| Publication 947 |
2003 Tax Year |
Publication 947
Introductory Material
This is archived information that pertains only to the 2003 Tax Year. If you
are looking for information for the current tax year, go to the Tax Prep Help Area.
Important Changes
Third party designee.
. An individual can now allow the IRS to discuss his or her tax return with a friend, family member, or any other person by
checking the
Yes box in the third party designee area of the return. See Third party designee under When Is a Power of
Attorney Not Required, later.
Oral authorization. An individual can now allow the IRS to disclose tax returns and return information to a third party by oral authorization.
For more information,
see Nonwritten consents under When Is a Power of Attorney Not Required, later.
Renewal of enrolled agent status. Enrolled agent cards expire on March 31, 2002. However, the Director of Practice has extended all current enrollment cards
until April 30, 2002.
Practitioners' hotline. The new Practitioner Priority Service® is a nationwide, toll-free hotline that provides professional support to practitioners
with
account-related questions. This service is available weekdays from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. local time. The toll-free number
for this service is
1-866-860-4259.
Important Reminders
Confidentiality privilege expanded. The confidentiality protection for communications between a taxpayer and an attorney (privileged communications) has been
expanded to apply to
communications involving tax advice between a taxpayer and any federally authorized tax practitioner. For more information,
see Confidentiality
privilege under What Are the Rules of Practice, later.
Form 8821. Form 8821, Tax Information Authorization, can only be used to authorize disclosure of tax information to a third party. See When Is
a Power of Attorney Not Required, later. To appoint a representative, use Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of
Representative.
Non-IRS powers of attorney. A general, durable, or limited power of attorney will be accepted by the IRS if it satisfies the same requirements stated
in Form 2848. If the
non-IRS power of attorney does not contain all the required information, the attorney-in-fact (the representative) appointed
by the non-IRS power of
attorney may be able to add the missing information by attaching a Form 2848. See Non-IRS powers of attorney under When Is a Power of
Attorney Required, later.
Facsimile copies. The IRS will accept a power of attorney that is submitted by facsimile transmission (fax) if the appropriate IRS office is
equipped to receive it.
Introduction
This publication discusses who can represent a taxpayer before the IRS and what forms or documents are used to authorize a
person to represent a
taxpayer. Usually, attorneys, certified public accountants (CPAs), enrolled agents, and enrolled actuaries can represent taxpayers
before the IRS.
Under special circumstances, other individuals, including unenrolled return preparers, can represent taxpayers before the
IRS. For details regarding
taxpayer representation, see Who Can Practice Before the IRS, later. This publication also contains a Glossary
that defines certain professional titles as well as various terms.
Also covered is the use of Form 8821 to authorize an individual or certain entities to receive and inspect a taxpayer's confidential
tax
information. See Disclosure of tax return information under When Is a Power of Attorney Not Required, later.
Definitions.
Many of the terms used in this publication, such as enrolled agent and practitioner are defined in the Glossary at
the back of this publication.
Comments and suggestions.
We welcome your comments about this publication and your suggestions for future editions.
You can e-mail us while visiting our web site at www.irs.gov.
You can write to us at the following address:
Internal Revenue Service
Technical Publications Branch
W:CAR:MP:FP:P
1111 Constitution Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20224
We respond to many letters by telephone. Therefore, it would be helpful if you would include your daytime phone number,
including the area code, in
your correspondence.
Useful Items - You may want to see:
Publication
-
1
Your Rights as a Taxpayer
Form (and Instructions)
-
2848
Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative
-
8821
Tax Information Authorization
Ordering publications and forms.
See How To Get Tax Help, near the end of this publication, for information about getting publications and forms.
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