Question: Bob and Nancy signed their Form 8879, IRS E-File Signature Authorization, without reviewing their completed Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return. Their preparer e-filed their Form 1040, which was rejected because of an input error, which the preparer corrected. The change raised their tax liability by $12. Do Bob and Nancy need to sign a new Form 8879 before the preparer can resubmit their return?
Answer: No. New signatures are not needed when the change in tax liability is less than $14. Rejected electronic individual income tax return data can be corrected and retransmitted without new signatures if changes don’t differ from the amount on the original electronic return by more than $50 to “Total income” or “AGI,” or more than $14 to “Total tax,” “Federal income tax withheld,” “Refund” or “Amount you owe.” However, per Publication 1345, Authorized IRS e-file Providers of Individual Income Tax Returns, the ERO (preparer) must give copies of the new electronic return to the taxpayers.
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Information included in this article is accurate as of the publish date. This post is not reflective of tax law changes or IRS guidance that may have occurred after the date of publishing.