How to Fill Out and Submit IRS Form 8879-TE: Officer PIN, ERO, and Retention

To fill out Form 8879-TE, the Electronic Return Originator (ERO) enters your organization’s name, EIN, and tax period in the header, checks the box for the return being filed and enters the matching dollar figure in Part I, your authorized officer selects a five-digit PIN and signs Part II, and the ERO finishes with their EFIN and PIN in Part III. The form stays with the ERO; it is never sent to the IRS.¹

What the Form Authorizes

Form 8879-TE is the e-file signature authorization for a tax-exempt entity. The officer’s PIN on the form electronically signs one of ten covered returns: Form 990, 990-EZ, 990-PF, 990-T, 1120-POL, 4720, 5227, 5330, 8868, or 8038-CP. For Form 990-PF, 990-T, 1120-POL, 4720, 5330, and 8868 with a payment, signing the form also authorizes the IRS to withdraw the tax due directly from the organization’s bank account.²

The form itself is not public. Unlike Form 990, which must be available for public inspection, Form 8879-TE stays between the organization and its ERO.²

Filling In the Header and Part I

The ERO prepares the header and Part I before the officer sees the form. In the header, enter the organization’s legal name, EIN, and the tax period the return covers. If the form is being used to authenticate Form 8038-CP, the interest payment date from that return goes in the period-ending-date field instead of a tax year.²

In Part I, check the box for the return being filed and enter the corresponding dollar amount from the prepared return. The line item you copy depends on the return:

Form 990: total revenue
Form 990-PF: net assets or fund balances at end of year
Returns reporting a tax due: the tax amount

This figure must match the number in the electronic return exactly. A mismatch between Part I and the transmitted file is one of the most common reasons the IRS rejects an e-filing.

Part II: The Officer’s PIN and Signature

Part II is where the authorized officer creates the electronic signature. First, check the appropriate box at the top of Part II. Most signers are officers of the entity and will check the officer box. Someone signing individually because they are personally subject to tax with respect to the entity, such as a contributor or manager filing Form 4720 or Form 5330 in their own capacity, checks the second box and writes the tax-exempt entity’s name and EIN in the space provided.²

Next, choose a five-digit PIN. Any combination of numbers works except five zeros. Then pick one of two methods for getting the PIN onto the return:

Authorize the ERO to enter the PIN for you. Write the ERO firm’s name on the authorization line. This is the most common approach.
Enter the PIN yourself, directly in the tax software during a signing session.

Whichever method you pick, sign and date Part II. That signature is a declaration under penalty of perjury that the return is true, correct, and complete. Under 26 USC 7206, a false statement here is a felony carrying a fine of up to $100,000 for individuals ($500,000 for a corporation) and up to three years in prison.³ Read Part I once more before signing and confirm the dollar figure agrees with the return.

Part III: ERO Information

After the officer signs, the ERO completes Part III by entering their six-digit Electronic Filing Identification Number (EFIN) followed by their own five-digit self-selected PIN, then signing and dating.² The EFIN-and-PIN combination ties the ERO to the specific transmission and functions as the ERO’s signature inside the electronic filing system.

Once all three parts are complete and signed, the form is done. Do not mail it. Do not upload it to the IRS. It stays in the ERO’s records as evidence that the officer authorized the filing.

Exchanging the Signed Form With the ERO

The IRS permits several ways to move the form between the ERO and the officer: hand delivery, U.S. mail, private delivery service, email, fax, or a secure website.² Most firms email the partially completed form or post it to a portal, then collect the signed copy back the same way.

A handwritten signature on paper is always acceptable, and the ERO can keep a scanned copy of it. If the officer signs electronically, the ERO’s software has to meet IRS identity-verification standards: it must capture the signer’s name, address, date of birth, and Social Security number, then validate identity through knowledge-based authentication questions drawn from credit-reporting data.⁴ After three failed attempts at those questions, the ERO must get a handwritten signature instead.

After You Sign: Transmission and Rejections

The ERO transmits the return and PIN-based signature through secure channels to the IRS. The IRS will reject the filing if it detects a PIN error, a Part I figure that does not match the return, or missing authorization data. The ERO can fix the problem and retransmit using the same signed Form 8879-TE. A new signature is not required for a correction and retransmission of the same return.

When the IRS accepts the return, the ERO should send the organization an acknowledgment. Keep that confirmation with your copy of Form 8879-TE. Together they establish that the return was filed and accepted on a specific date, which is the evidence you need if the IRS ever raises a late-filing question.

Retention

The ERO must keep the signed Form 8879-TE for three years from the return’s due date, the extended due date, or the date the IRS received the return, whichever is latest.⁵ Electronic storage is fine as long as the system produces a legible reproduction of the officer’s signature and meets the standards in Revenue Procedure 97-22 for electronic retention of tax records.

The organization should keep its own copy for the same period. Losing the form does not undo an accepted return, but it removes the organization’s ability to show who authorized the filing if the question ever comes up. Because the form carries the officer’s PIN and, in some cases, identity-verification data, store it securely and limit access to people with a legitimate need to see it.

1
Internal Revenue Service. About Form 8879-TE, IRS e-file Signature Authorization for a Tax Exempt Entity
2
Internal Revenue Service. IRS Form 8879-TE
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 7206 – Fraud and False Statements
4
Internal Revenue Service. Frequently Asked Questions for IRS e-file Signature Authorization
5
Internal Revenue Service. Publication 4163 – Modernized e-File (MeF) Information for Authorized IRS e-file Providers