Authorising Someone to Act on Your Tax Affairs
At some point in a long retirement, dealing with tax correspondence becomes somebody else's job — a spouse, an adult child, a paid preparer. The IRS will not discuss an account with a person who is not authorised, and the authorisation has to be on its own terms. A general power of attorney drawn up by a solicitor is frequently not enough by itself, which families discover at the worst moment.
- Representation is the fullest:: A named representative can argue, sign certain documents and receive notices.
- Information-only is narrower:: An authorisation to receive information does not allow anyone to act.
- Who may represent is restricted:: Full representation is limited to certain categories of practitioner and relatives.
- A general power may need extra steps:: A non-IRS power of attorney can be used only where it meets the requirements.
Where the AI summary above gets this wrong
"I have power of attorney for my mother, so I can deal with her tax affairs."
That's surface-true. Here's what it misses:
- A general power of attorney is not automatically accepted — A document drawn up by a lawyer can be used only where it contains the specific elements the IRS requires, and it generally has to be submitted with a completed declaration by the person acting. Families assume the document they already hold is sufficient and find out that it is not while trying to resolve something urgent.
- There are three different levels, and people ask for the wrong one — Authority to represent, authority to receive information, and designee status for a single return are three separate things. Somebody who only needs to see a transcript does not need full representation, and somebody who has to argue a notice cannot do it with information-only access.
- Do this while the person can still sign — Every one of these authorisations requires the taxpayer's signature. Once capacity is lost the route is much harder, which is why this belongs in the same conversation as the rest of the incapacity planning rather than being left until it is needed.
01 The three levels
A power of attorney authorises a named person to represent the taxpayer: to receive confidential information, argue a position, respond to notices and sign certain documents. Only defined categories of person may hold it — attorneys, certified public accountants, enrolled agents and, in limited circumstances, family members.
A tax information authorisation allows a named person or organisation to receive and inspect information without any authority to act. That is sufficient where an adult child simply needs to see what has been filed and what is outstanding.
Third-party designee status is narrower still: a box on the return itself that lets the preparer discuss that one return for a limited period.
Shows: the time cost of handling tax correspondence personally over a long retirement, which is what naming a representative removes. Ignores: a representative's fee, the fact that an authorisation does not transfer liability, and the separate state authorisations that may be needed.
02 Granting representation
Representation is granted on a specific form, which names the representative and states precisely which tax matters and which years are covered. An authorisation that does not name the year in question does not reach it.
The representative signs a declaration of their eligibility. A non-practitioner family member can be authorised only in limited circumstances, which is the constraint most families run into.
A new authorisation generally revokes an earlier one for the same matters unless it says otherwise, so a household that changes accountant should check what the new form does to the old one.
Source: About Form 2848: Power of attorney and declaration of representative
03 Using a document drawn up elsewhere
A general or durable power of attorney prepared by a lawyer can be used, but only where it contains the required elements: the taxpayer's details, the representative's details, the matters and years covered, and a signature. In practice it is usually submitted with the standard form attached.
Whoever is acting must still be eligible to represent. A durable power of attorney held by an adult child does not by itself make them a practitioner, though it may allow limited action.
The practical answer is to complete the standard authorisation while the taxpayer can sign, alongside the durable power the lawyer has prepared. Two documents, one conversation, and neither is a substitute for the other.
The state revenue authority is separate again, with its own forms and its own acceptance rules, so a household that has moved or that files in two states needs the equivalent authorisation for each. The state return is frequently the one that generates the correspondence, and an authorisation covering only the federal account leaves the person acting unable to resolve it.
Source: Publication 947: Practice before the IRS and power of attorney
Do this at the same time as the durable power of attorney, not years later. The lawyer's document handles the bank and the house; it does not by itself get anyone through to a person who will discuss a tax account. Sign the standard authorisation while it is easy, name the years generously, and put a copy where whoever will need it can find it. It takes twenty minutes and it is only available while the taxpayer can still sign.
FAQ
Can I deal with my parent's tax affairs?
Only with an authorisation. Depending on what you need to do, that is either a power of attorney granting representation or a narrower authorisation to receive information.
Is a lawyer's power of attorney enough?
Not by itself in most cases. It can be used where it contains the required elements, and in practice it is usually submitted alongside the standard form.
What if the person can no longer sign?
The route becomes considerably harder, which is why the authorisation should be completed while capacity remains rather than when it is needed.
Sources
Regulator references
- Power of attorney and other authorisations · Internal Revenue Service · 2026The different levels of authority a taxpayer can grant.Last verified: 2026-09-07
- About Form 2848: Power of attorney and declaration of representative · Internal Revenue Service · 2026The form granting full representation and who may be named on it.Last verified: 2026-09-07
- Publication 947: Practice before the IRS and power of attorney · Internal Revenue Service · 2026What a representative may do and the limits on that authority.Last verified: 2026-09-07
Calculator unit tests · the assertions this page's worked example is checked against, and their last result
Changelog
- 2026-09-07 — initial publish (new format)
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Jordan Reeves
Founder of Talk Through Wealth. A software engineer for over a decade before turning to retirement planning, Jordan built the projection engine after watching family members get fragmented, country-by-country advice that never reconciled. He writes about retirement the way the engine computes it: month-by-month, lifetime-long, and skeptical of any rule of thumb that hasn't been run through the math.