Form 8879 for Tax Preparers: Remote E-Signature Rules and How Long to Keep It

    Last verified: November 1, 2026

    Sooner or later every preparer who e-files individual returns asks the same thing: can my client sign Form 8879 from their phone, or do I still need paper? A remote electronic signature is allowed, but the IRS attaches identity-verification and record-keeping conditions to it. Here is what the rules say and how to build a routine around them.

    What Form 8879 is for

    Form 8879, IRS e-file Signature Authorization, is the form on which the taxpayer (and the spouse, on a joint return) authorizes the electronic return originator (ERO) to e-file the return and enter or generate the taxpayer's PIN. It is not filed with the IRS; the ERO keeps it. Form 8878 plays a similar role for certain extension filings. The taxpayer signs after reviewing the completed return and before you transmit it.

    Signing remotely: what the IRS expects

    IRS Publication 1345 (the handbook for authorized IRS e-file providers of individual returns) covers electronic signatures on Forms 8878 and 8879. For a remote transaction, meaning you are not physically with the taxpayer, the main points are:

    • Identity verification. The ERO collects identifying details (name, SSN, address and date of birth) and checks them against outside records, typically through knowledge-based authentication (KBA) questions generated from credit data.
    • Limited attempts. If the taxpayer cannot pass verification after three tries, a handwritten signature on the form is required instead.
    • An audit trail. The signing software must capture the taxpayer's IP address and login username, the date and time of the signature, and the identity-verification results, and you must be able to provide them to the IRS on request.
    • Not every signature is an electronic signature. A handwritten signature that is mailed, faxed, scanned or emailed back is still a handwritten signature. It is accepted on the form, but it is not a remote electronic signature.

    Publication 1345 is revised periodically, so confirm the current version before you change your process.

    How long to keep it

    The ERO must keep Form 8879 (and Form 8878) for three years from the return due date or the date the IRS received the return, whichever is later. Electronic copies are acceptable. You do not send the form to the IRS unless it asks for it.

    A practical routine

    • Send the signature request only after the client has reviewed the final return.
    • Verify identity the way your software and your own process require, and keep the result with the signed form.
    • Check that the signed form is complete (every required signature, the date, the PIN authorization) before you transmit.
    • Store the signed copy and its audit trail where you can find it three years from now, not in an email thread.
    • Keep a paper fallback for clients who cannot complete online verification.

    Where VYAX fits

    VYAX lets the client sign Form 8879 online inside their own portal account and records which account signed and when, kept with the client's file. It does not run a knowledge-based questionnaire, so you remain responsible for meeting the IRS identity-verification requirement in the way your practice documents it. The related posts explain the details: the Form 8879 workflow, identity verification for signatures and the signature quality check.

    This article is general information, not tax or legal advice. IRS rules and forms change; check the current IRS publications.