# Modernized e-File (MeF) Guide for > Briefs, arguments, decisions, and more. URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/agency%3Airs%3A64f7f85b0d22930b ## Record - **Collection:** Agency decision - **Document type:** Agency decision ## Text Publication 4164 Modernized e-File (MeF) Guide for Software Developers and Transmitters Processing Year 2026 Publication 4164 (Rev 12-2025) Catalog Number 36166N Department of the Treasury Internal Revenue Service www.irs.gov Table of Contents Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................................................2 1. Introduction ................................................................................................ 10 1.1 What’s New in Publication 4164? ..................................................................................................................11 1.2 Modernized e-File (MeF)..................................................................................................................................12 1.3 Communications .............................................................................................................................................12 1.3.1 IRS Website ......................................................................................................................................................13 1.3.2 Communication Vehicles ...................................................................................................................................13 1.4 Highlights .........................................................................................................................................................14 1.4.1 General Items ....................................................................................................................................................14 1.4.2 A2A MeF Software Developer Kit (SDK) and Client Applications .....................................................................15 1.4.3 Identity Protection PIN (IP PIN) .........................................................................................................................15 1.5 General Information about MeF......................................................................................................................17 1.5.1 Current and Prior 2 Tax Years are Accepted ....................................................................................................18 1.5.2 Perfection Periods for Rejected Submissions ...................................................................................................18 1.5.3 Electronic Postmark ..........................................................................................................................................19 1.5.4 Addresses .........................................................................................................................................................19 1.5.5 Transmission Timeframe Affected by Routine Maintenance .............................................................................22 1.5.6 SubmissionIDs in Transmission Manifest and Attachment Mismatch ...............................................................23 1.5.7 SubmissionType in the IRS Submission Manifest .............................................................................................23 1.5.8 Short Period Returns for Partnerships, Corporations, Exempt Organizations, and Estates and Trusts ...........24 1.5.9 Taxpayers Required to e-File Original and Amended Returns ..........................................................................25 1.5.10 Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) for Form 2290...........................................................................................27 1.6 Amended Returns and Superseding Returns ...............................................................................................27 1.6.1 Superseding Returns.........................................................................................................................................28 1.6.2 Amended Returns Forms 1120, 1120-F, 1120-L, 1120-PC, 1120-RIC, 1120-REIT and 1120-S......................28 1.6.3 Amended Partnership, Exempt Organization, Excise Tax, Estate/Trust, Gift Tax and Individual Returns .......30 1.6.4 Amended Individual Returns (1040/1040-SR/1040-NR) ...................................................................................31 1.6.5 Corrected Individual Returns (1040-SS) ...........................................................................................................31 1.6.6 Amended Employment Returns (940/941/943-945) ..........................................................................................31 1.7 Tax Returns Exempt from e-File.....................................................................................................................32 1.7.1 Exempt Due to Preparer’s Technological Difficulties.........................................................................................32 1.7.2 Exempt Due to IRS e-File Limitations ...............................................................................................................32 2 2. XML Overview for MeF ............................................................................... 37 2.1 MeF XML Structure ..........................................................................................................................................37 2.1.1 Schemas ...........................................................................................................................................................37 2.1.2 Submission Size ................................................................................................................................................38 2.1.3 Tag Names........................................................................................................................................................38 2.1.4 Attributes ...........................................................................................................................................................38 2.1.5 Repeating Group ...............................................................................................................................................39 2.1.6 Choice Construct ...............................................................................................................................................41 2.1.7 CurrencyCodeType ...........................................................................................................................................41 2.1.8 efileTypes ..........................................................................................................................................................42 2.1.9 Optional Choice for e-file Types with Required Fields ......................................................................................47 2.1.10 Attachments to Corporate Returns, Employment Tax Returns, Estate/Trust Tax Returns, Extensions, Individual Returns and Partnership Returns .....................................................................................................47 2.1.11 General Dependency ........................................................................................................................................48 2.1.12 XML Character Representation .........................................................................................................................50 2.2 Binary Attachments (PDF Files) .....................................................................................................................50 2.2.1 Attach a PDF File ..............................................................................................................................................50 2.2.2 A Sample Non-XML Document Attached to the Submission ............................................................................53 2.2.3 A Sample Non-XML Document Attached to a Form..........................................................................................53 2.2.4 Names and Descriptions for PDFs ....................................................................................................................54 2.2.5 Form 1040/1040-NR Paper Document Indicator ...............................................................................................56 2.3 Special Instructions for “Schedule” Attachments to Form 8865 ...............................................................57 2.4 Special Instructions for Form 4466 ................................................................................................................57 2.5 Special Instructions for Other Forms and Attachments that Require Signatures....................................57 2.5.1 Form 8838 .........................................................................................................................................................58 2.5.2 Form 7004 .........................................................................................................................................................58 2.5.3 Form 8868 .........................................................................................................................................................58 2.6 Exempt Organization Return Attachments ...................................................................................................58 2.6.1 General Explanation Attachment.......................................................................................................................59 2.6.2 Binary Attachments for Exempt Organization Returns ......................................................................................59 2.7 Special Instructions for Consolidated Returns ............................................................................................60 2.8 MeF Transmission and Submission File Structures for Internet Filing (IFA) and Application-toApplication (A2A) ............................................................................................................................................64 2.8.1 MeF Transmission File Structures for IFA .........................................................................................................64 2.8.2 Submission File Structure for the IFA Channel .................................................................................................65 2.8.3 Creating A MeF Attachment ..............................................................................................................................66 3 2.8.4 MeF Transmission File Structures for Application-to- Application (A2A) ..........................................................68 2.8.5 MeF State Submission File Structure for Application-to- Application ................................................................70 2.9 Version Control for MeF Schemas and Business Rules ..............................................................................71 2.9.1 Schema and Business Rules Updates ..............................................................................................................71 2.9.2 General Information about Version Numbers ....................................................................................................72 2.9.3 Version Numbering Scheme .............................................................................................................................73 2.9.4 Validating Schema Versions .............................................................................................................................74 2.9.5 Example of Schema Versioning ........................................................................................................................75 2.10 MeF XML Schema File Structures ..................................................................................................................76 2.10.1 Form 1040 XML Schema Structure ...................................................................................................................78 2.10.2 Form 4868 XML Schema File Structure ............................................................................................................80 2.10.3 Form 2350 XLM Schema File Structure ............................................................................................................81 2.10.4 Form 56 XML Schema File Structure ................................................................................................................82 2.10.5 Form 9465 XML Schema File Structure ............................................................................................................83 2.10.6 Forms 1120/1120-F/1120-H/1120-S XML Schema File Structure.....................................................................85 2.10.7 Form 7004 XML Schema File Structure ............................................................................................................89 2.10.8 Exempt Organization Forms XML Schema File Structure .................................................................................92 2.10.9 Form 990-N XML Schema File Structure ..........................................................................................................94 2.10.10 Form 8868 XML Schema File Structure ............................................................................................................95 2.10.11 Form 1120-POL XML Schema File Structure....................................................................................................96 2.10.12 Form 1065 XML Schema File Structure ............................................................................................................97 2.10.13 Excise Tax Forms 720/2290/8849 XML Schema File Structure .......................................................................99 2.10.14 Form 2290 XML Schema File Structure ..........................................................................................................101 2.10.15 Form 8849 XML Schema Structure .................................................................................................................102 2.10.16 Form 1041 XML Schema File Structure ..........................................................................................................103 2.10.17 Form 94x Annual Forms XML Schema File Structure .....................................................................................106 2.10.18 Form 941xX Quarterly Forms XML Schema File Structure .............................................................................110 2.10.19 Form 990-T XML Schema File Structure.........................................................................................................113 2.10.20 Form 4720 XML Schema File Structure ..........................................................................................................115 2.10.21 Form 5227 XML Schema File Structure ..........................................................................................................117 2.10.22 Form 5330 XML Schema File Structure ..........................................................................................................119 2.10.23 Form 8038-CP XML Schema File Structure ....................................................................................................121 2.10.24 Form 1139 XML Schema File Structure.............................................................................................................122 3. MeF Fed/State Program ........................................................................... 123 4 3.1 State Acknowledgements and State Submission Manifest.......................................................................123 3.2 Linked Returns (Fed/State Returns) ............................................................................................................124 3.3 Unlinked State Returns (State Standalone Returns) ..................................................................................124 3.4 Workflow for Individual, Corporate, Partnership, Estates/Trust and Exempt Organization State Returns ..........................................................................................................................................................124 3.4.1 Exempt Organization Fed/State Program – Providing Copy of IRS Return to State ......................................125 3.4.2 Status Record for State Returns .....................................................................................................................126 3.5 General State Information.............................................................................................................................128 3.5.1 State Communication Testing .........................................................................................................................128 3.5.2 State Get New Submission .............................................................................................................................128 4. MeF Transmission Methods .................................................................... 129 4.1 Transmitting Through Application-to-Application (A2A) ...........................................................................129 4.1.1 Security Directive Rules of Behavior for Access to IRS Business Systems ...................................................129 4.1.2 Registration for A2A Credentials .....................................................................................................................131 4.1.3 Strong Authentication ......................................................................................................................................131 4.1.4 Certificate Management ..................................................................................................................................131 4.1.5 Transmitting Through MeF Application-to–Application (A2A) .........................................................................132 4.1.6 General Information and Lessons Learned A2A SSL Certificates ..................................................................133 4.2 Transmitting through the Internet Filing Application (IFA) .......................................................................135 4.2.1 Applying to Submit Returns through the Internet ............................................................................................135 4.2.2 Accessing and Logging into MeF IFA ..............................................................................................................138 4.2.3 Submitting a Transmission File .......................................................................................................................143 4.2.4 MeF IFA Error Conditions When Uploading a File ..........................................................................................149 4.2.5 Help Tab ..........................................................................................................................................................155 4.2.6 Browsers and Operating Systems ...................................................................................................................156 4.3 Detecting Viruses in MeF Transmissions....................................................................................................157 4.3.1 Through Internet Filing Application (IFA).........................................................................................................157 4.3.2 Through Application-to-Application (A2A) .......................................................................................................157 5. Validating the Transmission and Return Data........................................ 158 5.1 Business Rules (Categories/Severity) .........................................................................................................158 5.2 Transmission Validation Business Rules ...................................................................................................161 5.3 Validating Tax Return ...................................................................................................................................162 5.3.1 Schema Validation ..........................................................................................................................................162 5.3.2 Business Rule Validation.................................................................................................................................163 5 5.3.3 Checksum and Data Values Returned in the Acknowledgement File .............................................................165 5.4 Status Record for Federal Returns ..............................................................................................................167 5.5 Acknowledgement Schema ..........................................................................................................................168 5.6 Generating Acknowledgement Files............................................................................................................171 6. Retrieval Methods for MeF....................................................................... 172 6.1 Retrieving the Acknowledgement through Internet Filing Application (IFA) ..........................................172 6.1.1 Retrieving an Acknowledgement File ..............................................................................................................173 6.1.2 MeF Error Messages When Retrieving Acknowledgments .............................................................................178 6.2 Viewing a List of Participating States in the Fed/State Program ..............................................................184 6.3 Retrieving Production Federal and/or State Submission Status Records ..............................................186 6.4 Retrieving Form 2290 Schedule 1s ..............................................................................................................191 6.5 Retrieving Acknowledgements through Application-to- Application (A2A) ...........................................196 6.6 Retrieving State Submissions through Application-to- Application (A2A) .............................................198 7. Electronic Funds Withdrawal (EFW) Payment Options ......................... 199 7.1 Types of Payments Allowed .........................................................................................................................199 7.2 General Information ......................................................................................................................................199 7.3 Is Scheduling Allowed? ................................................................................................................................200 7.4 EFW Payment When Return is Rejected .....................................................................................................201 7.5 Payment Cancellation and Payment Inquiry ...............................................................................................201 8. MeF Alternative Signatures ..................................................................... 201 8.1 Electronic Signature Requirement for Corporations, Partnerships, Sole Proprietor, Employment Taxes, Estates and Trusts, Exempt Organizations (except Form 990-N), Forms 720 and 8849...........201 8.2 Electronic Signature Requirement for Form 2290 ......................................................................................202 8.2.1 Alternate Signature Requirements for Form 2290...........................................................................................202 8.3 Electronic Signature Requirement for Extension Forms 4868, 7004 and 8868.......................................203 8.4 Electronic Signature Requirement for Form 990-N ....................................................................................203 8.5 Electronic Signature Requirement for Forms 1040 Series ........................................................................203 8.6 Electronic Signature Requirement for Form(s) 94x ....................................................................................203 8.7 Electronic Signature Requirement for Form(s) 1042 ..................................................................................203 8.8 Electronic Signature Requirement for Form 1139 .....................................................................................204 8.9 Practitioner PIN Option.........................................................................................................................................204 8.9.1 Form 1041 Multiple Tax Return Listing (MTRL) .............................................................................................209 8.9.2 Self-Select PIN Option ....................................................................................................................................210 8.9.3 Scanned Form 8453 Option ............................................................................................................................211 6 8.9.4 Form 94x On-Line e-filer .................................................................................................................................212 8.10 Elections that Require Separate Signatures ...............................................................................................213 8.11 Forms Attached to 1120/1120-S with Separate Signatures .......................................................................213 8.12 Jurat/Disclosure Guidelines .........................................................................................................................214 8.13 Jurat Language Text Selections ..................................................................................................................214 8.13.1 Forms 1040, 1040 Amended Return (with 1040-X), 1040-SR, 1040-SS and 1040-NR .................................214 8.13.2 Form 2350 Jurat ..............................................................................................................................................217 8.14 Perjury Statement – Use This Selection When Electronically Filing .......................................................218 8.14.1 Form 2350 Jurat ..............................................................................................................................................218 8.14.2 Form 56 Jurat ..................................................................................................................................................220 8.14.3 Form 9465 (Standalone) Jurat ........................................................................................................................221 8.14.4 Forms 1120, 1120-F, 1120-H, 1120-L, 1120-PC, 1120-RIC, 1120-REITand 1120-S Jurat ...............................221 8.14.5 Form 7004 Jurat ..............................................................................................................................................223 8.14.6 Form 1065 Jurat ..............................................................................................................................................224 8.14.7 Forms 990, 990-EZ, 990-PF, 990-T, 4720, 5227, 5330, 8038-CP, .................................................................225 8.14.8 Forms 720, 2290 and Form 8849 Jurat ...........................................................................................................226 8.14.9 Form 1041 Jurat ..............................................................................................................................................229 8.14.10 Form 94x Jurat ................................................................................................................................................230 8.13.11 Form 1139 Jurat..............................................................................................................................................232 9. Form 7004, Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File Certain Business Income Tax, Information and Other Returns ......................... 232 9.1 Types of Returns and Conditions for which Form 7004 may be used to Request Extension of Time to File ..................................................................................................................................................................233 9.2 Data Entry for Form 7004 ..............................................................................................................................233 9.3 Timely Filing of Form 7004 ...........................................................................................................................234 10. Exempt Organization Section.................................................................. 234 10.1 Form 8868, Application for Extension of Time to File an Exempt Organization Return or Excise Taxes Related to Employee Benefit Plans ............................................................................................................234 10.2 Reasonable Cause for Late Filing of Form 990, 990-EZ, 990-PF, 990-T, 4720, 5227, 5330 or 1120-POL ........................................................................................................................................................................235 11. Excise Tax Section................................................................................... 235 12. Individual Return/Extension Section ...................................................... 235 12.1 Foreign Employer Compensation (FEC) Record ........................................................................................235 7 12.1.1 Form 1040 .......................................................................................................................................................235 12.1.2 Form 1040-NR ................................................................................................................................................236 12.2 Field “Purpose” in Form 1040, 1040-NR Attachments ...............................................................................236 12.3 Conditions Which May Affect Refund .........................................................................................................236 12.4 Extensions .....................................................................................................................................................237 12.5 Filer Name Format .........................................................................................................................................237 13 Exhibits ..................................................................................................... 240 13.1 Exhibit 1 – Business Name Control .............................................................................................................240 13.2 Exhibit 2 – Exempt Organization Name Control .........................................................................................243 13.3 Exhibit 3 – Estate and Trust Name Control .................................................................................................243 13.4 Exhibit 4 – Employment Tax Name Control ................................................................................................246 13.5 Exhibit 5 – Individual Name Control ............................................................................................................247 13.6 Exhibit 6 - Social Security and Taxpayer Identification Numbers ............................................................253 13.7 Exhibit 7 – Identifiers ....................................................................................................................................254 13.8 Exhibit 8 – Standard Postal Service State Abbreviations and ZIP Codes ................................................256 13.9 Exhibit 9 – Foreign Country Codes..............................................................................................................256 13.10 Exhibit 10 – Forms and Attachment Listing ................................................................................................256 13.11 Exhibit 11 – Return Due Dates Tables .........................................................................................................257 13.12 Exhibit 12 – Recommended Names and Descriptions for PDFs ..............................................................257 14 IRS Modernized e-File (MeF) Service Request Guidance for Software Developers/Transmitters and States ...................................................... 268 14.1 General Guidance..........................................................................................................................................268 14.2 Transmitters...................................................................................................................................................269 14.2.1 Retrieving Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................269 14.2.2 Federal Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................269 14.2.3 State Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................270 14.2.4. Don’t Keep Requesting the same State Acknowledgement ............................................................................270 14.2.5 Separate Federal and State Acknowledgement Retrievals .............................................................................270 14.2.6 Timeout Conditions .........................................................................................................................................271 14.3 States .............................................................................................................................................................272 14.3.1 Retrieving Submissions ...................................................................................................................................272 14.3.2 Proper Use of Get Submissions By Msg ID ....................................................................................................273 14.3.3 Proper Use of Get Submission Reconciliation List ..........................................................................................274 14.3.4 Get Submissions .............................................................................................................................................274 8 14.3.5 Service (SOAP) Responses ............................................................................................................................275 14.4 State Schedule for Creating Submission Batch Files ................................................................................275 14.5 Current Global Settings for States ...............................................................................................................279 14.6 Reconciliation List Options ..........................................................................................................................281 9 1. Introduction This publication outlines the communication procedures, transmission formats, business rules and validation procedures for returns e-filed through the Modernized e-file (MeF) System. To develop software for use with the MeF system, Software Developers and Transmitters should use the guidelines provided in this publication along with the Extensible Markup Language (XML) Schemas made available yearly. The procedures in this publication should be used in conjunction with the most current version of the following publications: ■ Publication 1345 – Handbook for Authorized IRS e-file Providers of Individual Income Tax Returns. This publication provides important information for Authorized IRS e-file Providers of Individual Income Tax Returns, including information regarding return submission, record keeping requirements, payment options, and refunds. ■ Publication 1436 – Assurance Testing System (ATS) Guidelines for Modernized e-File (MeF) Individual Tax Returns. This publication contains testing guidelines and instructions for the Modernized e-file (MeF) platform. The Electronic Program Operations requires that all Software Developers and Transmitters to pass ATS before they can be accepted into the electronic filing program each Tax Year/filing season. ■ Publication 3112 – IRS e-file Application and Participation. This publication provides important information for Tax Professionals and Authorized IRS e-file Providers regarding applying and participating in IRS e-file. All participants should read this publication to become familiar with the requirements for continued participation. ■ Publication 4163 – Modernized e-file (MeF) Information for Authorized IRS e-file Providers for Business Returns. This publication is used by Electronic Return Originators in preparing and submitting Corporate, Employment Tax, Estate and Trust, Excise Tax, Exempt Organization and Partnership Returns and Extensions. ■ Publication 4557 – Safeguarding Taxpayer Data: A Guide for Your Business. This publication is the IRS Guide to Safeguarding Taxpayer Data. The target audience is nongovernment businesses involved in the preparation and filing of income tax returns. The purpose of this publication is to provide information on legal requirements to safeguard taxpayer data. ■ Publication 5078 – Assurance Testing System (ATS) Guidelines for Modernized e-File (MeF) Business Submissions. This publication contains general and program specific testing information for use in completing the Assurance Testing System (ATS) process for business submissions. ATS is a process to test software and electronic transmissions prior to accepting Software Developers, K-1 Aggregators, Transmitters and Large Taxpayers into the MeF Program. 10 Publication 5830 – Modernized e-File (MeF) IS State and Trading Partner Reference Guide. This publication describes the interaction between MeF and the State and Trading Partners through the Internet Filing Application (IFA) and Application-to- Application (A2A) platforms. ■ The Automated Enrollment External User Guide provides additional guidance for e-filing through MeF. The purpose of this document is to describe the User Interface (UI) for the Automated Enrollment (AE) Application. The AE application provides authorized delegated users the ability to enroll and update Application System IDs (ASID) using the Integrated Enterprise Portal (IEP). MeF publications and guides can be found at the Modernized e-file (MeF) User Guides and Publications page. 1.1 What’s New in Publication 4164? This edition of Publication 4164, Modernized e-File (MeF) Guide for Software Developers and Transmitters, replaces the previous edition revised October 2024. ■ Clarified the statement to specify which documents are not allowed to electronically file with a Binary Attachment ■ Updated Forms Titles to 8868, 2848, 8332 and 8864 ■ Updated Figure 2-14 Binary Attachment XML Document ■ Removed Form 8885, Health Coverage Tax Credit ■ Updated Figure 8-3 and 8-4 for Form 1310 ■ Removed Form 1040PR reference throughout Publication ■ Removed Form 940PR, 941SS, 941PR and 943PR reference throughout Publication ■ Updated Table 13-17 and 13-19 to include additional recommended names based on requirements for the respective IRC ■ Created new Table 13-20 for IRC § 1503(d) ■ Renumbered Tables 13-20 to 13-21 and 13-21 to 13-22 as a result of new Table 13-20 ■ Added new Tables 13-23 and 13-24: Recommended Names and Description for PDFs § 1.263, § 1.721(c) and § 1.6038 ■ Removed Line 1 reference in Form 1040 Example and replaced with reference to Section in Repeating Group sub-heading 11 ■ Added IMF Form Family to Practitioner PIN Section ■ Added Forms 1120-L, 1120-PC, 1120-RIC and 1120-REIT to 1120 Form Family ■ Clarified the General Items Section about direct deposit information ■ Clarified Figure 2-7 Business Name Control language ■ Updated 7004 Exclusions ■ Updated Table 5-4 Return Validation Business Rule ■ Corrected Grammatical errors and updated Tax Year (TY) and Processing Year (PY) throughout Publication 1.2 Modernized e-File (MeF) Refer to the most current published schemas and forms/schedules for each form type family. The IRS will use the procedures in this publication as the standard for all e-file programs. The IRS has combined information for Corporate, Employment Tax, Estate and Trust, Excise Tax, Exempt Organization, Individual, Annual Withholding Tax Returns for US Source Income of Foreign Persons and Partnership returns in this publication. Unless otherwise indicated, all information applies to all seven return types. For this document, the main parent return type referenced will include all sub-return types (for example: “Form 1040” includes 1040-SR/SS/ NR). This Publication and its updates or revisions are available on Modernized e-file (MeF) User Guides and Publications page. 1.3 Communications The IRS worked in partnership with many MeF stakeholders to develop the information contained within this publication. Your continued cooperation is requested. On occasion, you may need to contact the IRS regarding e-filing issues, including MeF topics. The e-help desk has been designated as the first point of contact for e-filing issues. Accounting Firms, Electronic Return Originators (ERO), Large Taxpayers, Software Developers and Transmitters should contact the e- help desk at 1-866-255-0654 (Monday through Friday 6:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. CST) for assistance in the following areas: ■ IRS e-file application ■ ATS or Communication Testing ■ Transmission issues ■ Strong authentication for A2A 12 ■ Rejects ■ Technical questions on Schemas or Business Rules If the e-help desk is unable to answer questions, related to the e-file issues listed above, the inquiry will be forwarded to the appropriate area for a response. Customers will be provided a contact number for issues outside the scope of the e-help desk area. This includes issues related to tax law, Employer Identification Number (EIN) issuance, TIN verification, etc. For Processing Year 2025, questions regarding MeF system issues, new transmitter development Issues, new development of forms related to the MeF programs and/or Exempt Organization Form questions may be sent to the MeF Mailbox. 1.3.1 IRS Website MeF uses irs.gov to communicate information about the program. The Modernized e-file (MeF) Program Information page provides links to: ■ New Program Information Coming Soon to MeF ■ Modernized e-file (MeF) Assurance Testing System (ATS) Updates MeF Forms ■ MeF Program Overview ■ MeF User Guide and Publications ■ MeF Schemas and Business Rules – Made available through e-Services in 2016 ■ Approved IRS e-file for Business Providers ■ MeF Stylesheets MeF Internet ■ Filing MeF Status Page If you encounter an issue or limitation that prevents a return from being e-filed through MeF and the solution is not posted on IRS.gov, please contact the e-help desk at 1-866-255-0654 (Monday through Friday 6:30 a.m.– 6:00 p.m. CST). The MeF staff will then work on making the appropriate corrections. Until corrections can be implemented, MeF will develop “workarounds,” which are temporary resolutions to allow the return to be e-filed. The Known Issues and Solutions or workarounds are posted by tax year under the “Known Issues and Solutions” heading. The solutions are listed under the appropriate form family heading on the Modernized e-File (MeF) Schemas and Business Rules page. 1.3.2 Communication Vehicles MeF uses QuickAlerts to distribute information and updates to MeF stakeholders. QuickAlerts is a free online service that keeps Tax Professionals up-to-date on events that affect e-file throughout the filing season and beyond. Subscribers receive communications 24/7 regarding processing delays, IRS e-file program updates, and early notification of upcoming seminars and 13 conferences. Sign up on the “subscription page.” More information can be found on the QuickAlerts: Email Updates on IRS e-filing Systems page for Tax Professionals. Subscribers who want to receive Technical e-file information about the MeF platform should access their QuickAlerts subscription and subscribe to the Technical category. This category is intended for Software Developers, Transmitters and States to keep everyone abreast of the latest news related to the MeF platform. 1.4 Highlights 1.4.1 General Items When filing and/or printing a paper return, Software Developers are being asked to default the “Routing Transit and Account Numbers” in the software packages on Forms 1040/1040SR/1040NR/1040-SS, with all capital X’s, when taxpayers choose not to have their refund directly deposited. These fields should never be blank on paper filed returns. Please see the Amount Refunded to You sections in Form 1040,, Form 1040-NRand Form 1040-SS instructions if taxpayers don’t want their refund directly deposited to their bank account. In Alignment with Executive Order 14058 “Transforming Federal Customer Experience and Service Delivery to Rebuild Trust in Government”, to expand refund options to improve taxpayer service and processing efficiency. Beginning with Tax Year 2025, direct deposit will be available for Forms 940, 943, 944 and 945. Form 941 will include this functionality starting in Tax Year 2026. Additional guidance and technical details will be released as implementation progresses. Form 1040-SR, “U.S. Income Tax Return for Seniors”, will continue to be accepted in MeF for Tax Year 2021 and forward. Software packages that support the Form 1040-SR will utilize the Form 1040 schema to submit the return electronically. The Form 1040 schema has a Form 1040-SR Indicator checkbox that must be marked to indicate that Form 1040-SR is being efiled. The Form 1040 schema will then be completed as usual and MeF will process the return as a Form 1040-SR. All Form 1040 Business Rules will apply to the Form 1040-SR. Form 1040-X “Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return” will be accepted in MeF as a “child” attachment to the “Parent” Forms 1040/1040SR for the current and two prior years. MeF will accept Form 1040-NR Amended Returns and Form 1040-SS Corrected Returns for Tax Year 2021 forward. The Form 1040-X will be a form-level attachment. The electronic Form 1040/1040SR/1040-NR Amended Return (with attached 1040-X and the Amended Return indicator checkbox marked) will require submission of ALL necessary forms and schedules as if it were the Original submission (even though some forms may have no adjustments). orm 1040-X cannot be attached to Form 1040-SS. The Form 1040-SS schema will be completed with the updated figures, with all supporting documentation and the Corrected Return indicator checkbox marked. Additionally, for Tax Year 2021, a Superseded Checkbox will be added to the electronic version of the 1040, 1040-NR and 1040-SS. This checkbox will be marked to indicate an 14 Amended/Corrected return is being filed before the Due Date of the original return. Additionally, for Tax Year 2021, beginning 06/01/2023, a Superseded Checkbox will be added to the electronic version of the 1040, 1040-NR and 1040-SS.This checkbox will be marked to indicate a Form 1040-X is attached and it is being filed before the Due Date of the original return. MeF will also be adding an amended return indicator checkbox to Tax Type 1040-NR and a corrected return indicator for Tax Type 1040-SS.Section 2006 (a) and (c) of Public Law 114-41 changed the due dates for business tax returns and extension of timeframes, for tax years beginning after 12/31/15, the due date for Form 1120 and 1120-F returns changed from the 15th day of the 3rd month to the 15th day of the fourth month after the close of the tax year. An exception applies for fiscal years ending June 30th, the due date will remain the 15th day of the third month after the close of the tax year. 1.4.2 A2A MeF Software Developer Kit (SDK) and Client Applications The IRS is providing tools to assist developers and transmitters with the use of the Modernized e-file (MeF) system. These tools are broken into two broad types: ■ Software Developers Kit (SDK) ■ Client Applications The Software Developer Kit (SDK) provides compiled binaries in Java (v1.6) and .NET (WCF v4.0) technologies so that developers can incorporate and use those binaries in their development environment. There are many advantages of using the SDK as developers do not have to code the various web-services calls to communicate to MeF. The SDK provides clients a set of APIs to compose SOAP messages to MeF and process the response coming back from the system. In addition to compiled binaries, the toolkit also provides source code for both the Java and .NET SDKs for developers who might be interested in taking guidance from the source code to build their own solution. The MeF Client Applications are operational MeF applications that a State or transmitter can load to any machine that runs a Java Runtime Environment (JRE) (this includes all Windows and UNIX machines). High volume users may not find this application suitable for use because it is single- threaded. Users who do not expect high volumes will find the MeF Client Applications useful. The MeF Client Applications require all submissions to be in the appropriate XML format. All other functions are fully developed in the applications. The A2A Toolkit contains Java and .NET SDKs and the client applications, are now available to those Transmitters and states interested in using the MeF system to send or receive returns. If you are interested in receiving either the toolkit or client application, please send an e- mail to the: MeF Mailbox to request a copy. Please include your name, company name, address and phone number with your request for the toolkit. Make sure to include “A2A Toolkit” in the subject line. 1.4.3 Identity Protection PIN (IP PIN) 15 The IRS requires the use of Identity Protection PINs for all SSNs with an IP PIN requirement, regardless of whether the SSN is entered for a primary, spouse or dependent/qualifying individual. Entry of an IP PIN will be required for any SSN with an IP PIN requirement on the following Forms/Schedules: ■ Any 1040 Series Parent ■ Form Schedule EIC ■ Form 2441 If both the Primary taxpayer and Spouse were issued an IP PIN and the taxpayers are filing a joint return, then both IP PINs must be included in the e-filed return. The IP PIN must be used for all prior year returns e-filed in Processing Year 2026 for Primary and Spouse. Interview-driven Software will provide: ■ A prompt asking the taxpayer(s) if they received a six-digit IP PIN from the IRS. ■ The six-digit IP PIN could have been received: ■ by a notice from the IRS or viewed online from the Get an IP PIN application Form-based Software will provide: ■ Clear and concise instructions to direct the taxpayer(s) to enter their unique six-digit Identity Protection PIN (IP PIN). The six-digit IP PIN could have been received: ■ by a notice from the IRS ■ online from the Get an IP PIN application All software will provide: ■ Clear and concise instructions to direct the taxpayer(s) to enter their unique six-digit IP PIN: ■ The instructions should advise taxpayers that entry of an IP PIN will be required for any SSN with an IP PIN requirement ■ IP PIN for Primary Taxpayer is element name IdentityProtectionPIN ■ IP PIN for Spouse is SpouseIdentityProtectionPIN ■ IP PIN for Dependent/Qualifying Child is element IdentityProtectionPIN within the respective form/schedule 16 1.5 General Information about MeF MeF accepts the following parent form types: ■ Corporations (Forms 1120, 1120-F, 1120-H, 1120-L, 1120-PC, 1120-RIC, 1120-REIT and 1120-S) ■ Employment Tax (Forms 940, 941, 941-X, 943, 943-X, 944, 945, 945-X) ■ 94x Online Signature PIN Registration ■ Exempt Organizations (Forms 990, 990-EZ, 990-N, 990-PF and 1120-POL, 990-T, 4720, 5227, 5330, and 8038-CP) ■ Excise Tax (Forms 720, 2290 and 8849) ■ Extensions (Forms 2350, 4868, 7004 and 8868) ■ Fiduciaries (Form 56) ■ Individual (Forms 1040/SR/SS/PR/NR) ■ Estate and Trust (Form 1041) ■ Annual Withholding Tax Returns for US Source Income of Foreign Persons (Form 1042) ■ Installment Agreements (Form 9465) ■ Partnerships (Form 1065) ■ Estate and Gift (Forms 709 and 709-NA) ■ Application for Tentative Refund (Form 1139) The list of all forms and schedules for each parent form type can be found on each form families Modernized e-file (MeF) Schemas and Business Rules page. A Temp ID is included in the state submission manifest and acknowledgement Schemas. This is an alphanumeric element used by some states who assign Temp IDs to taxpayers. The Temp ID can be used in place of an Employer Identification Number (EIN) or SSN. Selection of EIN, SSN, or Temp ID is a choice in the state submission manifest. Either an EIN, primary SSN, or name control (with optional spouse SSN and name control), or Temp ID must be provided, or the submission will be rejected. The acknowledgement will be populated either with Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) (Employer Identification Number (EIN) or Social Security Number (SSN)) or Temp ID. The submission category can be used to determine if TIN is an EIN or SSN. TIN/Temp ID is implemented as a choice. The literal “UNKNOWN” is returned in the acknowledgement for the elements EFIN, Government Code, Federal Submission Type, Tax Year, Submission Category, and Acceptance Status when the submission manifest fails schema validation, or the submission zip file cannot be opened. “Unknown” is included as an enumerated value in those elements that have an enumerated list. 17 1.5.1 Current and Prior 2 Tax Years are Accepted When a new tax form type is added to the MeF platform, tax returns will be accepted for the first Processing Year only. ■ In Processing Year 2026, MeF will accept TY2025, TY2024, and TY2023 returns for Form 1040 ■ In Processing Year 2026, MeF will accept TY2025, TY2024, and TY2023 returns for Form 1040-NR ■ In Processing Year 2026, MeF will accept TY2025, TY2024, and TY2023 returns for Form 1040-SS ■ In Processing Year 2026, MeF will accept TY2025, TY2024, and TY2023 returns for Form 1041 As subsequent Tax Years are added to the system, MeF will accept the current year and two Prior Tax Years. Tax Years beyond the two Prior Years cannot be filed through MeF. When a tax form type is removed from the MeF platform, tax returns will be accepted through the final Processing Year only. 1.5.2 Perfection Periods for Rejected Submissions When a transmitted electronic business return is rejected, there is a ten-day Transmission Perfection Period (look back period) to perfect that return for electronic re-transmission. When a previously rejected electronic return is “Accepted” by the IRS within the ten-day Transmission Perfection Period, it will be deemed to have been received on the date of the first reject that occurred within that ten-day period. Publication 4163 has detailed perfection period information for MeF business returns. The Transmission Perfection Period for an extension to file Form 4868, 7004 or 8868, is five days. A different Transmission Perfection Period applies for electronic individual income tax returns that are rejected. When a rejected return is submitted on or before the due date of the return and a corrected return is “Accepted” by the IRS by the fifth calendar day after the due date of the return, it will be deemed to have been received on the date of the first reject. The following transmission dates pertain to individual returns: ■ April 20, 2026 – Last day for retransmitting rejected timely filed Form 1040 family returns (Form 1040-NR with effectively connected income) ■ June 20, 2026 – Last day for retransmitting rejected timely filed Form 1040 family returns (Form 1040-NR with non-effectively connected income) and/or Form 4868 extensions to meet overseas exception and Form 2350 ■ October 20, 2026 – Last day for retransmitting rejected timely filed Form 1040 family returns (Form 1040-NR with effectively connected income) on extension from Form 4868 See Publication 1345 for additional information on transmission timeframes for Individual returns/extensions. 18 1.5.3 Electronic Postmark A Transmitter may provide an electronic postmark to taxpayers that file Tax Returns and Extensions of Time to File Tax Returns, through an ERO or through an Online Provider (Online Filing). The Transmitter creates the electronic postmark bearing the date and time, GMT time format, (in the Transmitter’s time zone) that the return is received at the Transmitter’s host computer. The electronic postmark must be adjusted to the time zone where the taxpayer resides to determine the postmark’s actual time. Example: If the Transmitter provides an electronic postmark with a time in the Pacific Time Zone but the taxpayer resides in the Eastern Time Zone, the taxpayer must add three hours to the postmark time to determine the actual postmark time (Eastern Time Zone). Conversely, if the Transmitter provides an electronic postmark with a time in the Eastern Time Zone but the taxpayer resides in the Pacific Time Zone, the taxpayer must subtract three hours from the postmark time to determine the actual postmark time (Pacific Time Zone). If an electronic postmark is created on or before a prescribed deadline for filing but the return is received by the IRS after the prescribed filing deadline, the return will be treated as filed on the electronic postmark date if received within two (2) days of the electronic postmark. For a return to be treated as filed on the electronic postmark’s date, all requirements for signing the return must be met. If a return is rejected, a corrected return must be filed in accordance with the rules for timely filing corrected returns after rejection of an electronic return. 1.5.4 1.5.4.1 Addresses Domestic Address Placeholder The IRS uses a taxpayer’s address of record on file for various notices that are required to be issued to a taxpayer’s “last known address” under the Internal Revenue Code and for refunds of overpayments of tax, unless otherwise specifically directed by taxpayers, such as by using Direct Deposit. If the address entered on the return is different from the address of record on file, it will become the new “official” address of record within the IRS Master File. It is important to enter the complete mailing address (apartment numbers, suite numbers, box numbers, etc.) in the street address line 1 field. This may require abbreviation of lengthy address information to provide all pertinent information necessary for accurate delivery. In addition, any new address you provide to the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) may also update your address of record on file with the IRS, based on what the USPS retains in its National Change of Address (NCOA) database. However, even if you notify the USPS, you should still notify us directly as not all post offices forward government checks using Form 8822-B (Business) or Form 8822 (Individuals) If the change of address relates to an employment tax return (94x Series), the IRS will issue notices of confirmation (Notices 148A and 148B) for the change of both the former and new address. An ERO’s address should generally not be entered in fields reserved for taxpayers’ addresses 19 in the electronic return record. The only exceptions are (1) if the ERO is the taxpayer or (2) if the address of a power of attorney, for the taxpayer of the tax return, is the same as the address of the ERO. See Exhibit 8 at the end of this publication for a link to the Standard State Address Abbreviations and Valid Postal ZIP Codes as recognized by the U.S. Postal Service. 1.5.4.2 Foreign Addresses The IRS uses a taxpayer’s address of record on file for various notices that are required to be issued to a taxpayer’s “last known address” under the Internal Revenue Code and for refunds of overpayments of tax, unless otherwise specifically directed by taxpayers, such as by using Direct Deposit. If the address entered on the return is different from the address of record on file it will become the new “official” address of record within the IRS Master File. It is important to enter all details of the mailing address (apartment numbers, suite numbers, box numbers, etc.) in the street address line 1 field. This may require abbreviation of lengthy address information to provide all pertinent information necessary for accurate delivery. If the change of address relates to an employment tax return (94x Series), the IRS will issue notices of confirmation (Notices 148A and 148B) for the change of address to both the former and new address. Some returns, forms or attachments require the preparer to enter the two-character Foreign Country Code. This code should always be the code of the Foreign Country or Foreign Sovereignty as recognized by the United States Department of State. Example: England, Scotland and Wales are part of the United Kingdom. The Foreign Country Code for United Kingdom is “UK.” The Balearic Islands are a part of Spain and should be coded as Spain “SP.” When entering foreign addresses on the return or form, the state or republic, such as England or Scotland, can be entered with the city (for example London, England) and the country as “United Kingdom” or “UK.” See Exhibit 9 at the end of this publication for a link to the accepted Foreign Country Codes. 1.5.4.3 Address Format Street Address Line 1 ‘AddressLine1Txt’ cannot contain more than 35 characters, abbreviation of lengthy address information may be required to provide all pertinent information. Note: MeF will reject returns that contain address information on the Street Address Line 2 field AddressLine2Txt’. Individual Returns will reject with business rule IND-055-02. Business Returns will reject with business rule R0000-197-01. ■ Enter college, building or post office branch as the address if no other mailing address is given ■ Enter one-half as 1/2 (no spaces) ■ Plurals for apartment, avenue, road, street, etc., are entered as APTS, AVES, RDS, and STS etc. ■ Replace a (.) period in the address line with a space. Never enter two consecutive spaces ■ Do not enter an In Care of Name in the street address field 20 ■ For military overseas addresses, enter “APO”, “FPO”, or “DPO” in the first three left most positions of the “CityNM” field. If “CityNM” contains one of these values, then the ‘StateAbbreviationCd’ must be either “AA”, “AE”, or “AP”. ■ Do not use “NO,” “NO.,” “NUM,” “#” symbol and “Number” as a prefix to a house, apartment, Route, or PO Box number Note: If No or No. is used as a direction, enter “N” only. TABLE 1-1: WHEN TO ENTER ‘N’ ■ Example Enter As 859 Adams Avenue No 7 859 ADAMS AVE 7 57 Adams Avenue No. 7 57 ADAMS AVE 7 57 No 123 Ave 57 N 123RD AVE 859 Adams Avenue No 7 859 ADAMS AVE 7 123 Third Street #5 123 THIRD ST 5 Only add “ST,” “ND,” “RD” and “TH” to a numbered street when there is a street designation (for example street, avenue, circle, road, etc.) Exception: Do not add suffix to numbered streets with fractions. TABLE 1-2: NO SUFFIX WHEN NUMBERED STREET IS A FRACTION ■ Example Enter As 859 Adams Avenue No 7 859 ADAMS AVE 7 57 Adams Avenue No. 7 57 ADAMS AVE 7 57 No 123 Ave 57 N 123RD AVE 859 Adams Avenue No 7 859 ADAMS AVE 7 Use standard address abbreviations unless the word is a proper name 21 TABLE 1-3: USE STANDARD ADDRESS ABBREVIATIONS UNLESS PROPER NAME Example Enter As 45 Circle Drive 45 CIRCLE DR 96 Avenue C 96 AVE C 128 Northeast Lane 128 NORTHEAST LN 12 Parkway Street 12 PARKWAY ST 716 Parkway 716 PARKWAY 54 West Valley Street South ■ 54 W VALLEY ST S Abbreviate words not part of the proper name or numbered street Note: When a street address contains multiple, consecutive, street designations (for example street, avenue, circle, road, etc.), abbreviate the last street designation. TABLE 1-4: MULTIPLE OR CONSECUTIVE STREET DESIGNATIONS Example Enter As 17 South Court Street 17 S COURT ST 57 Park Circle Boulevard 57 PARK CIRCLE BLVD 12291 Country Place Drive 12291 COUNTRY PLACE DR 1.5.5 Transmission Timeframe Affected by Routine Maintenance A routine maintenance window is generally scheduled every Sunday from 1:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m., Eastern Time. This process may result in intermittent downtime for Transmitters. Work scheduled during this window will generally not be communicated to the Software Developers. For more information about system status and possible delays, refer to the Modernized e-file (MeF) Status page. Note: It is highly recommended Software Developers, Transmitters and all IRS e-file providers subscribe to QuickAlerts from IRS.gov for up-to-date notifications on maintenance as well as downtime issues with the MeF System. 22 1.5.6 SubmissionIDs in Transmission Manifest and Attachment Mismatch MeF will process a transmission with a count mismatch between the manifest and attachment in the following manner: ■ The transmission is accepted, and a receipt is returned to the transmitter. The receipt contains the Submission listed in the transmission manifest (SOAP body). ■ The transmitter will receive a reject acknowledgement when a SubmissionID indicated in the manifest is not in the attachment: ■ Business Rule X0000-010 - For each SubmissionID provided in the transmission manifest there must be a submission zip archive entry present in the Attachment Zip file whose name (without the “.zip” extension) matches the SubmissionID. ■ Submissions in the attachment that are not in the manifest are deleted from the system. ■ No acknowledgement is generated or returned to the transmitter for these submissions however, MeF will keep a record of the deletion. 1.5.7 SubmissionType in the IRS Submission Manifest For each SubmissionID provided in the transmission manifest there must be a submission zip archive entry present in the Attachment Zip file whose name (without the “.zip” extension) matches the SubmissionID. TABLE 1-5: VALUES FOR RETURN TYPE & IRS SUBMISSION TYPE Return Header File Values for Return Type & IRS Submission Type ReturnHeader56.xsd 56 ReturnHeader709x.xsd 709, 709-NA ReturnHeader720.xsd 720 ReturnHeader94xPINReg.xsd 94XPINREG ReturnHeader94x.xsd 940, 941, 941X, 943, 943X, 944, 945, 945X ReturnHeader990x.xsd 990, 990EZ, 990PF, 990T ReturnHeader990N.xsd 990N ReturnHeader1040x.xsd 1040, 1040SS ReturnHeader1040NR.xsd 1040NR ReturnHeader1041.xsd 1041 23 ReturnHeader1042.xsd 1042 ReturnHeader1065x.xsd 1065 ReturnHeader1120x.xsd 1120, 1120F, 1120H, 1120-L, 1120-PC, 1120-RIC, 1120-REIT, 1120S ReturnHeader1120POL.xsd 1120POL ReturnHeader1139.xsd 1139 ReturnHeader2290.xsd 2290 ReturnHeader2350.xsd 2350 ReturnHeader4868.xsd 4868 ReturnHeader7004.xsd 7004 ReturnHeader8868.xsd 8868 ReturnHeader9465.xsd 9465 ReturnHeader4720.xsd 4720 ReturnHeader5227.xsd 5227 ReturnHeader5330.xsd 5330 Return Header8038CP.xsd 8037 1.5.8 Short Period Returns for Partnerships, Corporations, Exempt Organizations, and Estates and Trusts MeF accepts short period returns for Partnerships, Corporations, Exempt Organizations, and Estate and Trust Tax Returns. There are situations where a taxpayer may need to file a short period return before software is ready for the next Tax Year. For instance, at the beginning of a calendar year, a taxpayer may need to file a short period return with Tax Period Beginning Date 01/01/2024 and Tax Period Ending Date 01/31/2024. This return should be filed using the TY2023 software because the software for that Tax Year 2024 has not been developed yet. When a taxpayer needs to file a short period return, ensure that the Tax Year in the Return Manifest and Return Header reflect the Tax Year of the Schemas being used. Enter the actual beginning and ending date of the short period return. Example: The short period return described above will be e-filed using the TY2023 software and include these entries: ■ “2023” for the Tax Year in the Return Manifest ■ “2023” for the Tax Year in the Return Header ■ “01/01/2023” for the Tax Period Beginning Date 24 ■ “01/31/2023” for the Tax Period Ending Date When a short period return is being filed, the regulations may require the taxpayer to attach Form 1128 or an explanation of why the short period return is being filed. If you use the Form 1128, attach it to the top level of the return as a PDF file and describe it as “Form 1128 for short period return.” For corporate returns use the shortPeriodReasonCd or shortPeriodReasonCd1120-FInd fields to provide the regulatory citation or reason for the Short Period Return. Use shortPeriodReason1041Ind in the Form 1041 schema to identify the reason for the short period return. For exempt organization returns (Forms 990, 990-EZ, 990-PF, or 990-T) use accountingPeriodChangeCd and accountingPeriodChangeApprvCd fields if the short period return is being filed to report a change of accounting period. The field accountingPeriodChangeApprvCd has a choice between REVENUE PROCEDURE 85-58 RULES APPLY and FORM 1128 WAS APPROVED. 1.5.9 Taxpayers Required to e-File Original and Amended Returns The IRS requires that certain taxpayers file their returns electronically: ■ Form 94x – The Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014 (Pub. L. 113–295) requires approved Certified Professional Employer Organizations (CPEOs) to file Form 940, Form 941 and Form 943, along with all required schedules, including Schedule R (Allocation Schedule for Aggregate Filers) electronically, unless granted a waiver. The IRS began accepting applications for CPEO certification on July 1, 2016. The CPEO program is a voluntary program; a person that does not wish to file these forms electronically is not obligated to apply for or obtain certification as a CPEO. Although, this is a voluntary program, once certification is obtained as a CPEO the consequence of any failure to file these forms and associated schedules electronically is the potential suspension or revocation of certification as a CPEO. For additional information on CPEOs and how to request a waiver from electronic filing requirements, go to IRS.gov/CPEO and Rev. Proc. 2018-14 ■ Form 990 - T.D. 9363 requires Exempt Organizations with $10 million or more in total assets to electronically file their Form 990 if the organization files at least 250 returns in a calendar year, including income, excise, employment tax and information returns for Tax Years ending on or after December 31, 2006. Starting in calendar year 2021, Taxpayer First Act of 2020 (P.L. 116-25, Section 3101) makes electronic filing mandatory for taxexempt organizations required to file statements or returns in the Form 990 series. ■ Form 990-PF - T.D. 9363 requires private foundations and non-exempt charitable trusts to file Form 990-PF electronically regardless of their asset size, if they file at least 250 returns annually for Tax Years ending on or after December 31, 2006. Starting in calendar year 2021, Taxpayer First Act of 2020 (P.L. 116-25, Section 3101) makes electronic filing mandatory for tax-exempt organizations required to file statements or returns in the Form 990 series. 25 ■ Form 990-N (e-Postcard) - Section 6033(i)(1) of the Protection Act of 2006, Public Law 109– 208, 120 Stat. 1090 (2006) (PPA 2006), and T.D. 9454 requires that, effective for tax periods beginning after 2006, every organization exempt from taxation under section 501(a) that is not required to file a return described in § 1.6033– 2(a)(2), other than an organization described in section 401(a) or 501(d), shall submit annually, an electronic notification to the IRS. The notification will provide evidence of the continuing basis for the organization’s exemption from the filing requirements under section 6033(a)(1). ■ Form 4720 - Taxpayer First Act of 2020 (P.L. 116-25, Section 3101) makes electronic filing mandatory for tax-exempt organizations required to file statements or returns in the Form 990 series. Form 4720 filed by a private foundation as part of the Form 990-PF is required to be electronically filed as a return required under section 6033(n). In addition, the Taxpayer First Act of 2020 (P.L. 116-25, Section 2301), authorized Treasury and the IRS to issue regulations that require electronic filing if the organization files 10 or more returns for a calendar year. Under the regulations found in T.D. 9972, taxpayers who are required to file at least 10 returns of any type during the calendar year must file electronically. Generally, the regulation applies after 2023. The Federal Register: Electronic-Filing Requirements for Specified Returns and Other Documents website. ■ Form 5227 - Taxpayer First Act of 2020 (P.L. 116-25, Section 2301), authorized Treasury and the IRS to issue regulations that require electronic filing if the organization files 10 or more returns for a calendar year. Under the regulations found in T.D. 9972, taxpayers who are required to file at least 10 returns of any type during the calendar year must file electronically. Generally, the regulation applies after 2023. ■ Form 5330 - Taxpayer First Act of 2020 (P.L. 116-25, Section 2301), authorized Treasury and the IRS to issue regulations that require electronic filing if the organization files 10 or more returns for a calendar year. Under the regulations found in T.D. 9972, any employer or individual who is required to file at least 10 returns of any type during the calendar year must file electronically for taxable years ending on or after December 31, 2023. ■ Form 8038-CP - Taxpayer First Act of 2020 (P.L. 116-25, Section 2301), authorized Treasury and the IRS to issue regulations that require electronic filing if the organization files 10 or more returns for a calendar year. Under the regulations found in T.D. 9972, taxpayers who are required to file at least 10 returns of any type during the calendar year must file electronically. Generally, the regulation applies after 2023. ■ Form 1065 - Section 1224, of the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, requires Partnerships with more than 100 partners (Schedules K-1) to file their return on magnetic media (electronically as prescribed by the IRS Commissioner). This law became effective for partnership returns with taxable years ending on or after December 31, 2000. Treasury Decision (T.D.) 9972, published February 23, 2023, lowered the e-file threshold to 10 (calculated by aggregating all information returns), effective for information returns required to be filed on or after January 1, 2024. 26 ■ Forms 1120/1120-S/1120-F/1120-L/1120-PC/1120-RIC/1120-REIT - The Taxpayer First Act of 2019 authorized the Department of the Treasury and the IRS to issue regulations that reduced the 250-return e-file threshold. Treasury Decision (T.D.) 9972, published February 23, 2023, lowered the e-file threshold to 10 (calculated by aggregating all information returns), effective for information returns required to be filed on or after January 1, 2024. ■ Form 2290 - The American Jobs Creation Act requires taxpayers who register 25 or more vehicles for any taxable period to electronically file their Form 2290 tax return. Though this requirement became effective July 1, 2005, excise e-file was not available until August 2007. The IRS developed special guidance to assist Corporations, Partnerships and Exempt Organizations with the transition from filing a paper return to filing electronically. This guidance applies to Corporations and Exempt Organizations required to e-file under final regulations (T.D. 9363, 12-03-2007). Corporations, Employment tax, Exempt Organizations, Partnerships and Form 2290 filers, who are required to e-file, should review the information available on irs.gov at the following links: ■ Corporations, e-File for Large Business and International (LB&I) ■ Partnerships, Modernized e-File (MeF) for Partnerships ■ Exempt Organizations, e-File for Charities and Non-Profits ■ Form 2290 filers, Excise Tax e-File & Compliance (ETEC) Programs - Form 720, 2290 and 8849 ■ Employment Tax filers, Modernized e-File for Employment Taxes 1.5.10 Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) for Form 2290 The IRS has developed a VIN data store, which collects VIN data from Form 2290. If the taxpayer has indicated consent, the VIN data will be shared with state registration agencies to verify that the Heavy Vehicle Use Tax (HVUT) obligation was paid for a vehicle. This publication will be updated when the process for sharing the VIN data store has been implemented. 1.6 Amended Returns and Superseding Returns The MeF system processes both superseding and amended returns for certain forms. A superseding return is a subsequent return filed before the due date of the return within the filing period (including extensions). An amended return is a subsequent return filed after the due date of the return expiration of the filing period (including extensions.)” 27 The IRS has issued final regulations (T.D. 9363) requiring electronic filing of corporate returns (1120, 1120-F, 1120-L, 1120-PC, 1120-RIC, 1120-REIT and 1120-S) and exempt organization returns (990 series). Additional final regulations (T.D. 9972) were issued February 23, 2023, amended the rules for filing electronically for specified returns and other documents. Both amended and superseding returns are required to be e-filed if the taxpayer is required to file electronically, unless a taxpayer has received an approved waiver to file that return on paper. Section 1224 of the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 provides the e-filing requirements for partnership returns. Note: MeF does not allow amended Employment tax returns (Form 944-X) to be filed electronically at this time. 1.6.1 Superseding Returns The superseding return designation is available for Forms 1041, 1042, 1120, 1120-F, 1120-L, 1120-PC, 1120-RIC, 1120-REIT,1120-S and 1065. The superseding return designation is not available for Forms 990, 990-EZ, 990-PF, 990-T, 1040, 1120-POL, 2290, 4720, 5227, and 5330. The amended return box must be checked for any subsequent Forms 990, 990-EZ, 990-PF, 990-T, 1120-POL, 4720, 5227 or 5330 returns to be accepted. 1.6.2 Amended Returns Forms 1120, 1120-F, 1120-L, 1120-PC, 1120RIC, 1120-REIT and 1120-S Amended returns for Form 1120, 1120-F, 1120-L, 1120-PC, 1120-RIC, 1120-REIT, and 1120-S require at a minimum: ■ the corrected Form 1120, 1120-F or 1120-S completed in its entirety with the Amended Return checkbox selected ■ all forms, schedules and attachments that changed or that support changes on the amended Form 1120, 1120-F or 1120-S, including any subsidiary returns (if changed) and the information to support those changes For Form 1120, attach to the amended Form 1120: ■ the XML Form 1120X completed through Part I, line 10 or 11, as applicable, and Part II with the line number of each amended item ■ the corrected amount or treatment of the item ■ an explanation of the reasons for each change For Form 1120-L, attach to the amended Form 1120-L the XML document, AmendedReturnChanges, which identifies:  the line number of each amended item  description of each amended item 28  the amount on the previous return  the amount on the amended return  an explanation of the reasons for each change For Form 1120-PC, attach to the amended Form 1120-PC the XML document, AmendedReturnChanges, which identifies:  the line number of each amended item  description of each amended item  the amount on the previous return  the amount on the amended return  an explanation of the reason for each change For Form 1120-RIC, attach to the amended Form 1120-RIC the XML document, AmendedReturnChanges, which identifies:  the line number of each amended item  description of each amended item  the amount on the previous return  the amount on the amended return  an explanation of the reason for each change For Form 1120-REIT, attach to the amended Form 1120-REIT the XML document, AmendedReturnChanges, which identifies:  the line number of each amended item  description of each amended item  the amount of the previous return  the amount of the amended return  an explanation of the reason for each change For Form 1120-S, attach to the amended Form 1120-S the XML document, AmendedReturnChanges, which identifies: ■ the line number of each amended item ■ description of each amended item ■ the amount on the previous return 29 ■ the amount on the amended return ■ an explanation of the reasons for each change Note: An amended K-1 indicator (AmendedK1Ind) has been added to the Form 1120-S Schedule K-1 schema for TY2024/PY2025. For Form 1120-F, attach to the amended Form 1120-F the XML document, AmendedReturnChanges that identifies: ■ the line number of each amended item ■ description of each amended item ■ the amount on the previous return ■ the amount on the amended return ■ the amount on the amended return ■ explanation of the reasons for each change A signed signature document (Form 8453-Corp), as applicable, or use of a Practitioner’s Personal Identification Number (PIN). Appropriate forms to make a payment, request a refund or request a credit carryover to another year. For more information on corporate returns, please refer to the e-File for Large Business and International (LB&I) page. 1.6.3 Amended Partnership, Exempt Organization, Excise Tax, Estate/Trust, Gift Tax and Individual Returns MeF can accept e-filed amended returns for Forms 1040, 1040-NR, 1041, 1042, 1065, 709, 709-NA, 990, 990-EZ, 990- PF, 990-T, 1120-POL, 2290, 4720, 5227 and 5330. Note: The amended return for the Form 720 (720X) must be filed using the existing paper procedures for Processing Year 2025. MeF can accept multiple Forms 2290 for the same tax period. An amended return for Form 2290 is filed when there is a change to “Additional Tax from Increase in Taxable Gross Weight” or “Suspended Vehicles Exceeding the Mileage Use Limit.” When an amended return is filed for Form 2290, the amended return box must be checked. On the Schedule 1, you must leave Part I, Line 1 the VIN(s) and its Category columns blank. Enter the requested information starting on Line 2 on the Schedule 1. For Form 2290 a VIN Correction is treated the same as an Amended Return. If you must correct a VIN(s) previously reported on an e-filed Form 2290 due to a typographical error (transposed or incorrectly entered characters) a corrected Form 2290 must be filed with the IRS. The VIN 30 Correction Checkbox located on Page 1 of the Form 2290 must be checked and the Schedule 1 must be completed using the corrected VIN(s). Use the VINCorrectionExplanationStatement.xsd identifying which VIN(s) are being corrected from the original accepted e-filed return and why the VIN(s) are being corrected. Attach a binary attachment (pdf). Use the General Dependency Medium – The Description element in the General Dependency Medium schema should be “VIN Correction.” For additional Partnership information, please refer to the Modernized e-File (MeF) for Partnerships page. 1.6.4 Amended Individual Returns (1040/1040-SR/1040-NR) Amended Returns for Form 1040/1040SR and Form 1040-NR will require: ■ The Form 1040-X as a form-level attachment. ■ The electronic Form 1040/1040-SR/1040-NR Amended Return (with attached 1040-X and the Amended Return indicator checkbox marked). ■ All necessary forms and schedules as if it were the Original submission (even though some forms may have no adjustments). 1.6.5 Corrected Individual Returns (1040-SS) Corrected Returns for Form 1040-SS, will require: ■ A complete Form 1040-SS Corrected Return (with the Corrected Return indicator checkbox marked). ■ All necessary forms and schedules as if it were the Original submission (even though some forms may have no adjustments). ■ Form 1040-X cannot be attached to Form 1040-SS. 1.6.6 Amended Employment Returns (940/941/943-945) Amended Returns for Form 940 will require: ■ The electronic Form 940 should have Amended Return indicator checkbox marked. ■ All necessary forms and schedules as if it were the Original submission (even though some forms may have no adjustments. Amended Returns for Form 941, 943, and 945 will require: ■ The electronic Form 941-X, 943-X, and 945-X should each be filed as a parent form. 31 ■ All necessary forms and schedules as if it were the Original submission (even though some forms may have no adjustments). 1.7 Tax Returns Exempt from e-File 1.7.1 Exempt Due to Preparer’s Technological Difficulties The following tax returns are exempt from the electronic filing requirement under section 6011(e)(3) and the corresponding regulations due to technological difficulties experienced by a tax return preparer, who meet the identified criteria for an exemption: ■ Rejected Returns. A return that a tax return preparer attempted to e-file but was unable to because the return rejected. The tax return preparer attempted but was unable to resolve the rejected condition. ■ Forms or Schedules Not Supported by a Preparer’s Software Package. A return prepared by a tax return preparer whose e-file software package does not support one or more forms or schedules that are part of the return. ■ Other Technological Difficulties. A return or returns prepared by a tax return preparer who experiences a short-term inability to electronically file the return(s) due to some other verifiable and documented technological problem. 1.7.2 Exempt Due to IRS e-File Limitations For all tax return preparers, the following tax returns and attachments are exempt/excluded from the electronic filing requirement under section 6011(e)(3) and the corresponding regulations, due to IRS limitations that currently prevent the returns and attachments from being filed electronically. Note: Paper documents can be scanned and attached to electronic returns, but no paper documents will be accepted electronically: ■ Estate and Trust Returns ■ Dual Status Returns ■ Fiscal year Returns ■ Amended Returns ■ Gift Tax Returns 1.7.2.1 Forms 1120/1120-S Exclusions The Tax Year 2021 MeF Program does not accept and process certain corporate returns. Therefore, the corporation is excluded from the electronic filing requirement under Temporary Treasury Regulation Section 301.6011-5T unless otherwise noted. These returns include: 32 ■ Returns covering multiple tax periods ■ Bank Holding Company Tax Act - Election to make installment payments for a portion of the total tax attributable to the Bank Holding Company Tax Act ■ Prompt Assessments ■ Requests for overpayments to be applied to another account Corporations who meet the Treasury Decision (T.D.) 9363, 2007-49 Internal Revenue Bulletin, and [I.R.B.] 1084 criteria are still required to e-file their tax return. To comply with the mandatory e-file regulations, Corporations must send the request to apply overpayments as a separate letter to: ■ Attention: AM Clerical Stop 6552 (ARKA) Internal Revenue Service ARKA Monterrey Park 1973 N. Rulon White Blvd Ogden, Utah 84404 Corporations required to e-file who have 1120-L or 1120-PC subsidiary returns should refer to the specific Tax Year Directions to e-file for additional information at: e-File for Large Business and International (LB&I) page. ■ 1120-C - U.S. Income Tax Return for Cooperative Associations ■ 1120-H - Homeowners Association ■ 1120-FSC - Foreign Sales Corporations ■ 1120-RIC - Regulated Investment Companies ■ 1120-REIT - Real Estate Investment Trust ■ 1120-SF - Settlement Funds ■ 1120-ND - Nuclear Decommission Trusts ■ 1120-IC-DISC - Interest Charge Domestic International Sales Forms 1120-C through 1120-IC-DISC listed above are only required to be e-filed if they are part of a consolidated return filing. If these forms are part of a consolidated return, they should be included in PDF format, named appropriately and attached to the top-return level. Otherwise, they must be filed on paper since MeF does not process them at this time. 1120X Amended Corporate Return The Form 1120X cannot be filed as a stand-alone return. It can only be submitted as an attachment to a Form 1120 return. See Section 1.6.2, Amended Corporate Returns Forms 1120, 1120-F, 1120-L, 1120-PC, 1120-RIC, 1120-REIT and 1120-S. 33 1.7.2.2 Form 7004 Exclusions ■ Name change applications ■ Reasonable cause for failing to pay timely ■ Reasonable cause for failing to file application timely ■ Returns covering multiple tax periods ■ Bank Holding Company Tax Act - Election to make installment payments for a portion of the total tax attributable to the Bank Holding Company Tax Act ■ Prompt Assessments ■ Requests for overpayments to be applied to another account ■ Requests for refunds ■ Election to make installment payments for a portion of balance due amount ■ Applications requesting extension due to change in accounting period unless prior approval has been applied for from the IRS or certain conditions have been met. See Publication 538, Accounting Periods and Methods ■ Applications with Net Operating Loss Carryback - Form 1138 should be sent separately, not with the application ■ Applications attaching Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative • Early filed returns (filed before end of tax period)  Extensions for the following forms: Form 708  Form 8924  Form 8928 1.7.2.3 Forms 990 & 990-EZ Exclusions ■ Returns from organizations not recognized as exempt (application pending, etc.) ■ Name change returns ■ Returns showing a change in accounting period ■ Short period returns (except for short period final returns) 34 1.7.2.4 e-Postcard Form 990-N Exclusions ■ Returns from organization not recognized as exempt (application for exemption pending, etc.) ■ Returns with attachments ■ Organizations required to file Form 990, Form 990-EZ, Form 990-PF or Form 1120-POL ■ Organizations included in a group return ■ Estate/Trust and Individual Returns Section 509(a)(3) supporting organizations required to file form 990 or form 990-EZ Note: This filing requirement does not apply to churches, their integrated auxiliaries, and conventions or associations of churches. ■ Short period returns (except for short period final returns) Note: Initial F990-N calendar filers should list their Tax Year beginning as January regardless of the actual first month of operation. 1.7.2.5 Form 990-PF Exclusions ■ Returns from organizations not recognized as exempt (application for exemption pending, etc.) ■ Foreign private foundations ■ Name change returns Limited 990-PFs (Limited 990-PFs are filed by organizations that originally received advance rulings as public charities but were later determined to be private foundations) 507(b)(1)(A) terminations Foundations in 60-month terminations 1.7.2.6 Form 8868 Exclusions ■ Forms 8868 Part II filed for Form 8870 must be sent in paper format to: ■ Department of the Treasury Internal Revenue Service Center Mail Stop 1112 Ogden, UT 84201- 0045 1.7.2.7 Form 1120-POL Exclusions ■ Short period returns (except for short period final returns) ■ Name change returns ■ Returns with non-numbered attachments/schedules (unless allowed for an attached form shared with Forms 1120/1120-S) for which an IRS format has not been developed 35 1.7.2.8 Forms 1065 Exclusions ■ Granted approved waivers from electronic filing ■ Returns with Tax Years ending prior to December 31, 2021 1.7.2.9 Excise Tax Forms 720, 2290 and 8849 Exclusions ■ Form 2290: no returns will be accepted for tax periods ending prior to July 1, 2022, effective July 1, 2025 ■ Form 720: no returns will be accepted for tax periods prior to the first quarter 2024 ■ Form 8849: no returns will be accepted for tax periods ending prior to December 31, 2024 1.7.2.10 Form 1040 Exclusions ■ Fiscal year returns ■ Amended Returns with Tax Years prior to December 31, 2023 ■ Returns with Tax Years ending prior to December 31, 2023 1.7.2.11 Form 4868 Exclusions ■ Fiscal year returns ■ Extensions for Tax Years ending prior to December 31, 2023 1.7.2.12 Form 94x Exclusions ■ Amended Return 944-X ■ Form 941: No returns will be accepted for tax periods ending prior to the first quarter 2023 ■ Form 940, 943, 944, 945: No returns will be accepted for tax years ending prior to December 31, 2023 ■ Short Period Returns 1.7.2.13 Form 1041 Exclusions ■ Returns with tax years ending prior to December 31, 2023 1.7.2.14 Form 1040 Amended Return Exclusions ■ Original Returns not filed electronically ■ Electronically filed returns prior to Tax Year 2023 36 2. XML Overview for MeF The IRS uses Extensible Markup Language (XML), the language that specifies the structure and content of an XML document, to implement all forms and schedules in electronic format for Modernized e-file. This section explains some of the elements of an XML document. 2.1 MeF XML Structure Like a paper tax return, a MeF tax return consists of a series of tax forms, schedules, and attachments that can be submitted for a specific type of tax return or extension. Example: An 1120 submission includes Form 1120 and any attached forms, schedules or attachments needed to file a complete return. A consolidated structure includes the consolidated return, the parent return, and one or more subsidiary returns in addition to their respective forms, attachments, and schedules. A mixed consolidated return provides the structure to file a consolidated return with 1120-L and/or 1120-PC sub-consolidations. For more information on how to compose Submissions and Transmission Files sent to the IRS for processing using the Modernized e-file System, refer to Modernized e-File (MeF) User Guides & Publications page. 2.1.1 Schemas IRS has structured tax return data into a series of schemas. A schema is an XML document that specifies the data elements, structure and rules for each form, schedule, document and/or attachment. In addition to formats defined by Schemas, returns must also adhere to Business Rules, which provide a second level of validation for tax forms processed by MeF. See Section 5.1 Business Rules for more information. Within the XML schema, data elements are the basic building blocks of an XML document. The schema recognizes two categories of element types: simple and complex. A simple type element contains only one data type and may only have documentation attributes, such as description or line number. A complex type element is an element that has one or more attributes or is the parent to one or more child elements. IRS has declared most data elements for forms and schedules (supporting data is optional). This is consistent with the way paper returns are filed. The taxpayer and return preparer have the responsibility to provide information as specified by IRS forms, instructions and regulations. Most of the required elements are in the return header schema. Example: The 1120 return header schema (ReturnHeader1120x.xsd file) contains the identifying information for the entity filing the return and the name of the officer signing the return. The return header also contains optional information such as the preparer information and the preparing firm information. 37 2.1.2 Submission Size The instance of a federal or state submission XML file cannot exceed 3 GB compressed. The maximum size of an individual PDF file attached to the submission is 60 MB uncompressed. We recommend chunking submissions greater than or equal to 50 MB; otherwise responses will take longer, and you may be timed out before receiving a response. 2.1.3 Tag Names Each field on a tax form, document or attachment is identified using an XML tag name within the XML schema. Tag names were created using the following conventions: ■ a meaningful phrase with the first letter of each word capitalized and using no spaces (upper Camel case) ■ a length of not more than 30 characters ■ standard abbreviations to meet the tag name 30-character limit The Tag Names, also known as ElementNames were standardized for the existing BMF and Shared Forms beginning in Processing Year 2014 2.1.4 Attributes Attributes provide additional information or describe a feature of a data element. ■ The first letter of the first word of an attribute name is lower case; the first letter of each subsequent word is capitalized (lower Camel case). ■ Fixed attributes are for IRS internal use only; it is highly recommended to not include these with the instance XML data for transmission. ■ An important attribute is documentId. ■ documentId attribute: An attribute that uniquely identifies the document within the context of the whole return. Tax return preparer’s software is responsible for generating a unique id of IdType defined in efileTypes.xsd for each of the return documents ■ Example: ■ ■ 38 2.1.5 Repeating Group A repeating group is a data element or a group of data elements that can repeat up to the number of times specified in the maxOccurs attribute. This provides a consistent structure through which MeF users can capture an unlimited amount of requested information. Paper forms are limited by the number of rows defined on the form, and paper filers may need to include attachments to a return to capture all requested information. Example: Form 1040, Dependents section, allows four entries on the paper form. A paper filer would need to include an attachment if there are more than four entries. In contrast, the corresponding MeF schema allows 100 entries within this repeating group of elements. MeF Schemas implement repeating groups by creating a form “type” that consists of data elements that can repeat the number of times specified in the “minOccurs” and “maxOccurs.” The following figures illustrate a TY2024 Form 8621 repeating group where DistriAndDisposOfStockType is the complex type that defines the content model for the repeating group: FIGURE 2-1: COMPLEX TYPE IDENTIFIED FOR REPEATING GROUPS 39 FIGURE 2-2: COMPLEX TYPE DEFINING CONTENTS OF REPEATING GROUPS 40 2.1.6 Choice Construct The choice construct within an XML schema batches a group of data elements between choice tags and only allows one of the data elements to be provided in an instance. Figure 2-3 below illustrates an optional choice. In this choice, the address may be present or not, but if it is present, then either USAddress or ForeignAddress must be used. FIGURE 2-3: OPTIONAL CHOICE Figure 2-4 below illustrates a required choice. In this XML instance, one of the elements (either SSN or EIN) must be present. FIGURE 2-4: REQUIRED OPTION 2.1.7 CurrencyCodeType The CurrencyCodeType will be used to identify the currency used in various international forms. The CurrencyCodeType will use a three-alphabetic character ISO 4217 currency code. The “alphabetic code” listed on the ISO 4217 website will be used to identify the currency code. The CurrencyCodeType will identify the functional currency of the foreign corporation. Example: Afghanistan will use the Afghani currency and the three alphabetic CurrencyCodeType will be “AFN”. Aland Islands will use the Euro currency and the three alphabetic CurrencyCodeType will be “EUR”. Albania will use the Lek currency and the three alphabetic CurrencyCodeType will be “ALL”. 41 TABLE 2-1: EXAMPLE OF CURRENCYCODETYPE Entity Currency Alphabetic Code Numeric Code Minor Unit AFGHANISTAN Afghani AFN 971 2 ALAND ISLANDS Euro EUR 978 2 ALBANIA Lek ALL 008 2 For a complete list of the codes, see ISO 4217 currency codes. 2.1.8 efileTypes efileTypes are IRS defined data types, which can be used in more than one MeF schema and are stable and universal in nature. efileTypes define the rule(s) for each of the data elements and may include length and character restrictions and the range of acceptable data. Each efileType assigned to a data element is specified in the efileTypes.xsd document, which is included in the MeF XML schema package. The schemas are validated against the efileTypes.xsd document. The IRS is committed to standardizing elements whenever possible. The following examples illustrate MeF efileTypes defined in the efileTypes.xsd. XML document. efileTypes can be found in each schema package located in your e-Services Mailbox: ■ MeF standardized addresses with the USAddressType ■ efileType and foreign addresses with ForeignAddressType All the data elements in these efileTypes are required except for data element AddressLine2Txt. Additional efileTypes, OtherUSAddressType and OtherForeignAddressType, were added for situations where no elements are required. These efileTypes contain only optional elements. The USAddressType has the following data elements: ■ AddressLine1Txt, which is a required field if the address field is present ■ AddressLine2Txt, which is optional*. ■ CityNm, which is a required field if the address field is present. ■ StateAbbreviationCd, which is a required field if the address field is present. ■ ZIPCd, which is a required field if the address field is present. Note: Business Rule R0000-197-01 does not allow a value on AddressLine2Txt on Forms 1120, 1120F, 1120S, 990, 990EZ, 990PF, 990N, 990-T,1120POL, 4720, 5227, 5330, 8868, 1065, 720, 8849, 2290, 940, 941, , 943,944, 945, 1041, 1139. 42 FIGURE 2-5: USADDRESS EFILETYPE Note: If any data element within the complex element is present, then all the required fields must be present. The OtherUSAddressType (Figure 2-6) has the same elements as USAddressType; however, all the data elements are optional: ■ AddressLine1Txt, which is optional ■ AddressLine2Txt, which is optional Note: However, AddressLine2Txt in the USAddressType should not be used for Apartment numbers, Suite numbers or Unit numbers: ■ CityNm, which is optional ■ StateAbbreviationCd, which is optional ■ ZIPCd, which is optional 43 FIGURE 2-6: OTHERUSADDRESS EFILETYPE Business Name Control: Generally, the Name Control should be determined from the information specified on the first name line of the tax return. A Name Control is derived from the first four significant characters of the name including any special characters such as an Ampersand (&) and Hyphen (-). Special characters in the Name Control must be encoded correctly. For more information on creating a business name control, refer to Exhibit 1. FIGURE 2-7: BUSINESSNAMECONTROLTYPE EFILETYPE Person Name Control: The Person Name control only allows characters A-Z, hyphen and space. The first character must be a letter from A-Z. FIGURE 2-8: PERSONNAMECONTROLTYPE EFILE TYPE 44 Business Name: MeF standardized the business name with the BusinessNameType. It includes the following data elements: ■ BusinessNameLine1Txt, which is a required field if the business name is present ■ BusinessNameLine2Txt, which is optional in the schema FIGURE 2-9: BUSINESSNAMETYPE EFILETYPE FIGURE 2-10: PERSONSNAMETYPE ■ Person Name and Person Full Name: MeF provides different e-file types for a person’s name as such as: PersonNameType and PersonFullNameType ■ PersonNameType: allows 35 characters’ total for the first and last name FIGURE 2-11: PERSONFULLNAME EFILETYPE ■ PersonFullNameType is a complex type, which includes PersonFirstNameType and PersonLastNameType. Each of these e-file types allows for 20 characters. 45 FIGURE 2-12: IDTYPE EFILE TYPE ■ IdType: MeF standardized identifiers using the IdType data type. (See Exhibit 7 Identifiers) ■ TextType: As a rule, the allowable characters in a field defined as TextType include printable characters, symbols, Spanish characters (shown below) and the single space used within a phrase. Leading spaces, (spaces before the beginning of the phrase), extra spaces (double or more) and trailing spaces (spaces after the end of the phrase) are never allowed. They will cause the schema validation for that field to fail. Additionally, some TextType fields are defined with restrictions and will only allow a subset of these characters to be used (for example All Numeric and All Positive Numbers etc.). “!. ““, #, $, %, &, ', (,), *, +, -, /, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, , @, A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z, [, \,], ^, _, `, a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, q, r, s, t, u, v, w, x, y, z, {, |,}, ~, £, §, Á, É, Í, Ñ, Ó, ×, Ú, Ü, á, é, í, ñ, ó, ú, ü.” Note: For normal text (not markup), characters having special meaning to XML must be encoded by the software used. If the following special characters are used in text by the preparer, the software will need to encode the XML special characters as such: ■ is encoded as > ■ & is encoded as & ■ “is encoded as " ■ a single space is encoded as ■ ‘is encoded as &apos ■ § is encoded as § 46 2.1.9 ■ Optional Choice for e-file Types with Required Fields Section 2.1.6 of this publication explained the Optional Choice and Required Choice constructs. In Figure 2- 13 (repeated below), the option of USAddress or ForeignAddress was illustrate FIGURE 2-13: OPTIONAL CHOICE If a choice is mandatory, then one and only one element within the choice must be selected. If the element selected is a complex element, then it is composed of one or more elements. Use the minOccurs and maxOccurs directives associated with each element to determine which ones are required. Remember, at least one must be present, and if either minOccurs or maxOccurs is not present the default value for each is 1. Example: The schema for Line F of Schedule K-1 (Form 1065), has an optional choice of PartnerUSAddress or PartnerForeignAddress. If PartnerUSAddress is selected, then the e-file type (in this case “PartnerUSAddressType”) will determine which fields are optional or required. As shown in Section 2.1.7 the following fields in e-file type “PartnerUSAddressType” are required: ■ AddressLine1Txt ■ CityNm ■ StateAbbreviationCd ■ ZipCd If an entry is made in any of the fields for PartnerUSAddressType, then all the required fields above must have an entry or the return will reject. Although the choice to select either PartnerUSAddress or PartnerForeignAddress is optional, once the taxpayer populates a PartnerUSAddress or PartnerForeignAddress, the respective e-file types will determine which fields are optional or required. 2.1.10 Attachments to Corporate Returns, Employment Tax Returns, Estate/Trust Tax Returns, Extensions, Individual Returns and Partnership Returns Taxpayers are instructed to attach supporting information to the tax return. This includes tax forms, statements, elections, notices, schedules or other types of miscellaneous information that IRS identifies in the form instructions, regulations or publications. These “attachments” are mostly submitted electronically as XML documents or binary files. 47 When IRS defines a schema for information that is requested, the information must be provided in XML format. Information included in Schemas includes: ■ Data elements that have been defined for Tax forms like Forms 6478 and 5884. ■ Information requested on tax form instructions to support specific lines (such as, ItemizedOtherIncomeSchedule, DualConsolidatedLossesStatement, etc.). In some cases, the schema provides specific data elements and in other cases the schema allows for entry of a specific number of characters or text to provide an explanation or description. Information requested by regulations or publications, which is not specified in the form instructions and the IRS has not provided a predefined schema. In this case, and for all other information requested that does not have a specified schema, use the General Dependency Schemas, GeneralDependencyMedium or GeneralDependencySmall. The type of General Dependency you use should be determined by the parent form schema and the amount of data included in the respective schema. A list of supporting information required by form or form instructions is provided for all supporting MeF forms. This list includes the XML document name and location reference to assist the software developer in programming this functionality. These listings can be found on their respective forms, schema pages and the MeF User Guide and Publications page. See Section 2.7 Special Instructions for Consolidated Returns for information on attaching data to consolidated returns. 2.1.11 General Dependency As explained above, the General Dependency was created to allow for the submission of information that is not specified in a predefined schema. Starting in Processing Year 2010, MeF implemented three General Dependencies: ■ “GeneralDependency” allows for an explanation of up to 1 million characters (e-file type is LongExplanationType). This dependency is available on Forms 1120, 1041 and 1065 ■ “GeneralDependencyMedium” allows for an explanation of up to 100,000 characters (eFile type is MediumExplanationType). This dependency is attached at the parent form level and is available for the following forms: 1040 family, 1041, 1120-F, 1120-S, 720, 2290 and 8849 ■ “GeneralDependencySmall” allows for an explanation of up to 5,000 characters (efile type is TextType with maximum length 5,000 characters) 48 TABLE 2-2: AVAILABLE FORMS FOR THE GENERAL DEPENDENCY Return Header File Values for Return Type & IRS Submission Type Form 851 Schedule M-3 (Form 1120-S) Form 926 Schedule M-3 (Form 1120-L) Form 940 Schedule M-3 (form 1065) Form 941 Form 3800 Form 4562 Form 943 Form 4684 Form 944 Form 5713 Form 945 Form 6765 Form 1040-NR Form 8586 Form 1041 Form 8834 Form 1042 Form 1065 Form 8865 Form 1118 Form 8886 Schedule M-3 (Form 1120) Form 8938 Schedule M-3 (Form 1120-PC) Schedule M-3 (Form 1120-S) Data elements for all three General Dependency Schemas are: ■ Name – choice between business name or person name ■ TaxpayerIdentificationNumber – choice between EIN or SSN or MissingEIN ■ FormLineOrInstructionRefTxt – the form and/or line number to which the attachment belongs ■ RegulationRefTxt – the regulation and/or publication reference ■ Description – provide a meaningful title or explanation for the attachment ■ AttachmentInformationSmllDesc – explanation regarding the attachment The IRS uses the Description as the title of the General Dependency when viewing the return. Below are some tips for composing the Description for any of the General Dependencies: ■ The Description should be meaningful to the information provided. 49 ■ If the General Dependency is an Election, the Description should start with the word “Election.” Example: “Election to Amortize a Bond Premium” “Election for 100% Dividends Received Deduction.” If multiple General Dependencies (of any size) are in one submission, the Description for each General Dependency should be unique. If the data requested for either election or other information requires “columnar format,” these documents may be submitted in PDF format until the IRS provides a structure to support columnar format. 2.1.12 XML Character Representation When entering character data into an XML document, it is important to ensure that the specified encoding supports the characters provided. By design, Modernized e-file uses Unicode Transformation Format-8 (UTF-8). MeF does not support any other encoding scheme (for example UTF- 16 and UTF-32). 2.2 Binary Attachments (PDF Files) The tax return may also include non-XML documents, known as “binary attachments,” submitted in PDF format. (Note: Currently, IRS only supports the PDF format.) This allows taxpayers to provide requested documentation that may include required signatures and/or third-party documents, such as Form 8453 series signature document, signed copy of lease, signed appraisal statement, etc. The Form 7004 allows binary attachments except for Form 8453. Although binary attachment XML schema is present, binary attachments cannot be attached to electronically filed Forms 2350, 4868, or 9465. Binary attachments cannot be attached to 94x On-Line Signature PIN Registration. Note: In this section the signature document for business returns (8453-Corp, 8453-PE, etc.) will be referred to as Form 8453 series. There is no signature document for Individual returns and Form 8453 for individuals was redesigned as a transmittal document. Form 8453 for individuals should not be attached to the electronic submission. 2.2.1 Attach a PDF File To attach a PDF file, perform the following steps: ■ Create the PDF file using any available tool. In creating a PDF file for the submission, is important to adhere to the following guidance: ■ Do not password protect or encrypt PDF attachments submitted through MeF. ■ Keep binary attachments as small as possible. The IRS needs a readable PDF using any compatible software that creates a PDF file. 50 If using Adobe Acrobat: ■ Avoid requiring compatibility with Adobe Acrobat versions earlier than version 8. Making the PDF file compatible with earlier versions will increase the size of the file. ■ Move the compression/quality slider on the “Create PDF from Scanner” to higher compression to lower the size of the file when the source document is of adequate quality and from scanner input. ■ Each individual PDF cannot exceed 60 megabytes uncompressed. ■ Each PDF must start with %pdf- and end with %%EOF. The return will reject if the PDF is not properly formatted. (All software that creates PDFs will automatically start a PDF with %pdf- and end the PDF with %%EOF. This error condition will only occur if action is taken by the submitter to alter a PDF outside of the product that creates the PDF). You can download the most recent free version of Adobe Reader PDF. Note: when you click on this link, you will leave the IRS Website and enter a privately- owned Website created, operated and maintained by a private business. The information that this private business collects and maintains as a result of your visit to its Website may differ from the information that the IRS collects and maintains. (Please see the IRS Website privacy and security notice for privacy protections IRS provides to Website visitors.) By linking to this private business, the IRS is not endorsing its products, services, or privacy or security policies. We recommend you review the business's information collection policy or terms and conditions to fully understand what information is collected by this private business. The name of each PDF file cannot exceed 64 characters and should not include the following characters in the filename: ■ Slashes (both forward / and back \) ■ Double periods (..) ■ All characters outside the range x20-x7E (the visible ASCII range plus space) ■ Semicolon (;) ■ Vertical bar (|), both left and right square bracket ([]), both left and right-angle bracket (<>), caret (^) and grave accent (`) ■ Ampersand (&), double quote ("), apostrophe ('), colon (:), question mark (?) and asterisk (*) Create a “Binary Attachment XML document” in the Submission data that describes the PDF file. One Binary Attachment XML document must be created for each binary attachment. There is a one-to-one relationship between the PDF file and the Binary Attachment XML document that describes it. To create the Binary Attachment XML document, provide the PDF file with a name, including the extension, in the “AttachmentLocation” element and a brief, meaningful and unique description of the contents of the file in the “Description” element. 51 PDF File Name: The name of the PDF file must EXACTLY match the name provided in the “AttachmentLocation” element and is case sensitive. The schema for the Binary Attachment document is defined in the file named “BinaryAttachment.xsd.” “Description” element in the Binary Attachment XML document The “Description” element in the BinaryAttachment.xsd cannot exceed 128 characters. It is important to create a meaningful and unique description referencing the contents of the file in the description element. The Description is displayed to the IRS User in order to identify the contents of the binary file. Examples of meaningful descriptions for the “Description” element: ■ Police Report ■ Calculation of Section 367 Tax and Interest Examples of descriptions that are not meaningful for the “Description” element: ■ Other ■ Miscellaneous ■ Form Attachment Note: While it is possible that one PDF may be attached in more than one location, that condition is very rare. Do not simply attach a PDF to every location that allows a PDF. Attach a PDF only where it is needed as an attachment. There have been problems with the same binary files being attached at every location where a binary file can be attached. This causes virtual documents that can delay processing. Create references, if any, from the element(s) to which the PDF file is “attached” to the “Binary Attachment XML document.” Note: If the PDF file is to be attached to an element for a line, form or schedule, create a reference from the element to the Binary Attachment XML document. We recommend that PDF files be attached at the top-level return unless there is a reason it needs to be attached at a form level or to one of the GeneralDependency Schemas. The reference is created from the element to the Binary Attachment XML document, not to the PDF file. If no reference is created to the Binary Attachment XML document, then the PDF file is considered “attached” to the Submission. Creating reference(s) to PDF files is needed when the IRS specifies the conditions under which the reference must be created, along with the reference locations within the Return Data where the reference must exist. Include the number of binary attachments in the submission in the BinaryAttachmentCnt attribute, which is used to indicate the number of binary attachments in the return, an element of the ReturnHeader. Include the PDF file in the attachment folder in the submission zip. Like-kind binary attachments should be placed adjacent to each other in the submission data XML. 52 Note: Do not attach any PDF files in Form 2350 submissions. 2.2.2 A Sample Non-XML Document Attached to the Submission Below is an example of a binary attachment, 8453 Signature Document, with a file name “8453SignatureDoc.pdf,” “attached” to a submission. To attach the document to a submission: ■ Include the PDF file in the Submission Zip Archive ■ Create a Binary Attachment XML Document that describes it in the Submission data ■ Do not reference the Binary Attachment [Text truncated at 120,000 characters. The full text is on the page linked above.] --- Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/agency%3Airs%3A64f7f85b0d22930b. Public record. Not legal advice.