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Form 8879: IRS e-file Signature Authorization

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Quick answer

IRS Form 8879, IRS e-file Signature Authorization (Rev. January 2021), is the e-file authorization form your tax preparer — an Electronic Return Originator (ERO) — has you sign before transmitting your Form 1040, 1040-SR, 1040-NR, 1040-SS or 1040-X. Part I lists five amounts from the return, Part II is your declaration, five-digit PIN choice and signature, and Part III is the ERO's own certification. You return it to the preparer, who keeps it for three years; it is never sent to the IRS. The IRS accepts a handwritten signature or an e-signature captured by the preparer's identity-verification software. With JustFill you upload the PDF, the AI detects every field, you type or dictate your entries, and the first clean completed PDF download is included at no charge.

Form
Form 8879
Issued by
IRS
Country
United States
Free allowance
First clean download
Official edition
Form 8879 (Rev. January 2021), Cat. No. 32778X, OMB No. 1545-0074
Source checked

What is Form 8879?

Your accountant just emailed you a Form 8879 to sign? IRS Form 8879 is the e-file Signature Authorization — the document that lets a tax professional electronically file your federal income tax return on your behalf. Part I shows five whole-dollar amounts from the original or amended return (adjusted gross income, total tax, federal tax withheld, refund, amount owed) so you can verify them before anything is transmitted. Part II is your declaration and signature: you either authorize the ERO firm to enter or generate your five-digit PIN, or state that you will enter it yourself, and that PIN becomes your signature on the e-filed return. JustFill turns the PDF into a fillable form in your browser — the AI auto-detects every field, you type or dictate your entries, sign, and download the completed Form 8879 to send back to your preparer — the first clean completed PDF download is included at no charge. It works even on scanned or flattened copies.

Download the Form 8879 form PDF — free

The current official Form 8879 is Rev. January 2021, free at irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8879.pdf; the IRS also publishes a Spanish version, Form 8879 (SP). Usually you do not need the blank — your preparer sends the form already filled in with the return amounts. Upload that PDF, or the blank, to JustFill to complete the taxpayer entries in your browser; the first clean completed PDF download is included at no charge. JustFill sends nothing to the IRS or to your preparer — you return the signed form yourself.

Get the official Form 8879 PDF from IRS

Who fills out Form 8879?

  • Taxpayers whose CPA, enrolled agent, or tax preparer e-files their federal return for them
  • Spouses on a joint return — both must sign the same Form 8879 before the return is transmitted
  • Clients of remote or online tax preparers who receive the form by email and need to complete it without a printer
  • Anyone whose preparer enters the taxpayer's PIN on their behalf — the form documents that authorization
  • Business owners signing the related 8879 series for entity returns prepared by a professional

Field-by-field breakdown

What each section of Form 8879 asks for. JustFill’s AI will detect these fields automatically when you upload the PDF — review the breakdown below so you know what to enter.

Header — Taxpayer name and SSN

Your name and Social Security Number exactly as they appear on the return, and the spouse's name and SSN on a joint return. The Submission Identification Number (SID) box above them is for the ERO, who enters the 20-digit SID assigned to the return or associates Form 9325 with the form after filing. At the top of Part I, enter the tax year you are authorizing.

Part I — Tax return information

Lines 1–5, whole dollars only: adjusted gross income, total tax, federal income tax withheld from Forms W-2 and 1099, the amount you want refunded, and the amount you owe. Form 1040-SS filers use line 4 only. The ERO fills these from the return; you verify they match the return you were shown.

Part II — Taxpayer declaration

Your declaration, under penalties of perjury, that you have reviewed the return and the amounts in Part I are correct.

Part II — Self-select PIN and authorization checkbox

Check one box only. Either you authorize the named ERO firm to enter or generate your PIN — writing five digits, not all zeros, in the boxes — or you will enter your own PIN, which applies only when the return is filed under the Practitioner PIN method. A spouse has the same two boxes; neither spouse may select or enter the PIN of the other.

Part II — Signature and date

Your signature and date; spouse signs separately on a joint return.

Part III — Certification and authentication

Practitioner PIN method returns only. The ERO enters a six-digit EFIN followed by a five-digit self-selected PIN, certifies compliance with Pub. 1345, signs and dates. You leave this part to your preparer, and it stays blank when the ERO is not using the Practitioner PIN method.

Common mistakes to avoid

  • 1Signing before checking Part I — the whole point of Form 8879 is to verify the AGI, total tax, and refund or balance due against the actual return before it is e-filed.
  • 2Mailing the form to the IRS — the form itself says "Don't submit this form to the IRS unless requested to do so." It goes back to your preparer, who must retain it for 3 years from the return due date or the IRS received date, whichever is later, on paper or electronically.
  • 3Forgetting the second signature on a joint return — both spouses sign, each choosing their own five-digit PIN or authorizing the ERO to enter it, before the ERO can transmit the return. One spouse may never select or enter the PIN of an absent spouse.

Form 8879 example — what a filled-out form looks like

A fictional married couple whose preparer e-files their joint 2025 Form 1040 under the Practitioner PIN method. The preparer fills the header and Part I from the finished return; the couple checks the PIN boxes, signs Part II and sends the form back. Identifiers are masked.

Submission Identification Number (SID)

Left blank by the taxpayers

The 20-digit SID is assigned when the return is filed. The ERO adds it afterwards or attaches Form 9325 instead.

Taxpayer name and SSN / Spouse name and SSN

ALEX EXAMPLE, •••-••-1234 / JAMIE EXAMPLE, •••-••-5678

Exactly as they appear on the return. The real form carries full Social Security numbers, so check the finished PDF before emailing it.

Part I — Tax Year Ending December 31

2025

The year you are authorizing, not the year you sign.

Part I — Lines 1 to 5

AGI 84,300 · total tax 7,912 · federal tax withheld 9,150 · refund 1,238 · amount owed: blank

Whole dollars only, copied from the return. The taxpayers compare these five numbers with the return before signing anything.

Part II — Taxpayer PIN (check one box only)

First box: I authorize EXAMPLE TAX SERVICES LLC to enter or generate my PIN 24680

The ERO firm name goes on the line, and the PIN is any five digits except all zeros. The second box is only for a taxpayer entering their own PIN under the Practitioner PIN method.

Part II — Spouse PIN (check one box only)

First box: I authorize EXAMPLE TAX SERVICES LLC to enter or generate my PIN 13579

Each spouse chooses their own PIN. One spouse may authorize the ERO while the other enters their own, but nobody may enter the PIN of an absent spouse.

Part II — Signatures and dates

Alex Example, 03/12/2026 · Jamie Example, 03/12/2026

Handwritten, or electronic if the preparer uses IRS-compliant e-signature software. Both signatures must reach the ERO before the return is transmitted.

Part III — ERO EFIN/PIN, certification, signature

Left to the preparer: six-digit EFIN followed by a five-digit ERO PIN

Part III is completed only under the Practitioner PIN method and only by the ERO. The taxpayers never touch it.

Where the signed form goes

Emailed back to Example Tax Services LLC, who retains it

The form says "Don't submit this form to the IRS unless requested to do so." The ERO keeps it for 3 years from the return due date or IRS received date, whichever is later.

These values are made up. They are here to show what belongs on each line, not to be copied — every name, number, and address on your own Form 8879 has to be your own.

How JustFill helps you complete Form 8879

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Frequently asked questions

Yes. Form 8879 is an IRS form, free to download, and in most cases your preparer sends it to you already filled in with the return amounts. In JustFill the first clean completed PDF download is included at no charge. Your preparer may charge for tax preparation, but the form itself is free.
Usually your tax preparer sends it to you pre-filled with the return amounts. You can also download the current blank (Rev. January 2021) free from the IRS at irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8879.pdf — or the Spanish Form 8879 (SP) — and upload it into JustFill to complete it online without printing.
No. You return the signed form to your ERO (your tax preparer), who retains it for three years and provides it to the IRS only on request. Sending it to the IRS yourself does nothing.
A five-digit number — any five digits except all zeros — that serves as your signature on the e-filed return itself. On Form 8879 you either authorize the ERO firm to enter or generate it for you, or check that you will enter it yourself, which applies only under the Practitioner PIN method. If the ERO is not using the Practitioner PIN method and you enter your own PIN, the form's chart says Form 8879 is not completed at all.
Yes, with conditions. The IRS accepts e-signatures on Forms 8878 and 8879 only when the ERO uses software that verifies your identity and records the signature — a signature pad, stylus, typed name, PIN, digital signature or captured mark all qualify. For remote signing the software asks knowledge-based authentication questions drawn from your credit history; after three failed attempts the ERO must obtain a handwritten signature. A handwritten signature returned by mail, fax, email or a website is always acceptable and needs no identity check. A signature typed or drawn into the PDF in JustFill is therefore not by itself an IRS-compliant e-signature — print and sign by hand, or use the e-signature link your preparer sends.
The same e-file signature authorization for other return types. Form 8879-S covers Form 1120-S, 8879-CORP covers Forms 1120, 1120-F and 1120-S, 8879-PE covers Form 1065 partnership returns, 8879-F covers Form 1041 fiduciary returns, 8879-TE covers tax-exempt entities, 8879-EMP covers employment tax returns (Forms 940, 941, 943, 944, 945), 8879-EX covers excise Forms 720, 2290 and 8849, 8879-WH covers Form 1042, 8879-EG covers estate and gift returns, and the December 2025 Form 8879-TA covers Form 4547, Trump Account elections. Plain Form 8879 is only for the individual 1040 family. JustFill fills any of them the same way.

Official source: Form 8879 on IRS’s website

Edition checked: Form 8879 (Rev. January 2021), Cat. No. 32778X, OMB No. 1545-0074. Verified against the official source on .

JustFill is an independent product and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by IRS or any government agency. Always verify your completed form on the official version before signing or submitting.