Quality and professional tax return preparation is on its way

Quality and professional tax return preparation is on its way
November 11, 2010 by Douglas French

Yes, you were likely concerned that rogue tax return preparers were roaming the country, doing shoddy tax returns for unsuspecting taxpayers. The IRS is fixing this problem by requiring tax preparers to have a Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN). Tax preparers must pay $64.25 for the PTIN of which $50 is to pay for outreach, technology, and compliance efforts associated with the new program and the third-party vendor will receive $14.25 per user to operate the online system and provide customer support.

But this is only the beginning, says IRS Commissioner Doug Schulman. "This is an important first step because it lays the groundwork in our efforts to ensure the quality and integrity of professional tax return preparation, which most taxpayers rely on in one form or another,"

"My opinion is that it will eventually clean up the industry, at least to some extent, and lead to higher quality tax preparers," Tom Bingham of Bingham Tax Consultants told the Las Vegas Review Journal.

Individual taxpayers will not be penalized (for now) if they rely on unregistered tax preparers, but those using unregistered preparers can expect a notice from the IRS, according to David Williams, head of the new Return Preparer Office at the IRS.

All of this registering and fee paying will likely lead to higher prices for tax return preparation. For those thinking maybe they should just go it alone, complete their own returns and call the IRS if they have questions: A Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration report confirmed back in 2004 that the IRS gives wrong answers to tax questions 35% of the time.