AFTR Course Explained: 6-Hour Refresher & Exam Guide
If you prepare federal tax returns for compensation but are not a CPA, Enrolled Agent, or attorney, the Annual Federal Tax Refresher (AFTR) course is likely on your radar. It is the centerpiece of the IRS Annual Filing Season Program (AFSP) for non-exempt preparers, and completing it correctly determines whether you earn an AFSP Record of Completion for the coming filing season. This guide explains who needs the AFTR, how the 6-hour course and its timed exam work, when it is available, and how it fits into the larger 18-hour AFSP requirement.
What is the AFTR course?
The Annual Federal Tax Refresher is a 6-hour continuing education course designed by the IRS to bring return preparers up to date on federal individual tax law before each filing season. Its content follows an IRS-published outline that is refreshed every year, covering three domains: new tax law and recent updates, general review of individual return topics, and ethical practices and procedural responsibilities.
The AFTR is not simply a reading assignment. It is paired with a required comprehension test, and both the course and the test must be completed within a defined window each year. Because the outline changes annually, an AFTR course completed in a prior year does not carry forward.
Who needs the AFTR?
The AFTR is aimed at non-exempt tax return preparers who hold a valid PTIN and want to participate in the voluntary Annual Filing Season Program. Typically these are unenrolled preparers who do not hold a professional credential and have not passed a recognized national or state competency exam.
Participation in the AFSP is optional, but there are practical reasons to complete it. Preparers who earn the AFSP Record of Completion are listed in the IRS public Directory of Federal Tax Return Preparers and retain limited representation rights before the IRS for clients whose returns they prepared and signed. Preparers without the Record of Completion have no such representation rights for returns prepared after 2015.
Who is exempt from the AFTR?
Certain preparers are considered exempt and do not need to take the AFTR to earn the AFSP Record of Completion. Exempt preparers generally include those who have passed recognized tests such as the Registered Tax Return Preparer test, participants in certain state-based preparer programs (for example, California CTEC-registered preparers, Oregon, and Maryland preparers), and those who have passed comparable national or state examinations. Exempt preparers skip the AFTR entirely but must still complete continuing education, as described below.
The 6 hours plus a 100-question timed test
The AFTR has two parts that work together:
The 6-hour course
The instructional portion consists of 6 hours of continuing education built around the current-year IRS outline. It emphasizes recent legislative and inflation-adjusted changes, a refresher on core Form 1040 topics, and preparer ethics and due diligence.
The comprehension test
To receive credit, you must pass a comprehension test containing a minimum of 100 questions. Key parameters set by the IRS include:
- Passing score: 70% or higher.
- Time limit: the test must be completed in three continuous hours or less.
- Format: the exam is timed and, at approved providers, is taken online.
Providers may allow you to retake the test if you do not pass on the first attempt, but each attempt must still be finished within the three-hour window. Only after you pass does the 6 hours of AFTR credit count toward your AFSP total.
When is the AFTR available?
The AFTR course and its test are available for a limited season each year. The course opens on June 1 and must be completed, including passing the test, by December 31. All AFSP requirements, not just the AFTR, must be finished before midnight on December 31 for the Record of Completion to apply to the next filing season. Because the window closes at year end and does not reopen until June, procrastinating into late December leaves little room to retake the test if needed.
How the AFTR fits into the 18-hour AFSP total
For a non-exempt preparer, the AFSP Record of Completion requires 18 hours of IRS-approved continuing education, broken down as follows:
- 6 hours — Annual Federal Tax Refresher course (with the passed comprehension test).
- 10 hours — federal tax law topics.
- 2 hours — ethics.
Exempt preparers, who skip the AFTR, generally need 15 hours instead: 3 hours of federal tax law updates, 10 hours of other federal tax law, and 2 hours of ethics. In both cases the credits must come from IRS-approved continuing education providers and be reported by the provider to the IRS.
Getting started
If you are a non-exempt preparer, the practical path is to renew your PTIN, complete your 10 hours of federal tax law and 2 hours of ethics, and finish the 6-hour AFTR with its test during the June 1 to December 31 window. Working through the requirement earlier in the season gives you a cushion for retakes and reduces year-end stress. To see how the pieces fit together, review our AFSP and PTIN preparer CPE requirements overview, browse tax CE courses, and check current pricing.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to take the AFTR every year?
Yes. If you are a non-exempt preparer seeking the AFSP Record of Completion, the AFTR must be completed each year because the IRS outline and tax law content are updated annually. A prior-year AFTR does not satisfy the current year.
What score do I need to pass the AFTR test?
You need 70% or higher on the comprehension test, which contains at least 100 questions and must be completed within three continuous hours.
I am an exempt preparer. Do I still need continuing education?
Yes. Exempt preparers skip the 6-hour AFTR but still need continuing education—generally 15 hours including federal tax law, updates, and ethics—to earn the AFSP Record of Completion. See our CPE requirements page and what counts as CPE for details.
Is the AFSP mandatory?
No. The Annual Filing Season Program is voluntary. However, completing it lets you appear in the IRS public preparer directory and preserves limited representation rights for returns you prepare and sign. Explore available courses in our shop.
Last reviewed 2026-07-17. Confirm current rules with the IRS, CTEC, or your state board.
