Form guide
Plain-English IRS form guide for EA exam preparation. Verify current IRS instructions before testing.
Tax Year Covered: 2026. Last Reviewed: May 30, 2026. Review Status: Version 1.0 Draft. Source Priority: IRS primary, PSI for exam administration.
Tax rules, limits, forms, fees, and exam logistics can change. Always verify current tax-year limits, exam fees, scheduling rules, and identification requirements with official IRS and PSI sources before testing.
Schedule F is used for farm profit or loss. This guide is written for EA exam preparation, not for preparing a real taxpayer filing.
Taxpayers, businesses, fiduciaries, or representatives use this form when the facts require farm profit or loss.
This form is most relevant to Part 2. The SEE may test the form name, purpose, timing, authority, or relationship to another tax issue.
• Taxpayer or entity identification
• Tax period or filing year
• Income, deduction, authorization, collection, or procedural information
• Signature, declaration, or representative information where applicable
• Choosing the form because it sounds familiar rather than because it fits the facts
• Ignoring the tax year or tax period
• Confusing information reporting with representation authority
• Using outdated instructions
The exam may place a familiar form beside a similar but incorrect form. Always identify what the taxpayer or representative is trying to do.
Read the form name first, then ask: who files it, what issue does it address, what tax year or period does it cover, and what authority or reporting result does it create?
• Filing Requirements and Filing Status
• Business Income, Self-Employment, and Rentals
• Business Entities and Tax Fundamentals
• Business Income, Business Deductions, Accounting Methods, and Accounting Periods
• Business Credits, Retirement Plans, Exempt Organizations, and Specialized Taxpayers