subsequently endorse or negotiate a refund check as part of the check-clearing process through the financial system after initial endorsement. |
| Copyright © 2014 [Hera's Income Tax School]. All Annual Filing Season Program rights reserved. |
| Revised: 12/14/14 |
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