Tax Preparer Credentials: What the IRS File Shows About 2,711 US Firms

We matched the 4,874 accounting, tax and bookkeeping firms in our directory against the IRS file of registered tax return preparers, and 2,711 of them matched with enough confidence to report. At 44.0% of those firms, at least one preparer holds a CPA license. At 18.1%, no preparer listed a professional credential of any kind. The name on the door predicts a lot: 95.5% of firms with “CPA” in their name show a CPA in the IRS file, against 5.8% of firms with “bookkeeping” in theirs.

The short version: a paid preparer needs a PTIN, not a credential, and about one matched firm in five lists none. California, which requires non-credentialed preparers to register with the state, has a far smaller share with nothing listed than the other large states in the sample. Check the credential yourself before you hand anyone your return; the tools are free and take a minute. The federal counts of preparers by credential, the return volumes and the state registration rules are on the tax preparer statistics page.

The aggregate figures are published as a CSV file for anyone who wants to reuse them.

What this census measures

The IRS publishes a file of every active preparer tax identification number (PTIN) holder under the Freedom of Information Act. It is updated twice a year; the version we used was dated February 23, 2026. The Form W-12 instructions list what that release contains: name, business name, business address, business phone number, business website address and “Professional Credentials”.

Those credentials are what preparers report when they apply or renew. The W-12 instructions tell applicants to “check all boxes that apply”, not to check anything “currently expired or retired”, and to “include the licensing number, jurisdiction, and expiration date”; a credential entered without an expiration date “will not be added”.

The unit in this census is a firm, not a person. We joined each directory listing to the IRS file on business phone number, and counted a match as confident only when a distinctive word from the firm’s name also appeared in the IRS business or preparer name. Phone matches without that name check (360 firms) are held back, and 1,803 firms had no phone match at all. Where several preparers share a firm’s phone, the firm counts as holding a credential if any of them reports it. The matching ran on August 14, 2026.

What each credential means

These are the credentials a preparer can report on Form W-12, as the IRS instructions define them, plus the Annual Filing Season Program record, which the IRS adds itself.

The differences between the first three are covered in CPA vs enrolled agent and CPA vs accountant.

What the 2,711 matched firms hold

The rows overlap, because many firms have more than one kind of preparer. The two bottom rows are the census’s headline: in 583 matched firms, nobody reports a CPA license, EA status, bar admission or even the voluntary AFSP record, and in 490 of those nobody reports anything at all.

For scale, the IRS counts 886,338 PTIN holders nationally, of whom 209,076 are CPAs and 71,966 are enrolled agents, as of September 1, 2026. Those are people rather than firms, so they are not directly comparable with the shares above, but they show why a firm-level figure matters: most individual preparers are not CPAs, and a taxpayer is hiring a firm.

The name on the door and the credentials behind it

Grouping the matched firms by the words in their business name shows how far the name predicts the credential.

Three readings follow.

“CPA” in a name is reliable. The title is restricted by state law, and 609 of 638 matched firms using it show a CPA in the IRS file. The 20 that show none are not necessarily misusing it: a CPA who prepares no returns needs no PTIN, and the IRS file records credentials only for people who hold one.

“Tax” and “accounting” in a name tell you little. Neither word is a regulated title. Firms using them split across every kind of credential, and roughly a quarter to a third list none of the four federal ones.

Bookkeeping firms that prepare returns are the least credentialed group. Of 139 matched bookkeeping firms, 60 (43.2%) list none of the four federal credentials. Bookkeeping itself needs no license anywhere in the US, as bookkeeper vs accountant explains; the question to ask is who at the firm signs your return, and what that person holds.

California, where the state requires registration

California law requires “any non-exempt person who prepares tax returns for compensation” to register with the California Tax Education Council (CTEC), which means a 60-hour qualifying course, a $5,000 surety bond, 20 hours of continuing education a year and a PTIN. CTEC states that California CPAs, enrolled agents and attorneys are generally exempt, and that preparers operating without registration “may face penalties of up to $5,000 per violation.”

The census is consistent with that rule. Among the four states with at least 150 matched firms:

In California, 335 of the 822 matched firms (40.8%) include a state regulated preparer, which is the CTEC registration showing up in the IRS file. Maryland, one of the other two programs the W-12 instructions name, points the same way on a much smaller sample: 3 of 50 matched firms (6.0%) list nothing. The directory is not a random sample of each state’s firms, so treat the comparison as a strong pattern in our data rather than a measured state rate.

What the census cannot tell you

• The 1,803 firms with no phone match are evidence of nothing. A CPA firm that does no tax work has no PTIN, and a firm’s listed phone may simply differ from the one on its preparers’ registrations.
• A match shows who holds a PTIN at that number, not who will do your work. Firms with several preparers may assign your return to any of them.
• Credentials are reported by preparers. The W-12 asks for a license number, jurisdiction and expiration date, but the instructions do not describe how the IRS checks a CPA license or bar admission. Enrolled agent status and the AFSP record are issued by the IRS itself.
• “No credential listed” is not an accusation. Federal law requires a paid preparer to hold a PTIN, not a credential. Outside the state programs, a preparer with no credential can prepare returns lawfully; what they lack is any right to represent you before the IRS.
• The directory is not a census of every US firm. It is built from public business listings in accounting, tax and bookkeeping categories and checked against each firm’s own website, and it over-represents California (1,554 of 4,874 listings). The figures describe the firms we list.

How to check a preparer yourself

• Ask for the PTIN. Every paid preparer must sign your return and enter it. The IRS warns against “ghost” preparers who will not sign.
• Search the IRS Directory of Federal Tax Return Preparers with Credentials and Select Qualifications. It lists preparers who hold a CPA license, EA status, bar admission or an AFSP record.
• Check a CPA license with the state board. The board that issued the license is the authoritative source; NASBA’s CPAverify search aggregates most state boards.
• In California, use CTEC’s “Find / Verify a Preparer” search for anyone who is not a CPA, EA or attorney.

Our directory shows a verification seal on listings that matched the IRS preparer file with the phone and name check described above. What the work should cost is covered in how much tax preparation costs.

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