The IRS’s Annual Filing Season Program (AFSP) is a voluntary program designed to recognize the efforts of non-credentialed tax return preparers who increase their knowledge through continuing education (CE).
There are two main benefits of return preparers receiving an AFSP – Record of Completion:
To earn an AFSP - Record of Completion for the 2021 filing season, preparers must:
A Record of Completion will be issued to a return preparer once all requirements, including renewal of their PTIN for the upcoming filing season, have been met.
Tax return preparers with online PTIN accounts will receive an email from TaxPro_PTIN@irs.gov with instructions on how to complete the application process and receive their Record of Completion in their online secure mailbox.
The CE credits required in order to earn an Annual Filing Season Program (AFSP) Record of Completion are displayed in the following table. The table does not apply to Enrolled Agents, who are held to a higher knowledge requirement in order to maintain their credentials. EAs are not allowed to earn CE credit for the AFTR course.
Other tax return preparers who desire to earn an AFSP Record of Completion must complete the CE listed in the Non-Exempt row of the table unless they are exempt from the Annual Federal Tax Refresher (AFTR) course and test requirement (by virtue of having passed one of the recognized state or national competency tests listed below the table). If that is the case, they must complete the CE requirements listed in the Exempt row of the table.
Important note about earning CE credits:
All CE credits must be earned through IRS-approved CE providers. As an IRS-approved CE provider, Drake has been authorized by the IRS to offer the AFTR course and will report the credits earned to the IRS.
The following unenrolled preparers are exempt from the AFTR course and test requirement because they have passed other recognized state or national competency tests covering federal tax matters:
Detailed chart of AFSP continuing education requirements
The Annual Federal Tax Refresher (AFTR) course is a six-hour course accompanied by a 100 question multiple choice knowledge-based comprehension test. A passing score of 70% must be obtained and the test must be completed in 3 hours or less. Preparers can retake the test as many times as is needed to pass. You must complete the course before taking the test.
The course is structured into three domains:
Drake offers a number of ways to obtain CE credits that can be used to earn your Annual Filing Season Program – Record of Completion:
Drake is committed to providing all required continuing education for any unenrolled tax return preparer who wants to earn his or her Record of Completion through the Annual Filing Season Program. New webinar and self-study topics will be added throughout the year, so check back periodically to see what’s new.
AFTR Exemption Status | AFTR Course & Test CE Credits | Tax Law Update CE Credits | Federal Tax Law CE Credits | Ethics CE Credits | Total CE Credits |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Non-Exempt | 6 | 10 | 2 | 18 | |
Exempt | 3 | 10 | 2 | 15 |