An enrolled agent is a tax professional licensed by the IRS to represent taxpayers before the agency, the highest credential the IRS awards.
Most EAs qualify by passing the IRS's three-part Special Enrollment Examination, which covers individual and business tax returns; some former IRS employees qualify through their work experience instead. Applicants also pass a suitability check of their own tax compliance and criminal background.
To keep the credential, EAs complete 72 hours of IRS-approved continuing education every three years, with at least 16 hours each year, two of them on ethics. Like attorneys and CPAs, they have unlimited practice rights: they can represent any taxpayer on any tax matter before any IRS office.
An EA is a tax credential, not a planning or investment one, and it doesn't register anyone to give investment advice. A planner who holds one can prepare returns and handle IRS problems as part of the plan. In the public graph, 226 fee-only advisors list an EA.
How to check
Search the IRS Directory of Federal Tax Return Preparers with Credentials and Select Qualifications by name and credential, or ask the IRS Office of Enrollment to confirm the person's status. Some eligible preparers choose not to appear in the directory, so a missing name isn't proof on its own.
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