IRS Form 2848: How to Fill It Out, Who Can Represent You, and Using a Durable POA

IRS Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative, is the form you use to let someone deal with the IRS for you: talk to the agency, receive your tax information and act on the matters and years you list. It is not the same as the general durable power of attorney a family uses for bank accounts, and that difference catches many people out.

This page explains who can represent you, what the form does and does not allow, how to fill it in line by line, how to submit it, and what to do if you already hold a durable power of attorney for a parent. Everything comes from the IRS’s own Instructions for Form 2848.

Who can be your representative

You can only name individuals who are eligible to practice before the IRS. In Part II, each representative signs and enters the letter of the category that makes them eligible:

Letter	Who	What they enter
a	Attorney	State where admitted and bar number
b	Certified public accountant	State where licensed and license number
c	Enrolled agent	Enrollment card number
d	Officer of the taxpayer organization	Title
e	Full-time employee of the taxpayer	Title or position
f	Family member	Relationship: spouse, parent, child, brother, sister, grandparent, grandchild, step-parent, step-child, step-brother or step-sister
g	Enrolled actuary	Enrollment card number
h	Unenrolled return preparer	PTIN (limited representation, see below)
k	Qualifying student or law graduate in a tax clinic	“LITC” or “STCP”
r	Enrolled retirement plan agent	Enrollment card number

Form 2848 vs. Form 8821

	Form 2848	Form 8821
Lets the person receive your tax information	Yes	Yes
Lets the person represent you and act for you	Yes	No
Who can be named	Only people eligible to practice before the IRS	Any individual or organization
Typical use	Audits, collection, appeals, penalty relief	A lender, a relative or an unenrolled preparer who needs to see your records

What the form authorizes, and what it does not

Unless you limit it, Form 2848 lets your representative receive your confidential tax information and do anything you could do for the matters and years listed: sign agreements, consents and waivers. It does not, unless you add the authority on line 5a:

• Let the representative substitute or add another representative.
• Let the representative sign your tax return (allowed only in limited cases, below).
• Let the representative consent to disclosing your tax information to a third party.
• Let the representative use an intermediate service provider to retrieve your records.

And it never lets the representative endorse or cash a government refund check, or have a refund paid into an account they control.

I have a durable power of attorney for my parent. Does the IRS accept it?

This is the question most families actually have. The IRS will accept a power of attorney other than Form 2848 if it meets the IRS requirements in 26 CFR 601.503(a): it must include the taxpayer’s name, address and taxpayer identification number, the representative’s name and address, the type of tax, the tax form number, the specific years or periods, and a clear statement of the authority granted. A general durable power of attorney that says “all financial matters” often does not list specific tax matters and years.

There are two routes. If your durable power of attorney already contains everything the IRS requires, you can use it, but to have it recorded on the IRS’s Centralized Authorization File (CAF) you must attach a completed Form 2848; the taxpayer does not need to sign that Form 2848, but the representative must sign Part II (26 CFR 601.503(b)(2)). If it does not list the tax matters and years, which is usual for a general “all financial matters” document, the attorney-in-fact can sign a Form 2848 on the taxpayer’s behalf, provided the original document covers federal tax matters (for example, authority to perform any and all acts) and the attorney-in-fact attaches a statement, signed under penalty of perjury, that the power of attorney is valid under the law of the state that governs it (26 CFR 601.503(b)(3); IRS Publication 947, “Procedure for perfecting a non-IRS power of attorney”). The attorney-in-fact can name themselves as the representative only if they are eligible to practice before the IRS, for example as a family member under letter (f); otherwise they must name someone who is.

How to fill out Form 2848, line by line

1. Line 1, taxpayer information. Your name, taxpayer identification number and address. For a deceased taxpayer, the executor or personal representative’s name, title and address go here too.
2. Line 2, representatives. Up to four representatives on the form; attach another form for more. Enter each one’s CAF number, or “None” and the IRS will issue one. Check the box under a representative’s name if you want them to receive copies of IRS notices; no more than two representatives can receive copies for the same matter.
3. Line 3, acts authorized. Describe each matter (for example “Income”), the tax form number (for example 1040) and the years or periods. The IRS will not record on the CAF future years that are more than three years after December 31 of the year it receives the form.
4. Line 4, specific use. Check it only for a one-off matter the IRS does not record on the CAF, such as an EIN application; then send the form to the office handling that matter. Never check line 4 for an ordinary authorization: a form with line 4 checked is not recorded on the CAF.
5. Line 5a and 5b, additional acts or limits. Add or remove authority, such as substituting representatives or signing a return. Any entry on line 5b, or any line 5a authority other than disclosure to third parties, substituting or adding representatives, or signing a return, makes the authorization “modified” on the CAF, and the representative then cannot pull your transcripts through the IRS Transcript Delivery System or set up an installment agreement in Tax Pro Account (IRS).
6. Line 6, prior powers of attorney. A new Form 2848 recorded on the CAF generally revokes earlier ones for the same matter. To keep them, check the box and attach copies.
7. Line 7, your signature. Sign and date. Spouses who filed jointly must each file their own Form 2848.
8. Part II, declaration of representative. Each representative signs, dates and enters their category letter and license or enrollment number. If you sign first, the representative must sign within 45 days (60 days if you live abroad). If the representative signs first, there is no time limit for you.

How to submit it

Method	What you need
Online	An IRS Secure Access account, at IRS.gov/Submit2848. Electronic signatures are accepted only for online submissions.
Fax or mail	The number or address for your state in the Where To File Chart of the instructions. A handwritten signature is required.
Specific-use forms (line 4 checked)	Mail or fax to the IRS office handling that matter.

Representatives can also use the all-digital Tax Pro Account, where most requests record to the CAF immediately.

How to revoke a Form 2848

Write “REVOKE” across the top of the first page of a copy, sign and date it below that word, and mail or fax it to the IRS using the Where To File Chart (or to the office handling a specific matter). If you do not have a copy, send a signed and dated statement that lists the matters and years and the name and address of each representative whose authority you are revoking, or write “revoke all years/periods”.

Form 2848: common questions

Can a family member be my representative?

Yes, if they are your spouse, parent, child, brother, sister, grandparent, grandchild, step-parent, step-child, step-brother or step-sister. They sign Part II under letter (f).

Does Form 2848 expire?

There is no fixed expiration date. It covers the matters and years listed on line 3 until you revoke it, the representative withdraws (by writing “WITHDRAW” on a copy and sending it to the IRS), or a later Form 2848 recorded on the CAF for the same matter replaces it, unless you checked line 6 to keep it. Two limits apply: the IRS does not record future years more than 3 years after December 31 of the year it receives the form, and authorizations for students or law graduates in tax clinics are purged from the CAF 130 days after the taxpayer signs.

Who signs Form 2848 for someone who has died?

The executor or personal representative of the estate. A fiduciary such as an executor or guardian stands in the taxpayer’s position and tells the IRS about that role on Form 56; they can then sign a Form 2848 naming a representative.

Do I need Form 2848 to let my tax preparer see my transcripts?

No. If they only need to see or receive your information, Form 8821 is enough and can name anyone.

Related

• Durable power of attorney: for your finances in general
• Power of attorney template
• Medical power of attorney