Nina Olson, a former IRS official and executive director of the Center for Taxpayer Rights, objects to an IRS draft that would ask tax filers about citizenship and work authorization. The agency’s proposed 2026 Form 1040 includes the question for the upcoming filing season.
Background: IRS Adds Citizenship Question to Draft 2026 Form 1040 for First Time
“The IRS doesn't need this information to administer the tax law. The only reason you have that attestation is to deter people,” Olson said.
The draft surfaced in September 2026. It asks whether the filer and, if filing jointly, the spouse are citizens, nationals or lawfully authorized to work in the United States.
The draft asks spouses to answer separate status questions
Free toolDS-160 Form Filling Online Helper ToolThe proposed question offers “Yes” and “No” boxes, with each spouse answering separately. It asks about status at the time the return is filed.
A second item in the filing-status section addresses a different issue: whether a filer wants to treat a nonresident alien or dual status alien spouse as a U.S. resident for the entire tax year. That question concerns tax residency treatment, not work authorization.
A separate draft Schedule 3-A, titled Federal Public Benefit, would ask people claiming refundable credits to confirm they are U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals or “qualified aliens.” The draft says people who do not meet that test would lose access to the credits covered by the schedule.
“Qualified alien” has a specific meaning in federal benefits law under 8 U.S.C. § 1641. The category is narrower than people who are simply authorized to work.
The credit schedule uses a separate, narrower eligibility standard
Julie Baron, a global mobility partner at Vialto Partners, said some refundable credits are limited to citizens. She also pointed to the role of dependents’ Social Security numbers in determining eligibility for some Child Tax Credits.
“It doesn't necessarily require citizenship,” Baron said. She explained that children’s Social Security numbers can affect access to certain credits, and that the new question could help identify claims by people who are not eligible.
The administration has framed its broader effort as preventing undocumented immigrants from receiving federal tax benefits. But the proposed restrictions could also affect Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients and immigrants on work visas, among others.
Tax preparers could face incomplete-return and penalty risks
William R. Stromsem, CPA, J.D., of George Washington University School of Business, outlined potential consequences for filers and preparers. Taxpayers would make the attestation under possible perjury penalties; leaving a box blank could make a return incomplete and prompt IRS follow-up or late-filing penalties.
People who qualify as resident aliens under the substantial presence test may not know how to answer a work-authorization question. Stromsem said meeting that tax residency test does not itself authorize someone to work. Work authorization would generally require a Permanent Resident Card, or Green Card.
A CPA could not sign an incomplete return if a client declined to answer. Stromsem said signing could expose the preparer to a Section 6694(a) penalty for failing to follow IRS rules and regulations.
Preparers also need a good-faith basis for information they submit and may have to ask further questions. Stromsem cited Circular 230 Sections 10.22 and 10.34, SSTS No. 3, and Treasury Regulations for Section 6694.
Senators say the question could undermine voluntary filing
Eleven Senate Democrats have asked IRS CEO Frank Bisignano to remove the checkbox from the final version. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Ron Wyden of Oregon and Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico led the group. Wyden is the Senate Finance Committee’s ranking member, and Luján serves on the committee.
In their letter to the IRS, the senators argue that nonresidents already file nonresident returns and that the IRS checks work authorization against Social Security Administration data. They warn the new question could discourage people from filing and weaken voluntary compliance.
The other signers were Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.).
The lawmakers cited Yale Budget Lab estimates that “weaponizing tax filing” could cost the federal government $313 billion over the next decade. They also warned that the change could put at risk the $66 billion unauthorized workers pay in taxes each year. Wyden’s office separately estimated a potential $300 billion loss in tax receipts.
Earlier data sharing has heightened fears about disclosure
Last year, the IRS shared addresses it held for roughly 47,000 people with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Federal law restricts access to tax-return information, and several courts have blocked bulk data sharing with the immigration agency.
The D.C. Court of Appeals upheld a lower-court order blocking the administration’s attempt to obtain taxpayer information through the IRS. The senators’ letter referred to private data from more than 42,000 taxpayers being handed to ICE.
Manish Daftari, a partner at Vialto Partners, said the earlier episode contributed to fears that information on a return could reach immigration officials. He said the concern could discourage people without work authorization from filing. Visa holders who have work authorization face less risk in answering, he said, though immigration policies and proposals have added pressure.
Daftari also cited the administration’s proposed $100,000 H-1B visa fee. “All of it together is creating pressure, and being an immigrant is becoming more onerous,” he said.
The senators also want an overdue tax-gap estimate
The lawmakers asked the IRS to publish an updated estimate of the tax gap, the difference between taxes owed and collected. The agency’s last report, issued in October 2024, put the gap for tax year 2022 at nearly $700 billion per year.
The senators said that estimate omitted potentially large amounts tied to corporate income tax, flow-through entities, foreign activities and digital assets. An update covering tax year 2023 was scheduled for fall 2025. They suggested the agency had deliberately left out the largest components of the earlier estimate.
Census officials have also considered tax records for population counts
In early September 2026, the Census Bureau proposed changing its definition of “usual residence” and relying on tax records. The 2020 definition described it as “the place where they live and sleep most of the time.” The proposal would exclude immigrants other than lawful permanent residents from the population count used to determine congressional representation and Electoral College votes, and end collection of race and ethnicity data.
Cristina Tello-Trillo, a former senior economist at the Census Bureau and now chief economist at the Center for American Progress, said tax returns are a main source for administrative records used in census work. She also said those records are not generally good enough by themselves for a census count. Only 43% of U.S. addresses have an administrative-record roster, she said.
As of October 21, 2026, the citizenship question remained in the draft and was being considered for the upcoming filing season.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute tax advice. Consult a qualified tax professional or CPA about your specific situation.
