How Do I Become a Certified IRS Tax Preparer?

To become a certified IRS tax preparer, you register with the IRS for a Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN), pass a suitability check, and then decide whether to add an optional credential — the Annual Filing Season Program (AFSP) Record of Completion or the Enrolled Agent (EA) designation — that expands what you’re allowed to do for clients. The PTIN is required for anyone who prepares federal returns for pay. Everything above it is voluntary but changes the scope of your practice.

Step 1: Apply for a PTIN

The PTIN is the baseline authorization. You must be at least 18 to apply.¹ Before you start the application, pull together:²

Your Social Security number
Your full legal name, mailing address, and date of birth
Your firm’s name, mailing address, and phone number
The name, address, and filing status from your most recent individual tax return

Most people apply online through the IRS Tax Professional PTIN System. It takes about 15 minutes. The fee is $18.75, non-refundable, split between the IRS ($10) and a third-party contractor ($8.75).³ Your PTIN issues as soon as you finish. Paper filers use Form W-12 and should allow six weeks.⁴

Foreign preparers without a Social Security number file Form W-12 together with Form 8946, plus original or notarized identity documents. A passport works alone; without one, you provide two other documents such as a foreign driver’s license or national ID. The IRS takes roughly six weeks to verify the documents before you can finish the online application.¹

Once issued, your PTIN must appear on every federal return you prepare for pay. Leaving it off carries a statutory penalty of $50 per return, capped at $25,000 per calendar year, with inflation adjustments each year.⁵

Step 2: Pass the Suitability Check

The PTIN application triggers a suitability review that looks at two things: your criminal history and your personal tax compliance.⁶

On the criminal side, the IRS looks for felony convictions involving financial crimes (fraud, embezzlement, identity theft, forgery, money laundering, and similar offenses), tax crimes, or other violations of public trust. The lookback runs five years for AFSP applicants and ten years for Enrolled Agent applicants. Incarcerated individuals have their PTINs revoked.⁶

On the compliance side, all of your personal and business returns need to be filed, and any outstanding balances need to sit within acceptable thresholds. Filing gaps or large unpaid balances can delay or block approval.⁶

Step 3: Get an EFIN If You’ll File Electronically

Almost every federal return is filed electronically, and the PTIN alone doesn’t authorize that. To transmit returns to the IRS, you or your firm need an Electronic Filing Identification Number (EFIN). You apply through the IRS e-Services portal, entering firm identification, details for each principal or responsible official, and an e-file provider option (most preparers choose Electronic Return Originator).⁷

If the principal or responsible official isn’t a licensed attorney, CPA, or enrolled agent, they must be fingerprinted through an IRS-authorized vendor at no charge. The IRS then runs its own suitability check, which may include a credit check, tax compliance review, criminal background check, and a review of any prior e-file compliance problems. Approval can take up to 45 days, and the EFIN arrives in an acceptance letter by mail.⁸

Step 4: Decide Whether to Add a Credential

Once you have a PTIN, you can legally prepare returns for pay. But if you aren’t already an attorney, CPA, or Enrolled Agent, a bare PTIN doesn’t let you represent your clients before the IRS at all — not even on the returns you prepared yourself.⁹ That’s what the two IRS-issued credentials fix.

The Annual Filing Season Program

The AFSP is a voluntary program for preparers without another professional credential. Finishing it earns you a Record of Completion from the IRS and gets you into the IRS public directory of qualified tax return preparers.⁹

The requirement is 18 hours of continuing education each year from IRS-approved providers: a 6-hour Annual Federal Tax Refresher (AFTR) course with a comprehension test, 10 hours of federal tax law topics, and 2 hours of ethics. Preparers who have passed certain recognized state or national competency tests can skip the AFTR course but still owe 15 hours (10 federal tax law, 3 tax law updates, 2 ethics).¹⁰

The practical benefit is limited representation rights: with a Record of Completion you can represent clients on returns you personally prepared and signed before revenue agents, customer service representatives, and the Taxpayer Advocate Service. AFSP participants also agree to follow the practice obligations in Subpart B and Section 10.51 of Circular 230.¹⁰

The Enrolled Agent Designation

Enrolled Agent is the highest credential the IRS itself issues. EAs have unlimited representation rights and can advocate for any taxpayer on any matter before every administrative level of the IRS, including audits, collections, and appeals.⁹

To earn it, you pass all three parts of the Special Enrollment Examination (SEE) within a three-year window:¹¹

Part 1, Individuals
Part 2, Businesses
Part 3, Representation, Practices, and Procedures

Each part is scheduled through Prometric and costs $267, so a first-pass total is $801. Fees are non-refundable and non-transferable.¹²

Beyond the exam, you have to meet the Circular 230 ethical standards. The IRS reviews your tax compliance and criminal background under a ten-year lookback for disqualifying felonies, twice the AFSP window. You must hold an active PTIN and not have engaged in conduct that would justify suspension or disbarment.¹³ Some IRS employees with past technical experience in tax matters may be exempt from the exam but still have to meet every other eligibility criterion.¹¹

Step 5: Put a Written Data Security Plan in Place

Federal law requires every paid tax preparer to have a written information security plan protecting client data. The FTC Safeguards Rule treats tax preparation firms as financial institutions, so you must develop, implement, and maintain a security program with administrative, technical, and physical safeguards, along with a written incident response plan for data breaches.¹⁴ The plan should scale to the size and complexity of your practice, but even a solo practitioner has to have one in writing. Failing to protect client data can lead to FTC enforcement and loss of your e-file privileges.

Keeping Your Authorization Active

PTINs expire on December 31 every year. The renewal window opens in mid-October, and you renew inside the PTIN system, update your information, and pay the $18.75 fee before year-end to stay authorized for the coming tax season.¹⁵³

If you hold the AFSP Record of Completion, you complete the annual 18 hours (or 15 if exempt from the AFTR course) each calendar year to receive a new record. The IRS keeps a searchable list of approved continuing education providers so you can confirm your courses count.¹⁶

Enrolled Agents have a heavier requirement: 72 hours of continuing education every three years (66 hours of qualifying tax topics plus 6 hours of ethics), with a minimum of 16 hours per year including at least 2 hours of ethics.¹⁷

Conduct Rules and Sanctions

Circular 230 sets the professional conduct rules for anyone practicing before the IRS, including attorneys, CPAs, and Enrolled Agents, covering competency, diligence, and ethical behavior. The IRS Office of Professional Responsibility enforces them. Sanctions for violations include censure (a formal public reprimand), suspension, disbarment, monetary penalties, and appraiser disqualification.¹⁸

State Requirements

A few states require separate registration, licensing, or bonding for tax preparers operating within their borders. Requirements and fees vary, so check with your state’s tax or revenue agency before you begin accepting clients.

1
Internal Revenue Service. Frequently Asked Questions: Do I Need a PTIN?
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Internal Revenue Service. PTIN Application Checklist: What You Need to Get Started
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Internal Revenue Service. Treasury, IRS Issue Regulations to Reduce the Amount of the User Fee for Tax Professionals Who Apply for or Renew a PTIN
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Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form W-12
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 6695 – Other Assessable Penalties With Respect to the Preparation of Tax Returns for Other Persons
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Internal Revenue Service. 25.20.3 Return Preparer Suitability
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Internal Revenue Service. Tax Pros: Apply to Be an IRS Authorized E-File Provider in a Few Simple Steps
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Internal Revenue Service. Become an Authorized E-File Provider
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Internal Revenue Service. Annual Filing Season Program
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Internal Revenue Service. General Requirements for the Annual Filing Season Program Record of Completion
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Internal Revenue Service. Become an Enrolled Agent
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Internal Revenue Service. Enrolled Agents: Frequently Asked Questions
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Internal Revenue Service. Treasury Department Circular No. 230
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Federal Trade Commission. FTC Safeguards Rule: What Your Business Needs to Know
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Internal Revenue Service. Frequently Asked Questions: PTIN Application/Renewal Assistance
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Internal Revenue Service. Continuing Education for Tax Professionals
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Internal Revenue Service. Maintain Your Enrolled Agent Status
18
Internal Revenue Service. Office of Professional Responsibility and Circular 230