Every accepted return a firm transmits rides on one number: the Electronic Filing Identification Number. The IRS treats that number as a privilege, not a license, and it monitors how EROs use it — through return quality, signature-authorization records, advertising, office visits, and continuous suitability checks. An ERO who lets a taxpayer sign a blank Form 8879, charges a fee tied to the size of a refund, or never notices that the return count on their EFIN has doubled is not just risking a rejected return. The sanction ladder in Publication 3112 runs from a written reprimand to expulsion with no path back for five years.

This course walks the tax professional through the due diligence and compliance duties that attach to being an Authorized IRS e-file Provider: verifying taxpayer identity, executing and retaining Form 8879 correctly, handling rejects and refunds within the rules, safeguarding the EFIN and the data behind it, reporting a security incident, and understanding what IRS monitoring looks for and what each level of infraction costs.

Learning objectives

1. Recognize the roles and responsibilities of an Authorized IRS e-file Provider and the authority that governs participation in IRS e-file
2. Identify the requirements for obtaining, maintaining, and safeguarding an Electronic Filing Identification Number
3. Identify the ERO’s due diligence duties for verifying taxpayer identity and for completing, signing, and retaining Form 8879
4. Recognize the rules governing consent to use and disclose taxpayer information, e-file fees and refund products, rejected returns, and the electronic filing mandate
5. Distinguish among the levels of infraction under IRS e-file rules and identify the sanctions and appeal rights that follow each