What Is Form 8948: Six Reasons, Hardship Waiver, and Penalties

Form 8948 is the IRS form a paid preparer attaches to a paper-filed individual, estate, or trust income tax return to explain why the return wasn’t filed electronically. It applies only to preparers who fall under the e-file mandate in IRC § 6011(e)(3), and it travels with the paper return itself.¹

Who Has to Use Form 8948

The form is for “specified tax return preparers.” That’s any preparer who reasonably expects to file 11 or more covered returns during the calendar year. If you expect to file 10 or fewer, you’re below the threshold and can paper-file without any explanation attached.¹

The count is based on what you reasonably expect at the start of the year, not the number you finish the year with. If you work in a firm, the threshold is applied to the aggregate expected returns of the firm’s members, not to your personal caseload.²

Covered returns are income tax returns imposed by subtitle A on individuals, estates, and trusts, so Forms 1040 and 1041 are the main ones. Returns the IRS can’t currently accept electronically don’t count toward the threshold, and neither do returns your client plans to complete and mail themselves.³

When the Form Isn’t Required

There’s one situation where a specified preparer can paper-file a covered return and skip Form 8948 entirely. If the IRS simply doesn’t accept that return electronically, and any attached forms or schedules can’t be sent separately with Form 8453 or Form 8453-F, no explanation is needed. The IRS already knows the return had no electronic path.²

The Six Reasons You Can Check

After entering the taxpayer’s name, tax year, and identifying number along with your name and PTIN, you check exactly one box explaining why the return is on paper. You can’t check more than one.²

Box 1, taxpayer chose paper. The client preferred a paper return. This is the most common reason and is a valid exception.
Box 2, approved waiver. You submitted Form 8944 and received an IRS approval letter granting a hardship waiver.
Box 3, religious objection. You belong to a recognized religious group conscientiously opposed to electronic filing.
Box 4, e-file rejection. The return was submitted through e-file, was rejected, and you couldn’t resolve the rejection.
Box 5, software limitation. Your e-file software doesn’t support a form or schedule attached to the return.
Box 6, other circumstances. Covers situations such as being a foreign preparer without an SSN who lives and works abroad, being ineligible to participate in IRS e-file, or any other specific reason you write out on the form.

The box you check is a statement to the IRS about your compliance with the mandate. It should match the actual situation.

How to Attach and File It

Complete Form 8948 and attach it to the paper return before you give the return to the taxpayer to sign. It goes to the IRS with the paper return when it’s mailed. There’s no separate submission and no electronic version.²

An approved hardship waiver doesn’t remove the paperwork. You still attach Form 8948 to each paper return covered by the waiver and check Box 2.²

The Hardship Waiver Behind Box 2

Form 8944 is the request you file in advance if e-filing would cause genuine hardship. The IRS reviews the request and responds in writing with an approval or denial, and requests must be submitted between October 1 and February 15 for the upcoming filing season. Late requests are considered only in limited circumstances, with a statement explaining the delay.⁴

Recognized hardship categories include bankruptcy, economic hardship, presence in a presidential disaster area, and other circumstances such as lack of internet access. Economic hardship claims require additional financial information on the form. The IRS will not grant a waiver on the basis that a preparer lacks an Electronic Filing Identification Number.⁴

What Happens If You Don’t Attach It

A specified preparer who paper-files a covered return without Form 8948 has no documentation of a valid reason for skipping e-file. The IRS can assess penalties against specified preparers who don’t comply with the electronic filing requirement under IRC § 6011(e)(3), and a properly completed Form 8948 is the evidence that one of the recognized exceptions applied.¹

The statute also contains a narrow geographic exception. If your practice is in an area without internet access beyond dial-up or satellite service, the IRS may waive the e-file requirement based on an application. That exception sits in the statute itself and doesn’t run through the Form 8944 process.¹

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 6011 – General Requirement of Return, Statement, or List
2
Internal Revenue Service. Form 8948 – Preparer Explanation for Not Filing Electronically
3
Internal Revenue Service. Frequently Asked Questions – E-File Requirements for Specified Tax Return Preparers
4
Internal Revenue Service. Form 8944 – Preparer e-File Hardship Waiver Request