June 15, 2026

The $50 Million Bottleneck Inside the IRS CAF System

50 minutes

Bob Kerr returns to break down his Tax Notes article on the IRS's Centralized Authorization File, the decades-old system that processes Forms 2848 and 8821 almost entirely by hand, now buried under 7 million forms a year at roughly 500 staff years and $50 million to run. He, Roger, and Annie get into why the backlog keeps growing, how practitioners can get ahead of it by putting 8821s on file early, and why transcripts belong in your current-year filing, not just your representation work.

Sponsors
Padgett - Contact Padgett or Email Jeff Phillips

Get NASBA Approved CPE or IRS Approved CE
Launch the course on EarmarkCPE to get free CPE/CE for listening to this episode.

Read Bob's Article
https://www.taxnotes.com/tax-notes-federal/practice-and-procedure/high-costs-irss-centralized-authorization-file-system/2026/04/06/7vjcc

Chapters

(00:00) - Welcome and Setup

(02:36) - Why CAF Matters Now

(06:54) - CAF Explained POA vs TIA

(10:42) - Choosing 8821 vs 2848

(13:46) - Backlogs and Real Impacts

(15:45) - Manual Processing Volume Surge

(18:54) - Million Hours and 50M Cost

(21:23) - Deadlines Snowball Effect

(24:01) - CAF Volume Spiral

(24:59) - Early Transcripts Benefits

(28:33) - Client Use Cases

(30:27) - Why IRS Can’t Keep Up

(39:13) - Train Clients and Set Expectations

(43:33) - Transcripts Beyond Representation

(44:32) - VITA Volunteering Insights

(48:56) - Wrap Up and Thanks

Follow the Federal Tax Updates Podcast on Social Media
twitter.com/FedTaxPod
facebook.com/FedTaxPod
linkedin.com/showcase/fedtaxpod

Connect with the Hosts on LinkedIn
Roger Harris
Annie Schwab

Review
Leave a review on Apple Podcasts or Podchaser

Subscribe
Subscribe to the Federal Tax Updates podcast in your favorite podcast app!

This podcast is a production of Earmark Media

The full transcript for this episode is available by clicking on the Transcript tab at the top of this page

All content from this podcast by SmallBizPros, Inc. DBA PADGETT BUSINESS SERVICES is intended for informational purposes only.

...more

View all episodes

By Roger Harris, EA and Annie Schwab, CPA