The history of how the IRS chose the credential Enrolled Agent

Believe it or not, this title goes back to the time after the Civil War. When Union troops swept through an area, they confiscated supplies, material, and livestock from local residents. The owners of these items got a receipt to be redeemed through the United States Treasury at a later date.

After the war, many individuals set themselves up as "agents" to take the receipts to the Treasury Department in Washington and demand payment on behalf of the original property owners. Obviously, not every person who performed this task was honest and forthright. the Treasury Department recognized a need to regulate and control these agents. And thus, the designation of Enrolled Agent was born to regulate and control those persons who were duly qualified to act as an Agent for the property owner, with rules of practice to be followed.

Over 100 years later, Enrolled Agents still represent taxpayers' interest before the United States Treasury and we are still bound by the rules of practice set up by the Department.

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