How do EFINs work at a VITA site ?

An EFIN (Electronic FiIing Identification Number) is a number provided by the IRS to identify the site from which Electronic Tax Returns are filed.  One EFIN is generally used for transmitting returns prepared from all the computers in a site and sometimes for returns prepared in multiple sites.  

However, each  EFIN should use only ONE transmitting computer for sending the Tax Returns to the IRS through UTS.   Though there is no technical restriction to transmitting from multiple computers for the same EFIN, the practical logistics of managing it may cause difficulties.   UTS/IRS use the EFIN number to send messages, acknowledgements and accept/reject messages when a transmitting computer connects to their server, and then deletes the message from the mailbox for the EFIN.   If two  computers A & B transmit using the same EFIN number, acknowledgements and messages for E-files transmitted from computer A may go to computer B when computer B connects.  If the same person transmits from Computer A and Computer B, this is not a problem.  Since Computer B may not know about the files transmitted from Computer A, the returns may show as never being acknowledged on Computer A.  However, if different people transmit from the computers A and B, the transmitter from computer A may wonder why the acknowledgements were never received, while the transmitter on computer B may get acknowledgements and rejections for E-files not sent from Computer B.

On the other hand, one computer can be used to transmit E-Files for multiple EFINs.  This requires that the EFIN be changed between transmissions.

An electronically filed tax return has a DCN (Document Control Number) that is assigned when the E-File if first created for the return.  Subsequent re-creations of the E-files for that return will retain that DCN.  The DCN includes the EFIN and an additional Sequence Number  (SN) to uniquely identify a tax return.  An EFIN is assigned to each installaiotn of TaxWise, and identifies the site where the return was prepared.  However, if the preparer EFIN is different from the transmitting EFIN, the E-File is rejected.  To avoid headaches, and as a practical matter, use the same EFIN for preparing and transmitting a return; otherwise, the EFIN for the E-File needs to be changed on the Transmitting computer.

The DCN is assigned when the E-File is created.   To avoid duplicate SNs, there are several solutions:

1. Create E-Files only on the transmitting computer.   This means that the preparer does all the checking, gets the return ready to file, then transfer the return to the transmitting computer by doing a backup and restore.  The problem is that the 8453 generated does not have a DCN number on the signed copy, and the transmitter will subsequently have to fill it in by hand for copy sent to the IRS.
2. Assign different SN starting numbers to each preparing computer, and create E-files on the preparing computer, then transfer the E-file to the transmitting computer.  The starting SN for each computer should be assigned by the transmitter for the EFIN.  A good policy is to assign starting SNs 100 numbers apart for a preparing computer that is used once a week,
3. Set up a Networked TaxWise system in which the transmitting computer is also the TaxWise server computer and all returns are stored directly on that computer.  Whenever a new E-File is created, the next number in the sequence is generated automatically.

Note that E-files do not need to have sequential SN numbers; they only need to be unique.

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