Post a Comment On: CPA at Law

The IRS now allows taxpayer representatives to submit Forms 2848 and 8821 online. Any taxpayer representative with an IRS e-Services account can use their e-Services credentials to log on to the new online submission portal. If you don't have an e-Services account, you can sign up for the submission portal at this link.

The IRS requires that all 2848 forms mailed or faxed have a wet-ink signature, but now the IRS will accept electronically-signed 2848s, as long as proper procedures are followed and the forms are submitted electronically through the new submission portal. Below is an acceptable process that a taxpayer representative can follow to remotely obtain and submit a Form 2848 online for an individual taxpayer:
1. Request that the taxpayer electronically provide a copy of their photo ID and the first page of their tax return.

2. Complete IRS Form 2848 with the name, address, and social security number you have received and verified and electronically send the Form 2848 to the taxpayer for signature.

3. Schedule a video conference to verify the taxpayer's identity and their receipt of the Form 2848 and coordinate the taxpayer's signing and and electronic return of the Form 2848.

4. Log into the new IRS online submission portal, answer the questions the portal presents, and upload the appropriate form.
The submission portal provides the option of submitting a Form 2848, Form 8821, or a revocation of an existing authorization. On the next screen, you will be asked if the taxpayer electronically signed the form in a remote transaction (meaning anything not in person). You will then be asked to declare that you "have authenticated the identity of the taxpayer on line 1 of the form or have personal knowledge of the taxpayer’s identity." If you click "no" to this question, you will be logged out, so be sure to authenticate the taxpayer's identity before logging in.

After stating whether the taxpayer is domestic or international, you will input the social security number of the taxpayer and upload the signed Form 2848. Once the file is attached, click "submit." You will receive an email confirming that the form will be processed in the order it was received and recommending that you not submit a duplicate form via mail or fax. The IRS's new online form submission portal is an appropriate and helpful development for a social-distanced world.