Here is how to check your online account for your continuing education credit hours and how to verify those hours for the annual filing season program, as well as consent to Circular 230 once your continuing education requirements have been met.
First, log into your PTIN account at rpr.irs.gov/PTIN. Once there, you click Log In. All the logins are two-factor authentication. So, you'll need a code. One important thing to know is that you will receive a code via email. It will be the same email that you used when you created your account. The code is only valid for ten minutes. It does take a few minutes for the IRS to send it to you. Once you have your code, proceed with the two-factor authentication and login.
Once you log in, the first thing you'll see is a pop-up of items that you must review. So, if there are outstanding actions needed, it will tell you the actions you need to take.
On the home page, you have your dashboard that will give you the basics of your account. You can check your continuing education credits by clicking on that tab, and you'll see all your continuing education credits.
To qualify for the AFSP as a non-exempt preparer, for example, you'd need at least ten hours of Federal Tax Law. It's okay to have more hours, of course. You'll see them listed on that screen. You'll also see the provider’s name. My Tax Courses Online is listed as 111 Accelerated Continuing Education. The Annual Federal Tax Refresher will also show up in the Update Section. You also need at least two hours of Ethics.
Typically, it takes about two days for your credits to show after they're reported. My Tax Courses Online reports every business day throughout the rest of the year. After you complete your course, it usually takes a couple of days to show. Occasionally, they show up one day later so you can check sooner.
You can go back to your dashboard by clicking the home button. When you click on the View My AFSP Status, you can see where you are on the journey.
The PTIN Renewal is now open right now, so after you have all your credits completed and reported, you need to Consent to Circular 230. That's the one step that sometimes needs to be remembered because after completing your continuing education, some people think it happens automatically. It does not, so once you complete your continuing education credits, the Consent to Circular 230 button will become active.
Now, you can consent to circular 230 for the annual filing season 2024. A screen appears telling you that to participate in the 2024 annual filing season and to earn your record of completion, you must Consent to Circular 230, and these are the sections that govern tax preparers.
You must consent to Circular 230 to qualify for the Annual Filing Season Program and to get all the benefits, such as limited representation rights, your record of completion, and all the benefits of the program. Click yes and submit. You will receive a verification statement that yes, you read this, and yes, you agree, and then you submit.
Once you consent, you are notified immediately that you have successfully submitted your circular 230 consent, and you can get your Record of Completion right away. It may take a few minutes to show up in your secure Inbox. The secure Inbox is how the IRS will communicate with you about your PTIN.
The email appears in your secure Inbox. You can open that email and see your Record of Completion and all the other official notices from the past. You can save it as an image or make a PDF. You can also print it out. And that is how you get your 2024 Record of Completion.
