IRS Can Charge Tax Preparer ID Fees, Court Says in Reversal (1)

The IRS didn’t exceed its authority in charging tax return preparers a fee to obtain and renew their preparer tax identification numbers, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled March 1.

In 2010, the Internal Revenue Service began charging a fee—$50, later lowered to $33—for the unique identifying number that must be listed on any return they prepare. The IRS said the fee would be used to cover costs associated with the PTINs—for example, personnel used to evaluate compliance issues.

A group of tax return preparers filed a class action, arguing that the IRS’s decision ...