Non-Exempt AFSP Requirements

This package satisfies the continuing education requirements for the IRS Annual Filing Season Program Record of Completion for PTIN holders who are required to complete the 6-hour AFTR course. It includes courses listed below, which satisfy the following categories:

  • 2024 Annual Federal Tax Refresher – 6 hours
  • Federal Tax Law – 10 hours
  • Ethics – 2 hours

All course materials are provided as PDF files that can be accessed from your account immediately after purchase. Exams are administered online and are scored immediately upon submitting your exam. The IRS requires a passing score of 70% for each course.

MyCECentral is an IRS Approved Continuing Education Provider.

All AFSP courses were required to be completed by 12/31/2024. Courses for next year will be available Summer 2025.

Click here to enroll in the 18-Hour Non-Exempt AFSP Package.

See Are you Exempt?  if you are unsure whether this is the correct package for your requirements.

6-Hour 2024 Annual Federal Tax Refresher

Satisfies AFSP AFTR requirement Each year, various limits impacting income tax return preparation and tax planning are affected by inflation-related changes. In addition, various new tax laws may be passed. This course will examine many of those changes.  The Annual Federal Tax Refresher course is designed to meet the requirements of the IRS voluntary Annual Filing Season program. It discusses new tax law and recent updates for the upcoming filing season, provides a general tax review, and examines important rules governing tax return preparer ethics, practices and procedures. In organizing this course, the term “domain” is used in place of the more common “chapter” to more closely follow the language of the IRS Annual Federal Tax Refresher course outline.

Course Info

Delivery: Self-Study
CPE Hours: 6
Course Level: Basic
Prerequisites: None
Advanced Preparation: None
Category: Annual Federal Tax Refresher
Total Pages: 117
Questions: 100

10-Hour Federal Tax Law Topics Package

This package, containing three courses, is designed to meet the 10-hour federal tax law requirement for the Annual Filing Season Program. The courses included in the 10-hour package are:

  • Education Tax Benefits
  • Navigating Form 1040 Schedule C
  • Home Office Deduction

Package Info

Delivery: Self-Study
CPE Hours: 10
Course Level: Basic
Prerequisites: None
Advanced Preparation: None
Category: Federal Tax Law

2-Hour Tax Return Preparer Ethical Issues

Tax Return Preparer Ethical Issues examines tax preparer conduct standards. It addresses the issues of confidentiality, accuracy, conflict of interest, taxpayer omissions and return of client records. The ethical rules governing these issues are discussed, and tax preparers are presented with real-world scenarios that focus on the ethical issues that may be encountered in their professional activities.

Course Info

Delivery: Self-Study
CPE Hours: 2
Course Level: Basic
Prerequisites: None
Advanced Preparation: None
Category: Ethics

Although some tax preparers (described below) don’t need to complete the 6-hour Annual Federal Tax Refresher (AFTR) course to qualify for the Annual Filing Season Program (AFSP) Record of Completion, they still need to complete 15 hours of approved continuing education to qualify for the program.

Return preparers who can obtain the AFTR – Record of Completion—without taking the AFTR course are:

  • Anyone who passed the Registered Tax Return Preparer test administered by the IRS between November 2011 and January 2013
  • Established state-based return preparer program participants currently with testing requirements—
    • Return preparers who are active registrants of the Oregon Board of Tax Practitioners,
    • Return preparers who are active registrants of the California Tax Education Council, and/or
    • Return preparers who are active registrants of the Maryland State Board of Individual Tax Preparers
  • SEE Part I Test-Passers: Tax practitioners who have passed the Special Enrollment Exam Part I within the past two years
  • VITA volunteers: Quality reviewers and instructors with active PTINs
  • Other accredited tax-focused credential-holders: The Accreditation Council for Accountancy and Taxation’s Accredited Business Accountant/Advisor (ABA) and Accredited Tax Preparer (ATP) programs

To view detailed requirement descriptions for all preparer categories, please click here.
NOTE: The Annual Filing Season Program is for unenrolled preparers, therefore attorneys, certified public accountants (CPA), enrolled agents (EA), enrolled retirement plan agents (ERPA), and enrolled actuaries do not need to take continuing education for this program.

18hr. AFTR Package – $75.00

15hr. AFTR-Exempt Package – $60.00