Annual Filing Season Program

AFSP participants can also opt to be listed in The Directory of Federal Tax Return Preparers with Credentials and Select Qualifications, a public information database on the IRS website.

The purpose of the initiative was to improve taxpayer compliance and service by setting professional standards for and providing support to the tax preparation industry.

As the result of a lawsuit, the Court issued an order forbidding the IRS from enforcing the regulatory requirements for registered tax return preparers.

[5] [6] In June 2014, the Return Preparer Office unveiled a new voluntary program intended to encourage tax return preparers to participate in continuing education courses on an annual basis — the Annual Filing Season Program (AFSP).

Participants can also choose to be included in an online IRS public information database called The Directory of Federal Tax Return Preparers with Credentials and Select Qualifications, which taxpayers can use to help locate qualified tax preparers in their area beginning January 2015.