Here's the lowdown
IRS officials say the agency still has work to do on guidance for tips, overtime, car loan interest and other tax changes before the 2027 filing season.
The agency is trying to reduce paper and expand online services while operating with a workforce that has fallen roughly 25% to 30% over the past year.
National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins urged practitioners to use Tax Pro Accounts as the IRS works toward broader online access to client information and Form 2848 authorizations.
The warning is operational, not theoretical
The IRS is preparing for another difficult filing season.
Agency officials told tax professionals that several large changes are arriving at the same time. The IRS must explain new tax provisions, process returns and refunds, reduce paper, modernize old systems and continue enforcement with a much smaller workforce.
Chris Pleffner, director of the IRS Tax Professional Management Office, said work remains on provisions involving tips, overtime, car loan interest and other changes. The agency plans more guidance and taxpayer education before filing begins.
For firms, that means the final rules and explanations may arrive close to the start of production. Waiting until organizers come back is a bad plan.
Paper is still a major bottleneck
The IRS is pushing its Zero Paper Initiative to reduce manual data entry and convert more records into digital form.
Edward Killen, commissioner of the Tax-Exempt and Government Entities division, said the effort covers returns, correspondence, remittances and paper checks.
The goal is faster processing with fewer manual steps. But a July memorandum from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration also identified security concerns with parts of the initiative.
Digital processing can remove delay, but only if the controls keep pace. Firms should not assume that sending something electronically guarantees quick resolution. Confirmation numbers, submission records and follow-up dates still matter.
A smaller workforce has to cover more lanes
National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins said IRS account managers do much more than answer phones. They also process paper and handle other account work.
During filing season, more employees are placed on phone lines. After April 15, many are reassigned to paper, and phone performance can fall.
The agency's staffing level has dropped by roughly 25% to 30% over the past year, according to officials at the conference. Old technology makes it harder to shift work smoothly.
That combination creates a familiar risk for practitioners: a client issue may be simple, but reaching the right IRS employee can take longer than the technical analysis.
Online accounts should become the default
Collins encouraged tax professionals to use Tax Pro Accounts. She also said improvements to Form 2848 power-of-attorney access and client information are expected, though full access is not likely in the next few months.
Firms should treat online access as part of onboarding. Confirm that practitioners can use the account, standardize how authorizations are submitted and train staff to save digital proof of each action.
Clients can also benefit from earlier account setup. A missing login or identity check is easier to fix in November than during a March deadline rush.
Four moves firms can make now
First, identify clients affected by the new tip, overtime and car-loan-interest rules. Send plain-language questions before organizers go out.
Second, move document deadlines earlier for clients with notices, prior-year issues or complex new provisions.
Third, create a separate tracking queue for IRS correspondence. Every item should have an owner, response deadline, submission proof and follow-up date.
Fourth, set expectations. Clients should know that an IRS delay does not mean the firm has stopped working.
The filing season may be challenging, but surprise is optional. Firms that prepare the workflow now will spend less of February and March reacting to it.
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