AFSP Requirements for Indiana Tax Preparers: Hours, Deadlines, Exemptions
- Non-exempt Indiana preparers need 18 CE hours total; exempt preparers need only 15.
- The deadline for the 2027 Record of Completion is December 31, 2026 — no grace period.
- Indiana has no state preparer license or CE mandate, so the AFSP is the only continuing-education credential most Indiana preparers can earn.
- All 92 counties levy their own income tax on the same return, a complexity layer unrelated to AFSP but relevant to who clients trust with the filing.
§1 What the AFSP Is, and Why Indiana Preparers Need It
The Annual Filing Season Program (AFSP) is a voluntary IRS continuing-education program, not an Indiana program — there is no Indiana Department of Revenue (DOR) equivalent. Indiana has never licensed, examined, or registered paid tax preparers, so for most preparers working in the state, the AFSP Record of Completion is the only credential that distinguishes them from someone who simply bought tax software.
That matters more in Indiana than it might elsewhere, because every Indiana return already involves two tax layers — the state IT-40 and a county income tax calculated on Schedule CT-40 — and clients have no state preparer registry to check before hiring someone to handle both.
§2 Exempt vs. Non-Exempt Hours
Indiana isn’t one of the three states — Oregon, California, Maryland — whose own credential holders are automatically AFSP-exempt (see our 2-minute exemption check). Most non-credentialed Indiana preparers fall on the standard non-exempt track and need the full 18-hour package including the 6-hour AFTR course. You’d only qualify for the lighter, exempt 15-hour track by separately holding one of the recognized out-of-state credentials, having passed SEE Part 1 in the last three years, or serving as an active VITA/TCE volunteer. See the full exempt vs. non-exempt guide for every qualifying category.
§3 The Full Hour Breakdown
SCHEDULE B — AFSP HOURS BY TRACK (2027 FILING SEASON)
| Course Category | Non-Exempt | Exempt |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Federal Tax Refresher (AFTR) | 6 | — |
| Federal Tax Law Topics | 10 | 3 |
| Federal Tax Law Update | — | 10 |
| Ethics | 2 | 2 |
| Total | 18 | 15 |
Exempt preparers skip the AFTR entirely but still need 2 ethics hours from an AFSP-approved ethics course. Hours can’t be shifted between categories to cover a shortfall.
§4 Deadlines You Can’t Miss
December 31, 2026. All CE hours must be completed and reported to the IRS by this date to earn the 2027 Record of Completion. There is no extension.
Providers report your hours directly to the IRS CE system — you don’t submit anything yourself — but missing the deadline still means missing the season entirely. Keep your PTIN renewal current alongside your CE, since an expired PTIN voids the Record of Completion regardless of hours completed.
Consent Requirement. You must consent to the Circular 230 practice obligations during PTIN renewal. Hours completed without that consent won’t produce a Record of Completion.
§5 What You Get for Completing It
A completed AFSP earns you a spot in the IRS’s public Tax Pro Directory plus limited representation rights before the IRS for returns you personally prepared and signed. It does not grant the unlimited representation rights that attorneys, CPAs, and Enrolled Agents hold.
§6 The County Tax Layer Indiana Preparers Can’t Skip
All 92 Indiana counties levy their own local income tax, on residents and on nonresidents who work in the county, with rates currently running from roughly 0.5% up past 3%. That tax is figured on Schedule CT-40 and filed with the same IT-40 state return — it’s not a separate filing, but it is a second rate table a preparer has to get right on every single Indiana client, in addition to the state rate. None of that changes federal AFSP or AFTR requirements; it’s a state-specific complexity layered on top of, not instead of, the same CE hours every other non-exempt preparer nationwide completes. For the AFTR course itself, see our companion page on the AFTR course for Indiana preparers, and browse the full AFSP & AFTR guide hub for every state and topic.
§7 FAQs
Does Indiana have its own AFSP-equivalent program?
No. Only Oregon, California, and Maryland have state programs the IRS recognizes for AFSP exemption. Indiana preparers follow the standard federal exempt/non-exempt rules.
How many hours do I need if I’m not exempt?
18 total: 6 for the AFTR course, 10 for federal tax law topics, and 2 for ethics, all completed by December 31, 2026 for the 2027 season.
Does the county income tax change my AFSP requirements?
No. Indiana’s 92-county local income tax is a state/local filing detail calculated on Schedule CT-40. It has no bearing on the federal AFSP hours or AFTR course, which are identical nationwide.
What happens if I miss the December 31 deadline?
You won’t receive a Record of Completion for that filing season — there’s no grace period. You’d lose the limited representation rights and Tax Pro Directory listing until the following season.
Tax IQ Academy is an IRS and CTEC approved provider of continuing education for tax professionals, offering AFSP, AFTR, and EA exam prep courses covering federal tax law, ethics, and practice management.