Most likely, the answer is no. Remember the days with paper client files, colorful sticky […]
Tag: Tax preparers
Exposure Drafts: Tax Preparers Not Losing Any Hair Over Licensing
Exposure Drafts appears every other Wednesday. Send suggestions to [email protected].
IRS To Crack Down on Idiots Who Misuse Refund Direct Deposit
The Journal of Accountancy's unnecessarily dramatic headline — Limit on direct deposit of refunds will […]
The IRS Has Given Up Its Fight to Regulate Tax Preparers
The IRS decided against continuing a court battle on whether it has the legal authority […]
The IRS Is Asking Tax Preparers to Trust but Verify (Because You Might be an Alien)
This from our pal Joe Kristan who grinds away at the Tax Update Blog: It’s […]
GAO Went Undercover to Discover Tax Preparers Are Terrible at Tax Preparing
Mind you, it was a small sample of 19 but of those, 17 were wrong: […]
Save the Date: Senate Hearing on Protecting Taxpayers from Incompetent and Unethical Return Preparers
I may have blown off the PCAOB public meeting this week but this I can […]
The Situation Around the Registered Tax Return Preparer Program Has Become a Really Bad Soap Opera
In case you weren't paying attention, the IRS's Registered Tax Return Preparer (RTRP) program just […]
Mo’ Money Taxes Founder Won’t Let Mo’ Problems Keep Him From Serving Clients
Somehow we missed the saga of Mo' Money Taxes. Here are a few stories that […]
Layoff Watch ’12: H&R’s Post-Tax Season Chopping Block
Three hundred fifty preparers and two hundred locations won't be included in any future tax […]
This Might Be The Most Grateful Tax Preparer In The Entire Country
It's rare we share any feel-good stories with you all so when I saw this […]
These New IRS Competency Exams Are Going To Be a Hoot
Our resident tax nerd, Joe Kristan, touched on the IRS competency exam a couple of weeks ago but yesterday the IRS officially rolled out the red carpet. So, if you prepare tax returns but aren’t a CPA, lawyer, or enrolled agent, you now have the distinct pleasure of spending $116 to spend a few hours with everyone’s favorite test vendor – Prometric – whose proctors will keep a watchful eye on you to make sure your ostomy bag isn’t a secret answer bank, that you aren’t packing heat and your gum is appropriately disposed of. What’s the point of all this, you ask? IRS Commish Doug Shulman can answer that:
“This is another major step forward in our effort to enhance tax preparation service to millions of taxpayers. People should feel assured that the person they hire to prepare their federal tax returns has a working knowledge of the tax code,” said Doug Shulman, IRS Commissioner. “The majority of tax return preparers are reputable professionals but the few bad apples cause great harm to taxpayers and the industry.”
Got it? It’s for the good of the country. Just make sure you don’t have a runny nose on the day of your test. That’ll get you in trouble.