IRS Expands Business Tax Account Access, Adds Frank J. Bisignano to Designated Officials

(UNITED STATES) — The Internal Revenue Service expanded its online Business Tax Account on April 6, 2026, opening the platform to partnerships, federal, state and local governments, Indian tribal governments, and tax-exempt organizations.

The move adds those groups to a system that previously served sole proprietors, S corporations, and C corporations. It broadens online access for entities seeking to handle tax matters without relying on paper filings or phone calls.

Frank J. Bisignano, chief executive officer of the IRS, said the wider rollout would extend digital access to a far larger group of organizations. “By opening the Business Tax Account to partnerships, tax-exempts and other organizations, we’re giving millions more entities secure, convenient access to their tax information. Digital access will reduce the burden on these taxpayers because they no longer will be limited to paper and phone interactions to perform simple tasks with the IRS.”

The expansion builds on the platform’s 2023 launch. IRS officials said it is part of service improvements backed by Inflation Reduction Act funding, with further enhancements planned.

Under the broadened system, eligible users can review tax balances, make payments, including Federal Tax Deposits, and check payment history through the online account. They can also download select digital notices and see the business name and address the IRS has on file.

Account holders can view eligible transcripts in English and Spanish. Those transcripts include payroll, income, tax return, account, and entity records.

The platform also lets eligible users request tax compliance checks and certificates. In addition, it supports approval or rejection of transcript requests through the Income Verification Express Service, or IVES.

Other tools center on day-to-day account management. Users can store banking information, delegate third-party access, and manage payment schedules through the online system.

Access depends on the type of organization and the role of the user. The IRS said Designated Officials can use the account on behalf of eligible entities, with examples including presidents, CEOs, CFOs, treasurers, and LLC managing members.

For government entities, the IRS said eligible Designated Officials include elected officials or Directors of Taxation. Those Directors of Taxation must be current W-2 employees.

That structure places formal account authority in the hands of people the IRS identifies as authorized representatives of an organization. The approach also separates broader management authority from more limited access that may apply in some entity categories.

Partnerships that file Form 1065 fall under a tiered model. Designated Officials in those partnerships receive full access, while individual partners have limited access if they have an SSN or ITIN and a Schedule K-1 for 2012–2023.

Tax-exempt organizations and government entities use the system through Designated Officials for comprehensive management. That gives those organizations a route to handle account functions online through authorized representatives rather than through a wider pool of users.

The IRS framed the expansion as a service change aimed at routine tax administration. Bisignano’s statement focused on “secure, convenient access” and a reduction in burdens tied to “paper and phone interactions.”

For organizations newly brought into the system, the practical effect is a single online account that combines several account functions already available to earlier business users. Those functions range from payments and transcript access to compliance requests and record review.

Federal, state and local governments now join the same online structure that serves business filers. Indian tribal governments are also part of the new eligibility group announced on April 6, 2026.

The update also reaches tax-exempt organizations, which often need account access for compliance records, notices and payment history. Partnerships make up another large share of the new users, though their access rules differ depending on whether the user is a Designated Official or an individual partner.

By drawing those groups into the Business Tax Account, the IRS is extending a platform that had already been available to sole proprietors, S corporations and C corporations. That earlier eligibility formed the starting point for the latest expansion.

The new access rules also define who can act for an entity inside the account. Presidents, chief executive officers, chief financial officers, treasurers and LLC managing members are among the examples the IRS gave for business organizations.

Government bodies follow a narrower standard tied to public office or tax administration roles. Elected officials qualify, and Directors of Taxation qualify when they are current W-2 employees.

Through the account, eligible users can move from viewing information to taking action. They can check balances, pay what is owed, review what has already been paid and manage scheduled payments in the same system.

Record access also forms a large part of the platform. Users can retrieve select digital notices and review transcripts covering several categories of tax information without requesting them through paper channels.

The transcript feature includes English and Spanish options. The IRS listed payroll, income, tax return, account and entity transcripts among the records available through the account.

Compliance-related functions are included as well. Organizations can request tax compliance checks and certificates through the online platform.

The IRS also built in IVES-related controls. Eligible users can approve or reject transcript requests submitted through the Income Verification Express Service.

Another feature lets organizations keep banking information on file for account use. The platform also supports delegation, allowing third-party access where the account holder authorizes it.

That delegation option sits alongside the role-based structure for Designated Officials. Together, those tools give organizations a way to separate internal authority from outside access for selected tasks.

Partnerships face the most explicitly tiered arrangement described by the IRS. A Designated Official can manage the account fully, while an individual partner’s access depends on identification and filing records tied to Schedule K-1 for 2012–2023.

The IRS announcement did not describe the partnership tier as temporary. It presented the arrangement as part of the account design now in place for Form 1065 filers.

Tax-exempt groups and government entities, by contrast, access the Business Tax Account through Designated Officials for comprehensive management. That gives those entities a defined path into the system without the partnership-style distinction between full and limited user roles described for individual partners.

The online account sits within a broader IRS push to expand digital services. Officials linked the latest rollout to service improvements funded by the Inflation Reduction Act and to a longer development path that began when the platform launched in 2023.

Further enhancements are planned, the IRS said. The agency did not outline those additions in the announcement, but it placed the new rollout as one step in a continuing expansion of online account features.

Organizations that want to create an account can do so through the IRS at Business Tax Account. The page is the entry point for setting up access under the expanded eligibility rules.

The agency’s language around the update centered on access, convenience and reducing routine administrative burdens. Bisignano’s statement tied that goal directly to widening eligibility for partnerships, tax-exempt groups and other organizations.

The Business Tax Account now covers a wider slice of the organizational taxpayers that deal with the IRS. For those newly admitted, the system offers one online place to view balances, make payments, retrieve records, manage access and request compliance documents without being “limited to paper and phone interactions to perform simple tasks with the IRS.”