Form 2848

What Form 2848 does, and what it doesn't

Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative, authorizes one or more individuals to represent you before the IRS. With it, your representative can, in the IRS’s words, “represent, advocate, negotiate and sign on your behalf,” argue facts and law, receive your tax information for the matters and years you list, and get copies of IRS notices if you choose. The form is Rev. 1-2021; its instructions are dated September 2021, and the IRS lists both as current on its About Form 2848 page (reviewed 11 September 2026).

Under the Fresh Start Initiative it is the form that lets a professional pull your transcripts, set up a payment plan or negotiate an offer in compromise for you. When a representation firm such as Global Gate Tax Relief takes a case, filing Form 2848 and pulling IRS transcripts is usually the first step.

Limits built into the form

• A representative can’t endorse or cash a government refund check, or have a refund paid into an account they control.
• Unless you add it on line 5a, they can’t substitute or add another representative, sign your return (allowed only in narrow cases, such as illness, injury or absence from the U.S.), or consent to disclosure to third parties.
• The form covers only the tax matters and periods on line 3, and only representation before the IRS; it is not a general power of attorney.
• Naming a representative does not relieve you of your own filing and payment obligations, and it does not change your address on IRS records (use Form 8822).

You always have the right to represent yourself. You need Form 2848 only if you want someone else to deal with the IRS for you.

Who can be your representative: the Circular 230 categories

Your representative must be an individual eligible to practice before the IRS under Treasury Department Circular 230. In Part II they declare which category they fall into, using the letter printed on the form:

For collection matters such as payment plans, liens, levies and offers, an attorney, CPA or enrolled agent is the practical choice: an unenrolled preparer cannot represent you before a revenue officer or IRS Appeals. You can check a credential in the IRS Directory of Federal Tax Return Preparers with Credentials, and see disciplined practitioners on the Office of Professional Responsibility pages.

Form 2848 line by line

The form is two pages. Download it from IRS.gov; the instructions are separate.

Line 1: taxpayer information

Your name, taxpayer identification number and address only. A separate Form 2848 is required for each taxpayer: spouses who filed jointly each file their own, even if they name the same representative. Sole proprietors who want business matters covered enter both their SSN and EIN. Businesses enter the entity’s name, EIN and address.

Line 2: representatives

Name, address, phone and fax of up to four representatives (attach another form for more), with each one’s CAF number and PTIN. Check the box under a name to have that person receive copies of your IRS notices; only two representatives can get copies for the same matter.

Line 3: acts authorized

This line makes or breaks the form. For each matter, enter the description (for example “Income” or “Civil Penalty”), the form number (1040, 941) and the specific years or periods, such as “2021 through 2025.” General entries like “all years” are rejected. You can list past years, the current year and future years, but the CAF records future periods only up to three years after 31 December of the year the IRS receives the form. For a collection case, list every year with a balance plus the current year; the 656-B booklet asks for exactly that with an offer. Innocent spouse relief must be named separately (for example “Form 8857”), and a Trust Fund Recovery Penalty needs its own “Civil Penalty” entry.

Line 4: specific use not recorded on the CAF

Check this only for one-off matters the CAF doesn’t track, such as a Form 843 claim or an EIN application. A line 4 form is sent to the IRS office handling the matter, not to a CAF unit.

Lines 5a and 5b: additional and excluded acts

Line 5a adds powers such as using an intermediate service provider, authorizing disclosure to third parties, substituting a representative or signing a return. Line 5b removes powers. In guidance updated in July 2026, the IRS warns that most entries here make the authorization “modified” on the CAF, which stops the representative from pulling your transcripts through its Transcript Delivery System or setting up a payment plan in Tax Pro Account.

Line 6: retention of prior powers of attorney

A new Form 2848 recorded on the CAF revokes earlier ones for the same matters and periods. To keep an earlier representative, check line 6 and attach a copy of that power of attorney.

Line 7: your signature

Sign, date and, for a business, give your title. Faxed or mailed forms need a handwritten signature; electronic signatures are accepted only on forms submitted online.

Part II: declaration of representative

Each representative signs, in the order listed on line 2, under penalties of perjury, and enters their designation letter, licensing jurisdiction and bar, license or enrollment number. When you sign first, the representative must sign within 45 days (60 days if you live abroad). A missing signature, date, designation or license number is among the most common reasons the IRS rejects the form.

The CAF number and the Centralized Authorization File

The Centralized Authorization File is the IRS database of powers of attorney and tax information authorizations. When your Form 2848 is on the CAF, any IRS assistor can see that your representative is authorized, without asking for the paper form.

• The CAF number is a unique nine-digit number the IRS assigns to a representative the first time they file an authorization. It is not an SSN, PTIN or enrollment number, and it is “not an indication of authority to practice.”
• No number yet? The representative writes “None” on line 2 and the IRS assigns one, confirmed by Letter 1727C. Representatives can also get an individual CAF number in Tax Pro Account.
• Where the CAF units are. As a general rule, authorizations from states west of the Mississippi are processed in Ogden and those east of it in Memphis; international ones in Philadelphia (see the table below).
• How long it lasts. A power of attorney stays in effect until you revoke it or the representative withdraws, or until a new one for the same matters replaces it.

How to submit Form 2848: online, fax or mail

• Online. Upload it at IRS.gov/Submit2848 after signing in with an IRS account. Submit one form per upload, even for married couples, as a PDF, JPG or GIF. This is the only route for electronically signed forms.
• Your IRS Online Account. Attorneys, CPAs, enrolled agents, enrolled actuaries and enrolled retirement plan agents can send an individual a power of attorney request through Tax Pro Account. You review and sign it electronically in your Online Account, and it records in real time. This covers Form 1040 income tax, innocent spouse and certain civil penalty matters for taxpayers with a U.S. address.
• Fax or mail to the CAF unit for your state:

The IRS says these numbers may change without notice; check the instructions before you send. A line 4 specific-use form goes to the office handling that matter instead.

Processing time. On 25 September 2026 the IRS processing status page reported Forms 2848 being processed 2 business days after receipt, in the order received however they were sent. The IRS doesn’t notify you when it is done, so don’t send a duplicate. If a matter can’t wait, the representative can fax a wet-signed copy to the IRS employee handling the case.

Form 2848 vs Form 8821 and other authorizations

Filing a Form 2848 does not revoke a Form 8821 that is already in effect. Use Form 8821 when, for example, a lender or a bookkeeper just needs to see your transcripts; use Form 2848 when someone will negotiate a payment plan, a lien withdrawal or an offer in compromise for you.

How to revoke Form 2848, and common mistakes

To revoke without naming anyone new, write “REVOKE” across the top of the first page of a copy, sign and date it below, and mail or fax it to the CAF unit (or the office handling a specific-use matter). With no copy, send a signed statement listing the matters, periods and representatives being revoked, or write “revoke all years/periods.” Naming a new representative for the same matters also revokes the old one. A representative withdraws the same way, writing “WITHDRAW” instead.

1. Writing “all years” or “all taxes” on line 3. The IRS returns the form.
2. One form for both spouses. Each spouse files their own.
3. Missing signatures, dates, designation, jurisdiction or license number. These are the IRS’s most common rejection reasons.
4. Typed or electronic signatures on a faxed or mailed form. Those need ink.
5. Unneeded entries on lines 5a or 5b, which make the form “modified” and block online transcript access.
6. Checking line 4 by mistake, which keeps the form off the CAF.
7. Checking line 6 without attaching the power of attorney you want to keep.
8. Leaving out the current year or a year with a balance, so the representative can’t discuss it.
9. Naming someone who isn’t eligible, such as an unlicensed “tax resolution specialist,” for a collection case. Check credentials first; see spotting a sales pitch.

How to authorize a representative with Form 2848, step by step

1. Choose an eligible representative. Pick an attorney, CPA or enrolled agent for full representation, and check their credential. If you only want someone to see your information, use Form 8821 instead.
2. Download the current form. Get Form 2848 from IRS.gov and check that it is the January 2021 revision.
3. Complete lines 1 to 3. Enter your own name, taxpayer ID and address, the representative’s name, address and CAF number (or “None”), and each tax matter, form number and specific year or period. Never write “all years.”
4. Leave lines 4, 5a and 5b blank unless you need them. Check line 4 only for a specific-use matter not recorded on the CAF, and avoid extra entries on lines 5a and 5b, which make the authorization “modified” and limit what the representative can do online.
5. Sign and date line 7. Each spouse on a joint return signs a separate form. Use a handwritten signature if the form will be faxed or mailed.
6. Have the representative sign Part II. The representative enters their designation letter, licensing jurisdiction and license or enrollment number, and signs within 45 days of your signature (60 days if you live abroad).
7. Submit it once. Submit online at IRS.gov/Submit2848, or fax or mail it to the CAF unit for your state, or to the IRS office handling a specific-use matter. Don’t send duplicates.
8. Confirm it is on file. The IRS does not notify you when the form is processed. Your representative can confirm it, and you can see authorizations in your IRS Online Account.

Frequently asked questions

Keep reading in the Fresh Start hub

• Do you need help with Fresh Start?DIY, free help or a professional: how to decide.
• How to apply for Fresh Start reliefThe five steps, from transcripts to staying compliant.
• Form 656 step by stepAttach Form 2848 if someone will handle your offer.
• Is the Fresh Start program legit?What is real and what is a sales pitch.
• Fresh Start forms libraryEvery IRS form used under Fresh Start.