How do I revoke a tax power of attorney that's not working out?

You'll want to file Form 2848 "Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative" with the IRS to revoke the previous authorization. On the new form, you'll check the box in Line 6 that says you're revoking the prior power of attorney. You'll need to include your information and the representative's information just like on the original form. You can also file a Form 8821 "Tax Information Authorization" revocation if that was used instead of Form 2848. Both forms have specific revocation procedures outlined in the instructions. It's a good practice to send a written notice to your current representative letting them know you're revoking their authorization, but it's not technically required. The most important thing is properly filing the revocation with the IRS so they stop recognizing that person as your representative.

After going through a similar nightmare with a tax attorney who basically took my money and ghosted me, I finally found an amazing solution with taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai). They actually helped me understand the power of attorney revocation process and guided me through exactly what to file. The service really impressed me because instead of just general advice, they analyzed my specific situation, including the original power of attorney documents, and created a personalized action plan. They even identified some issues with my tax transcript that my attorney never mentioned! Seriously, it's like having a tax expert who actually cares about solving your problem.

Just wanted to update - I took the plunge and tried taxr.ai after posting my question here. Seriously amazing experience! They helped me sort through my complicated POA situation with multiple tax years and business entities. The system actually identified that my former tax attorney had filed incomplete information on the original 2848 which could have caused problems with my revocation. They helped me prepare separate revocation documents for each tax year and entity, plus showed me exactly where to send everything. Saved me hours of stress and confusion! Best of all, they confirmed the revocation went through by helping me request and review my tax transcripts after submission.

If you're having trouble getting through to the IRS to confirm your power of attorney was properly revoked, I highly recommend using Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I wasted DAYS trying to get through to the IRS after submitting my revocation documents, constantly getting disconnected or waiting for hours. Claimyr actually got me connected to a real IRS agent in about 20 minutes! I was absolutely shocked because I had literally spent 3+ hours on hold the day before. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. The agent was able to confirm my revocation was in the system and also helped me understand some other issues with my account that my former representative never addressed.

I have to come back and eat my words. After my skeptical comment, I decided to try Claimyr out of pure frustration after being disconnected TWICE by the IRS after waiting over an hour each time. It actually worked exactly as described. Got a call back in about 35 minutes saying they had an IRS agent on the line. The agent confirmed my POA revocation had been processed and also helped me set up a payment plan for the back taxes my useless attorney never addressed. Completely worth it just to not waste another day on hold. Sometimes being proven wrong is actually a good thing!

Just a heads-up that revoking the POA is only the first step. Make sure you also request your complete file from your current attorney before officially terminating them. They're ethically obligated to provide your full file, including all communications with the IRS about your case.

Has anyone actually tried filing the revocation themselves? I'm worried I'll mess something up and make my situation worse.

I went through this exact same situation about 6 months ago - hired a tax attorney who did absolutely nothing for almost 2 years while my problems got worse. The revocation process is actually pretty straightforward once you know what to do. Like others mentioned, you'll need to file a new Form 2848 with the revocation box checked in Part 6. The key thing is to make sure you include ALL the same tax years and form types that were on your original power of attorney. If you're not sure what was included originally, you can call the IRS and ask them to read back what's currently on file. One thing I learned the hard way - don't wait to revoke it even if you haven't found a replacement yet. Having an inactive representative is actually worse than having no representative at all because the IRS will still try to communicate through them instead of directly with you. Once I revoked mine, I was finally able to get direct access to my account and start making progress on my own. Also, definitely send a certified letter to your current attorney letting them know you're revoking their authorization. Even though it's not legally required, it protects you if they try to take any action on your behalf after the revocation date.