§ 301.6011-14 Required use of electronic form or other machine-readable form for material advisor disclosure statements.
(a) Material advisor disclosure statements required electronically or in other machine-readable form. (1) Any material advisor required to file a return on Form 8918, Material Advisor Disclosure Statement, under § 301.6111-3(a) of this chapter must file its return electronically or in other machine-readable form, in accordance with revenue procedures, publications, forms, instructions, or other guidance, including postings on the IRS.gov website, if the material advisor is required by the Internal Revenue Code or regulations to file at least 10 returns (as determined under paragraph (d)(4) of this section) during the calendar year.
(2) The Commissioner may direct the type of electronic or other machine-readable form through revenue procedures, publications, forms, instructions, or other guidance, including postings on the IRS.gov website. Returns filed electronically or in other machine-readable form must be made in accordance with applicable revenue procedures, publications, forms, instructions, or other guidance.
(b) Exclusions from electronic-filing requirements—(1) Waivers. The Commissioner may grant waivers of the requirements of this section in cases of undue hardship. One principal factor in determining hardship will be the amount, if any, by which the cost of filing the return electronically in accordance with this section exceeds the cost of filing the return on paper. A request for a waiver must be made in accordance with applicable IRS revenue procedures, publications, forms, instructions, or other guidance, including postings to the IRS.gov website. The waiver request will specify the type of filing (that is, a return required under § 301.6111-3(a) of this chapter) and the period to which it applies.
(2) Exemptions. The Commissioner may provide exemptions from the requirements of this section to promote effective and efficient tax administration. A submission claiming an exemption must be made in accordance with applicable IRS revenue procedures, publications, forms, instructions, or other guidance, including postings to the IRS.gov website.
(3) Additional Exclusion. If the IRS's systems do not support electronic filing, taxpayers will not be required to file electronically.
(c) Failure to file. If a material advisor fails to file Form 8918 electronically or in other machine-readable form when required to do so by this section, the material advisor has failed to file the return. See section 6707 for the penalty for failure to file the return.
(d) Meaning of terms. The following definitions apply for purposes of this section:
(1) Magnetic media or electronic form. The terms magnetic media or electronic form mean any media or form permitted under applicable regulations, revenue procedures, or publications. These generally include electronic filing, as well as magnetic tape, tape cartridge, diskette, and other media specifically permitted under the applicable regulations, procedures, publications, forms, instructions, or other guidance.
(2) Machine-readable form. The term machine-readable form means any machine-readable form specifically permitted under applicable regulations, procedures, publications, forms, instructions, or other guidance.
(3) Material advisor disclosure statement. The term material advisor disclosure statement means a Form 8918, Material Advisor Disclosure Statement, along with all other related forms, schedules, and statements that are required to be attached to the Form 8918, including amended material advisor disclosure statements.
(4) Calculating the number of returns. (i) Except as provided in paragraph (d)(4)(ii) of this section, for purposes of this section, a material advisor is required to file at least 10 returns if during the calendar year the material advisor is required to file at least 10 returns of any type, including information returns (for example, Forms W-2 and Forms 1099), income tax returns, employment tax returns, and excise tax returns.
(ii) Form 8918 is not taken into account in calculating whether a material advisor is required to file at least 10 returns during a calendar year.
(e) Example. The following example illustrates the provisions of this section:
(1) During the calendar year ending December 31, 2024, Material Advisor X was required to file one Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, and 10 Forms 1099-NEC, Nonemployee Compensation. Because Material Advisor X is required to file 11 returns during the calendar year 2024, X is required to file its Forms 8918 electronically or in other machine-readable form, in accordance with revenue procedures, publications, forms, instructions, or other guidance, including postings on the IRS.gov website, during the calendar year ending December 31, 2024.
(2) [Reserved]
(f) Applicability date. The rules of this section apply to Material Advisor Disclosure Statements required to be filed after December 31, 2023.
[T.D. 9972, 88 FR 11772, Feb. 23, 2023]