Tax, audit and risk credentials
Enrolled agent exam cost: the SEE, enrollment and the PTIN
An enrolled agent (EA) is a tax practitioner authorized by the IRS to represent taxpayers. The IRS exam, the Special Enrollment Examination (SEE), has three parts at $317 each; with enrollment and one year of the tax preparer ID (PTIN), the first-try total is about $1,110. No education-hour rule applies.
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Enrolled agent: cost of the SEE and enrollment
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Enrolled agent fees, first-try price only, prep not included
$1,110
| IRS exam: $317 × 3 | $951 |
| Enrollment with the IRS | $140 |
| Tax preparer ID, $18.75 a year × 1 | $19 |
| Your review course and books | not included: type it above |
The exam fee already includes the IRS’s own share, $66 a part ($198 for 3 parts). The IRS publishes no pass rate, so retakes are the ones you add. Passed parts stay valid for 3 years; apply for enrollment within 1 year of the last pass.
An enrolled agent is a tax practitioner authorized by the IRS to represent taxpayers before it. The usual route is the Special Enrollment Examination (SEE), three parts covering individuals, businesses, and representation, practices and procedures. Each part costs $317, according to the IRS FAQ updated on April 9, 2026. Of that, the IRS’s own user fee is $66, down from $99 from April 20, 2026, under a final rule published in the Federal Register; the rest goes to the test vendor, PSI Services since March 1, 2026. Passing all three parts at the first try costs $951. Enrollment then costs $140 on Form 23, and every tax preparer needs a preparer tax identification number (PTIN), $18.75 a year. Passed parts carry over for 3 years. The IRS publishes no SEE pass rate that this site has read, so retakes are yours to enter.
Fees read and totals checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
Where the $317 goes
The SEE fee has two parts. The IRS user fee, $66 per part since April 20, 2026 (Federal Register, document 2026-07681), pays for the IRS’s side of the program. The rest, $251, is the vendor’s charge for running the exam. The vendor changed to PSI Services on March 1, 2026; the total per part listed in the IRS FAQ is $317.
Totals by number of attempts
| SEE parts sat | Exam fees | IRS share, already in exam fees | Total with enrollment and one year of PTIN |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3, no retake | $951 | $198 | $1,110 |
| 4 (1 retake) | $1,268 | $264 | $1,427 |
| 5 (2 retakes) | $1,585 | $330 | $1,744 |
| 6 (3 retakes) | $1,902 | $396 | $2,061 |
Three attempts is the minimum: one per part. The first row is the calculator’s starting figure. Every extra row is a retake. Because the IRS does not publish SEE pass rates that we could read, the calculator does not assume any; add the retakes you want to budget for.
After the exam
- Enrollment. $140 on Form 23, within 1 year of passing the last part, followed by a tax compliance check (IRS, become an enrolled agent).
- PTIN. $18.75 a year, renewed each year (IRS, PTIN requirements).
- Continuing education. 72 hours every 3 years, at least 16 a year, including ethics (IRS, maintain your status).
The two are not the same: an enrolled agent’s authority is federal and limited to tax, while a CPA is licensed by a state for accounting and audit work too. In fees, the enrolled agent route is lighter. Three SEE parts cost $951, close to four CPA sections at the first try, but without state board fees, education-hour rules or the lower pass rates of the CPA exam.
The line you type
Review courses for the SEE are sold by many providers; this site sells none and loads no price. Type your budget once. If you expect to buy a separate course for a part you retake, include it in the amount.
Planning the three parts
The parts can be taken in any order and paid one at a time, so the cost is spread over the months you study. The constraint is the carryover: each passed part stays valid for 3 years, so all three have to be passed within that span, counting from the first pass. A candidate who passes Part 1 and then stalls on Part 2 for more than 3 years loses the first pass and pays $317 to sit it again. After the last pass, enrollment must be requested within 1 year. Spreading three parts over a year leaves room for one or two retakes inside the window; spreading them over longer leaves less.
The fee change of April 2026 also matters for anyone comparing older guides: an article that quotes the SEE price before April 20, 2026 counts the IRS user fee at $99 rather than $66.