IRS question

March 25, 2019 4:22 PM

I am already a power of attorney for my parents. Do I still have to have my parents sign the IRS POA form 2848?

IRS hotline super busy right now so just thought I'd ask if anyone has direct experience with this. I understand you are not my lawyer or tax attorney, just wondering if you dealt with this. I am an adult and accept the consequences of asking for advice on the internet:

I have a legal POA for my parents. My mom does not have capacity to sign documents anymore. My dad does but we live in different cities. I do their taxes. Last year I had dad sign but I'd like to just sign this year. It seems like the IRS has a specific POA form called the 2848, but my mom couldn't even sign this anymore. Have you dealth with this? Was your POA good enough?

If no one has dealt with this I'll call the IRS back later in the week when I have time to sit on hold to clarify.

posted by latkes to Law & Government (1 answer total)

I've dealt with this for the last few years with my grandmother.

When I was in contact with the IRS with similar questions to yours, the representatives were very kind and understanding, but I got the feeling that they couldn't actually advise me to disregard Form 2848. So, yes, your parents are technically supposed to sign the form. That said, it isn't possible for my grandma to sign, so every year my mom signs her return and we include a copy of the POA, and the IRS accepts it with no issues. I would guess that doing the same for your mom would also go smoothly.

If I were in your place, I would have your dad send you a signed copy of Form 2848 to include in his return this year, to try and comply with the IRS rules as much as you can. Also, that way you'll have a copy of his signed 2848 on file. But that's up to you. If you just include a copy of the POA and no Form 2848 for him, too, I doubt you'll run into any trouble.
posted by rue72 at 5:02 PM on March 25, 2019 [1 favorite]