Rev. Rul. 78-317

Advice has been requested whether an income tax return preparer is required to sign and affix an identification number to the taxpayer's copy of a federal income tax return.

Section 6107(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 requires an income tax return preparer to furnish a completed copy of the return to the taxpayer not later than the time the return is presented for the taxpayer's signature.

Section 6109(a)(4) of the Code requires that any income tax return prepared by an income tax return preparer shall bear an identifying number for securing proper identification of the preparer, the preparer's employer, or both.

Section 1.6695-1(b)(1) of the Income Tax Regulations provides that an income tax return preparer shall manually sign the return in the space provided on the return after it is completed and before it is presented to the taxpayer for signature.

Since the regulation provides that the preparer's signature goes on the "completed" return, the word "completed" as used in section 6107 of the Code does not mean signed. The question of whether an identification number should be affixed to a return arises only where a signature is required.

The purpose of section 6107(a) of the Code is to insure that the taxpayer receives a copy of the completed return to review its accuracy, and to insure that the final return is not signed by the taxpayer prior to its completion. S. Rep. No. 94-938, 1976-3 C.B. 392, Vol. 3. This statutory purpose would not be furthered by requiring that the preparer sign the copy of the return furnished the taxpayers.

Accordingly, an income tax return preparer is not required to sign and affix an identification number to the taxpayer's copy of a federal income tax return.