If you e-file,
it's time for eSignature.

*Payments only available within Lacerte through QuickBooks Payments in tax year 2019. Additional terms, conditions and fees apply.

Offer of 5 free eSignatures available through April 30, 2020 for Lacerte, ProSeries and ProConnect Tax Online customers who have not purchased eSignature in Tax Year 2018 or Tax Year 2019. Terms, conditions, pricing, features, service and support options are subject to change without notice.

The IRS accepts electronic signatures on forms 8878 and 8879. eSignatures can be used for a wide range of online documents apart from IRS forms such as engagement letters, contracts, invoices, NDAs, and bank documents. Please keep updated and compliant on what forms you can and cannot use in connection with the preparation of federal tax returns with the IRS. Most states also accept electronic signatures on forms 8878 and 8879 or their equivalent. Notable exceptions that don’t recognize e-signatures as valid for state e-file authorization purposes include Delaware, Maryland, New York, and West Virginia.

Knowledge based authentication, also known as KBA, is an identity verification measure that requires end users to establish their identities through the use of specific security questions. The e-signature option is only available to taxpayers e-filing their tax returns through an Electronic Return Originator (ERO), who uses software that provides identity verification and e-signature functionality. To meet e-signature requirements, the ERO must be able to record the taxpayer’s name, social security number, address and date of birth electronically for identity verification purposes. As part of identity verification, the software may create what is known as a “soft inquiry” in the credit reporting industry. A soft inquiry is not a credit check, although it is conducted by a credit reporting company that uses information from the taxpayer’s credit report to generate knowledge-based authentication questions. Typically, the knowledge-based authentication questions address the taxpayer’s personal and financial history. These are usually multiple-choice questions such as the name of their mortgage lender, type of car financed, a former address or phone number. The taxpayer is expected to answer the questions correctly. Taxpayers who cannot complete the identity verification check cannot use e-signature. Ordinarily, knowledge based authentication is not mandatory for envelopes which do not contain Form 8878/8879 or their state equivalents.