Tax preparers fret over first U.S. IRS fees, rules

[Koss]

Teeth Cleaning

My point is simply that many tax pros who are currently unlicensed are very competent, and I don't think the new rules are going to put them out of business. They will pass the test, and they will comply with the new rules. They may have to raise their rates a bit to cover some of the additional cost. Overall, I think it will be good for the profession. The IRS is in fact putting out some marketing stuff to educate the public that they should not pay an unlicensed practitioner to do their return.

A few further thoughts:

I stand by my analogy that a tax preparer operating without any licensing or regulation is a bit like someone cleaning your teeth without any licensing or regulation. What's interesting is that there are actually a lot of people cleaning teeth without a license.

Many states have little or no regulation or licensing of dental hygienists, as long as they are working under the supervision of a dentist. So, no, you can't hang out a shingle and do teeth cleaning on your own. But many dentists here in Ohio hire hygienists that have little or no formal training, and they are trained on the job, by dentists and by experienced hygienists. This is perfectly legal.

The new IRS rules also allow for this type of apprenticeship. A tax pro can get a PTIN as a non-signing, supervised preparer.

But for those unlicensed tax pros that have been doing this for years, the basic test should be a no-brainer. I really don't see this as a burdensome or expensive system. Many unlicensed tax pros have already been "vetted" by the IRS because they are EROs.

BMK

[Snaggletooth]

Self-Regulation

Burton, your point is well-respected, but let's be honest about doctors and dentists.

They are SELF-regulated. In fact, the AMA has been so stringent about medical schools taking in students that the profession has been rewarded in at least two ways:

1) Standards of excellence among medical providers
2) A natural crimp on the "supply" side which drives up earnings of physicians and medical practitioners.

This does not exactly parallel the AICPA, but I would have to say that this organization has done well to police their own. Hard to know what would have happened if the SEC had not placed audit requirements on publicly traded securities, but fact is they did, and this gave rise and need for the attest function.

As a profession, we were not [willing or able] (choose one) to do this. In fact, our own associations such as NATP and NAEA, for all their benefit, have not even been able to influence legislation. They simply do not have gazillions of dollars to lobby congress.