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Enrolled Agent Exam Review Questions Explained
Remember high school, when every teacher-- from Home Ec to Chemistry-- told you the SAT was the most important examination you would ever take in your entire life? Remember preparing for the test, poring over hundreds of vocabulary words on homemade flashcards, so much that you started saying things like, "Muliebrity is to masculine as sesquipedalianism is to abbreviate" in everyday conversation? Remember freaking out when you first saw your too-low practice score, thinking you were destined for a career in fast food?
And remember how ticked off you were when you realized you could've taken the ACT instead, or even skipped testing altogether, and nobody would have cared?
The truth of the matter is, there are plenty of more important tests in life, depending on what you want to do-- the bar exam for future lawyers; the residency exam for future surgeons; the paternity test on the Jerry Springer show for possible future dads. For would-be enrolled agents, that very important test is the Enrolled Agent Examination.
The EA exam, officially known as the Special Enrollment Examination (SEE), is a three-part test administered by Prometric on behalf of the IRS. Each part is a separate 100 question exam, which you'll have three and a half hours to complete, and a passing score on each part of the exam is required before the IRS will admit an individual to practice. The exam period commences each year on May 1, continuing through February 28 of the following year (meaning that the period beginning on May 1, 2010 will include questions based on the 2009 tax year).
So, what type of questions should you expect to see in the enrolled agent exams? The enrolled agent exam questions are in multiple-choice format, and the three parts break down as follows:
PART 1 - INDIVIDUALS
Section 1: Preliminary Work and Tax Payer Data (15%)
Section 2: Income and Assets (25%)
Section 3: Deductions and Credits (25%)
Section 4: Taxation and Advice (20%)
Section 5: Specialized Returns for Individuals (15%)
PART 2 - BUSINESSES
Section 1: Businesses (45%)
Section 2: Business Financial Information (40%)
Section 3: Specialized Returns and Tax Payers (15%)
PART 3 - REPRESENTATION, PRACTICES AND PROCEDURES
Section 1: Practices and Procedures (33%)
Section 2: Representation before the IRS (25%)
Section 3: Specific Types of Representation (25%)
Section 4: Completion of the Filing Process (17%)
(Quick! Raise your hand if you mentally calculated that last one, just to make sure it came out to 100%!)
Now what does it take to pass? Remember the "curve" grading system from tenth grade biology (and that stinkin' genius kid who always set the curve impossibly high)? Well, the SEE is similarly scored on a kind of curve. Scaled scores are determined by ranking your exam results against others taking the exam, on a scale ranging between 40 and 130. A score of 105 is the minimum required to pass, and test results are available immediately following the exam. Those who pass are informed, but do not receive a score. Those who fail, on the other hand, receive their score-- along with a diagnostic report indicating areas of weakness. If a candidate fails, he may retake each part of the exam up to four times each testing period, and must pass all three parts within two years.
If you're hoping to schedule a time to take the SEE, you'll need to obtain a Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN) by completing a W-7P form by mail, fax, or online. (The online method is quickest and provides the PTIN instantaneously.) Once you have your PTIN, you may register for the exam online on the Promertic website. SEE Exams are administered via computer at nearly 300 Prometric testing centers across the U.S. and internationally. And, rest assured, if you're hoping to become an enrolled agent, this test IS important. You should dedicate a fair amount time for enrolled agent exam review if you want to pass. One of the most effective methods is to take as many enrolled agent exam sample questions as you can get your hands on.
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