IRS loses class action seeking to recover unlawful PTIN fees

[RatherBeGolfing]

IRS Loses $175 Million Class Action Lawsuit

The basics:

IRS made PTINs mandatory 

IRS justifies annual PTIN fee with  31 U.S.C. § 9701, which allows agencies to charge for a service or value provided

Two CPAs sue the IRS claiming that the IRS was not allowed to require PTINs and was not allowed to charge PTIN fees

Court held that the IRS can require PTINs, but that the PTIN is not a service or of value to the preparer, so the IRS cannot charge PTIN fees

Furthermore, the IRS must refund PTIN fees to the class (which includes many of us)

 

[Peter Gulia]

Thank you, RatherBeGolfing, for calling our attention to this information.

For those who want to read beyond the good summary, here's a link to Judge Lamberth's opinion:

https://ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2014cv1523-78