Protecting Taxpayers from Ghost Preparers Act
The source supplies the latest action, but no lifecycle stage.
Latest action (16 Sep 2026): Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
What this bill does
H.R. 9499, the Protecting Taxpayers from Ghost Preparers Act, makes two changes to federal tax law. First, it clarifies that the unlimited statute of limitations for tax assessments in cases of fraud applies only when the taxpayer personally intends to evade tax—meaning that if a dishonest tax preparer commits fraud without the taxpayer's knowledge, the taxpayer's normal, shorter deadline for IRS assessment would not be extended. Second, it makes a technical correction to a provision in the Disaster Related Extension of Deadlines Act, renumbering a subsection of the tax code dealing with disaster-related deadline extensions.
The bill primarily affects taxpayers who are victims of fraudulent or dishonest tax preparers, sometimes called "ghost preparers," by limiting how long the IRS can extend its assessment window against them when the fraud was committed by the preparer rather than the taxpayer. It also affects IRS administration of disaster-related filing extensions, through the technical fix to existing law.
The bill was introduced in the House in June 2026, referred to the Ways and Means Committee, and reported with an amendment in September 2026. The House passed it by voice vote on September 15, 2026, under a procedure for noncontroversial bills. It now goes to the Senate for further consideration before it could be sent to the President.
Plain-English summary generated by Bill100 AI from the official record. Always verify against the source below.
Official summary
Protecting Taxpayers from Ghost Preparers Act
This bill limits the amount of time the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has to assess taxes related to fraudulent or false federal tax returns where there is no intent by the taxpayer to evade taxes.
As background, the IRS generally has three years from the date that a tax return is filed (statute of limitations) to assess taxes owed by the taxpayer for the tax year. However, if a false or fraudulent tax return is filed with the intent to evade tax (fraud exception), then the IRS may assess taxes at any time. In Murrin v. Commissioner the U.S. Tax Court held (and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit affirmed) that the fraud exception applies when a tax return preparer places false or fraudulent entries on a tax return without the taxpayer’s knowledge. In contrast, the U.S. Court of Federal Claims held in BASR Partnership v. Commissioner that the fraud exception only applies if the taxpayer intends to evade taxes.
The bill limits the fraud exception to cases in which the taxpayer intends to evade taxes.
Timeline
16 Sep 2026
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Common questions
- What does H.R. 9499 do?
- H.R. 9499, the Protecting Taxpayers from Ghost Preparers Act, makes two changes to federal tax law. First, it clarifies that the unlimited statute of limitations for tax assessments in cases of fraud applies only when the taxpayer personally intends to evade tax—meaning that if a dishonest tax preparer commits fraud without the taxpayer's knowledge, the taxpayer's normal, shorter deadline for IRS assessment would not be extended. Second, it makes a technical correction to a provision in the Disaster Related Extension of Deadlines Act, renumbering a subsection of the tax code dealing with disaster-related deadline extensions. The bill primarily affects taxpayers who are victims of fraudulent or dishonest tax preparers, sometimes called "ghost preparers," by limiting how long the IRS can extend its assessment window against them when the fraud was committed by the preparer rather than the taxpayer. It also affects IRS administration of disaster-related filing extensions, through the technical fix to existing law. The bill was introduced in the House in June 2026, referred to the Ways and Means Committee, and reported with an amendment in September 2026. The House passed it by voice vote on September 15, 2026, under a procedure for noncontroversial bills. It now goes to the Senate for further consideration before it could be sent to the President.
- Has H.R. 9499 become law?
- The source does not supply a confirmed lifecycle stage for H.R. 9499. Check the latest action and official source below.
- Who sponsored H.R. 9499?
- H.R. 9499 was sponsored by Rep. Malliotakis, Nicole [R-NY-11] (R-NY), with 0 cosponsors.
- What's the latest action on H.R. 9499?
- Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (16 Sep 2026).
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