Form 2848 Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative is used to authorize an individual to represent the taxpayer/corporation/partnership before the IRS. The authorized individual must be eligible to practice before the IRS.

This power of attorney authorizes the representative to perform duties such as signing consents, extending the time to assess tax, recording the interview, or executing waivers agreeing to a tax adjustment. Only individuals may be named as representatives.

Authorizing someone as a power of attorney does not relieve the taxpayer of tax obligations.

To indicate this form will be attached and mailed with Form 8453 U.S. Individual Income Tax Transmittal for an IRS e-file Return (when e-filing the income tax return):

1. From within your TaxAct return (Online or Desktop) select Federal on the left. On smaller devices, click in the upper left-hand corner, then click Federal.
2. Click Miscellaneous Topics in the Federal Quick Q&A Topics menu to expand, click Additional Information for E-Filing to expand, then click Attachments for E-Filed Returns.
3. Continue with the interview process to enter all of the appropriate information.
4. On the screen titled E-Filing - Attachments, check Form 2848 - Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative (or POA that states the agent is granted authority to sign the return), then click Continue.

To fill out the applicable information directly on the form:

1. Click Forms in the top toolbar.
2. Click to expand the Federal folder, then click to expand the Forms and Schedules folder.
3. Click to expand Form 2848-Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative, then double-click Add Copy to open a new form.
4. Click Printer icon in the top toolbar to print the form.

In the e-filing steps, you will be prompted to print Form 8453. Attach Form 2848 to Form 8453, and mail it to the IRS once the return has been accepted. TaxAct^® supports Form 2848 for the following programs:

• Preparer 1040 Individual return
• Preparer 1041 Estates and Trusts return
• Preparer 1065 Partnership return
• Preparer 1120-S S-Corporation return
• Preparer 1120 Corporation return

Related Links

• IRS Instructions for Form 2848.

Note that any link in the information above is updated each year automatically and will take you to the most recent version of the document at the time it is accessed.