Tax Professionals Handbook

An authorized E-File provider can be included in one or more of the categories defined below.

• Electronic Return Originator (ERO) – A firm, an organization, or an individual who originates the electronic submission of an income tax return to the IRS and may originate the electronic submission of income tax returns that either they have prepared or that they have collected from taxpayers.

• Transmitter – A firm, an organization, or an individual who transmits electronic tax returns directly to the IRS.

• Intermediate Service Provider – A firm, an organization, or an individual who receives tax information from an ERO (or from a taxpayer who files electronically using a personal computer, modem, and commercial tax preparation software), processes the tax return information, and either forwards the information to a transmitter or sends the information back to the ERO or taxpayer in the case of online filing.

• Software Developer – A firm, an organization, or an individual who designs software for the purpose of formatting returns according to electronic return specifications of the IRS and the NCDOR and/or transmitting electronic tax returns directly to the IRS.

A firm, an organization, or an individual may choose to perform one or all of the above noted functions associated with E-File.