Court Denies IRS Request to Reinstate Tax Preparer Rules
Author: |April 15, 2013
Court Denies IRS Request to Reinstate Tax Preparer Rules
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia denied a request made by the Internal Revenue Service to reinstate its tax preparer rules or otherwise known as, tax return preparer regulatory program, pending an appeal.
The ruling said that the federal agency had “not satisfied the stringent requirements” to overturn a lower-court judge’s injunction against the IRS’s new return preparer regulations, according to Reuters. As a result of the ruling, the IRS’s requirements for mandatory testing and continuing education of all tax preparers will continue to be suspended.
The IRS attempted to implement a new tax law that would require independent tax preparers to obtain a Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN), pass a competency test, pay an annual application fee, and complete 15 hours of continuing education annually.
The law gained considerable support from several tax preparation agencies, which heralded the measure as an additional measure of protection for consumers. In addition, the IRS noted that returns submitted by independent preparers without proper education and licensing were causing too many costly errors.
However, a lower court struck down the law in February. The IRS has not commented on the appeals decision or announced whether it will appeal the decision.
Court Denies IRS Request to Reinstate Tax Preparer Rules
Author:
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia denied a request made by the Internal Revenue Service to reinstate its tax preparer rules or otherwise known as, tax return preparer regulatory program, pending an appeal.
The ruling said that the federal agency had “not satisfied the stringent requirements” to overturn a lower-court judge’s injunction against the IRS’s new return preparer regulations, according to Reuters. As a result of the ruling, the IRS’s requirements for mandatory testing and continuing education of all tax preparers will continue to be suspended.
The IRS attempted to implement a new tax law that would require independent tax preparers to obtain a Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN), pass a competency test, pay an annual application fee, and complete 15 hours of continuing education annually.
The law gained considerable support from several tax preparation agencies, which heralded the measure as an additional measure of protection for consumers. In addition, the IRS noted that returns submitted by independent preparers without proper education and licensing were causing too many costly errors.
However, a lower court struck down the law in February. The IRS has not commented on the appeals decision or announced whether it will appeal the decision.
