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PTIN’s Still Required
February 5, 2013
In late January of this year, a less than wise judge from the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia enjoined the IRS from requiring tax return preparers to complete simple competency tests and attend continuing education courses each year. As a result of that ruling, pretty much anyone off the street can now prepare your return for you, regardless of his or her level of competence with tax preparation. To make matters worse, the ruling also initially threw out the requirement that tax return preparers must obtain and maintain a preparer tax identification number (“PTIN”). The IRS required PTIN’s in order to track tax preparer returns. Some might say this is invasion of privacy and who cares…well, I do. I care because without this system, fraud in the form of bogus refunds would be perpetuated against the government at much higher levels than right now. Guess who pays for this fraud? Ultimately, we all do in the form of either higher taxes or fewer government services. Tax return fraud is not a victimless crime. Well, the judge initially failed to consider this reality, but I am happy to report that last Friday, February 1, 2013, the court modified its initial order to clarify that PTIN’s are still required (read here). Basically, anyone off the street can still prepare your return, but he or she will still need a PTIN to do it. If this modification provides you no comfort, and it should not, please know that The Alexander Law Firm, LLC is here to help. We would be more than happy to help you prepare and file your tax returns. Just give us a call. Until next time, Alex