8979 Instructions to Form 8979

Instructions for Form 8979

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

(Rev. December 2023)

For use with Form 8979 (December 2018)
Partnership Representative Revocation, Designation, and Resignation Form
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code
unless otherwise noted.

Future Developments

For the latest information about developments related to
Form 8979 and its instructions, such as legislation
enacted after they were published, go to IRS.gov/
Form8979.

General Instructions
Purpose of Form

Form 8979 is used by the partnership to revoke a
partnership representative or designated individual, or to
designate a partnership representative when no
partnership representative is in effect. It is also used by
the partnership representative or designated individual to
resign.

A partnership must designate a partnership
representative on the partnership's return filed for the
partnership tax year. At any time of the partnership tax
year, there can be only one designated partnership
representative. The designation of a partnership
representative remains in effect until the designation is
terminated by a valid revocation, a valid resignation, or a
determination by the IRS that the designation is not in
effect.

Partnership Representative

A partnership may designate any person, including an
entity or itself, to be the partnership representative. If the
partnership designates an entity as the partnership
representative (entity partnership representative), the
partnership is required to appoint an individual
(designated individual) as the sole individual to act on
behalf of the entity partnership representative.
Both the partnership representative and designated
individual must have substantial presence in the United
States.
Note. A partnership that is subject to the centralized
partnership audit regime of the Bipartisan Budget Act of
2015 is a “BBA partnership.” All partnerships with tax
years beginning after 2017 are BBA partnerships unless
they make a valid election out of the centralized
partnership audit regime. If a newly designated
partnership representative for a BBA partnership wants to
appoint a person as power of attorney to represent the
partnership representative in its capacity as partnership
representative for the BBA partnership, it must submit a
Form 2848. This must be done even if that person was
previously appointed power of attorney by a prior
partnership representative of the same partnership and
year. See the Instructions for Form 2848.
Nov 22, 2023

Substantial presence in the United States. A person
has substantial presence in the United States if the
person:
1. Makes themselves available to meet in person with
the IRS in the United States at a reasonable time and
place as determined by the IRS in accordance with
Regulations section 301.7605-1;
2. Has a U.S. taxpayer identification number (TIN);
and
3. Has a U.S. street address and a telephone number
with a U.S. area code.

Who May File
Partnerships. A partnership (through an authorized
person for the tax year for which the partnership
representative designation is in effect) may submit Form
8979 to revoke the current designation or appointment
and designate a successor partnership representative or
appoint a successor designated individual, or both. Also, if
no partnership representative designation is in effect,
including a failure to designate a partnership
representative on the originally filed Form 1065, the
partnership (through an authorized person for the tax
year) may submit Form 8979 to designate a partnership
representative.
If the Form 8979 is submitted with an administrative
adjustment request (AAR), the designation is treated as
occurring prior to the filing of the AAR and effective on the
date the AAR is filed. See the AAR bullet information
under When To File, later.
Authorized person. An authorized person is a person
who was a partner at any time during the partnership tax
year to which the revocation or designation relates.
Partnership representatives or designated individuals. A partnership representative or designated
individual may submit Form 8979 to resign.

When To File

!

Form 8979 should only be filed as discussed
below.

CAUTION

Form 8979 may be submitted by a partnership in the
following situations.

• Directly to the current IRS employee point of contact
(for example, revenue agent, appeals officer, counsel)
after the issuance of either Letter 2205-D, Initial Contact to
Schedule Appointment-Partnership Returns; or Letter
5893, Notice of Administrative Proceeding-Partnership; or
Letter 5893-A, Notice of Administrative
Proceeding-Partnership Representative;

Cat. No. 69667V

• With an administrative adjustment request (AAR) filed
for a reason other than only making a revocation, prior to
the issuance of Letter 2205-D, Letter 5893, or Letter
5893-A;
• With a Form 8985, Pass-Through Statement —
Transmittal/Partnership Adjustment Tracking Report,
submitted by a pass-through partnership that has not
elected out of the Bipartisan Budget Act (BBA). Note. See
the Instructions for Form 8985 for how to submit Form
8979 in response to an exam, compared to in response to
an AAR filing;
• With Form 8988, Election for Alternative to Payment of
the Imputed Underpayment—IRC Section 6226;
• With Form 921-M, Consent Fixing Period of Limitation
To Make Partnership Adjustments (if submitting Form
8979, attach it to the statute extension and return it to the
IRS point of contact). Note. If after submitting Form 921-M
and Form 8979 to your IRS employee point of contact (for
example, Rev. Proc. 92-29 Coordinator, Revenue Agent
Reviewer, etc.), you receive Letter 2205-D, Letter 5893, or
Letter 5893-A from a different IRS employee point of
contact (for example, revenue agent, appeals officer,
counsel), provide a copy of the previously submitted Form
8979 to the second IRS employee point of contact; or
• Form 8979 may also be submitted any time a BBA
partnership makes a request of the IRS that requires the
partnership to extend a statute. Examples include, but are
not limited to, private letter ruling requests pertaining to
late elections to self-certify a qualified opportunity fund
and elections to postpone determination as to whether the
presumption applies that an activity is engaged in for
profit.

Specific Instructions
Partnership Information

Enter the partnership’s name, address, employer
identification number (EIN), and the tax year ending date
for the tax year to which the revocation, designation, or
resignation will apply. If the post office doesn’t deliver mail
to the street address and the partnership has a P.O. box,
show the box number instead.
If you are filing this form with an AAR, check the box
immediately above Part I of the Form 8979.

Part I. Reason for Filing
Line 1. Revocation by the Partnership
Check the box on line 1 if you are revoking the designation
of the current partnership representative or appointment of
the current designated individual and designating a
successor partnership representative and/or appointing a
successor designated individual.
If the successor designation is for an entity
partnership representative and the partnership
CAUTION does not appoint a designated individual, then the
revocation is invalid and the current partnership
representative designation remains in effect.

!

Line 1a. Revoking the Entity Partnership
Representative
Check box 1a if you are revoking the current entity
partnership representative. Then, check either box i or ii to
designate a successor partnership representative.

When submitted by a partnership representative or a
designated individual (that is, for purposes of making a
resignation), Form 8979 should only be submitted directly
to the current IRS employee point of contact after the
issuance of Letter 2205-D, Letter 5893, or Letter 5893-A.

!

CAUTION

Note. If the IRS notifies the partnership that there is no
designation in effect, the partnership has 30 days from the
date the IRS mails the notification to submit Form 8979. If
the partnership fails to designate a partnership
representative (and appoint a designated individual, if
applicable), the IRS will designate one.

Designated individual status automatically
terminates on the date that the entity partnership
representative designation is no longer in effect.

Line 1b. Revoking the Individual Partnership
Representative
Check box 1b if you are revoking the current individual
partnership representative. Then, check either box i or ii to
designate a successor partnership representative.

Where To File

If Form 8979 is submitted with an AAR, see the AAR
instructions for information about where to file. Both the
form and instructions are available at IRS.gov.

Line 1c. Revoking the Designated Individual and
Appointing a Successor Designated Individual

Otherwise, mail or fax Form 8979 to the attention of the
current IRS employee point of contact (for example,
revenue agent, appeals officer, counsel).

Check box 1c if you are revoking the current designated
individual and appointing a successor designated
individual.

Note. Address information provided on Form 8979 will
not change your last known address with the IRS.

Line 2. Resignation of the Partnership
Representative

Use Form 8822, Change of Address, to change

Check the box on line 2 if you are resigning as a
partnership representative. Then, check box a or b, as
applicable.

TIP your home address or Form 8822-B, Change of

Address or Responsible Party—Business, to
change your business address. Both forms are available
at IRS.gov.

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Instructions for Form 8979 (Dec. 2023)

partnership representative’s name, U.S. mailing address,
TIN, and a telephone number with a U.S. area code.

Line 3. Resignation of the Designated Individual
Check the box on line 3 if you are resigning as the
designated individual.

Part IV. Signature Section
Section A. Revocation by the Partnership

Line 4. Designation of the Partnership
Representative

Complete this section if you are revoking the partnership
representative or designated individual and making a
successor designation or appointment. Enter the
information as requested, including the name and title of
the authorized person. You must sign and date the form.

Check the box on line 4 if no partnership representative is
in effect and the partnership is designating a partnership
representative. Then, check box a or b, as applicable.

Example 1. ABC Corporation is an authorized person
signing Form 8979 to make a revocation. Jane Doe is the
president of ABC Corporation and is authorized under
applicable state law to legally bind the corporation. Jane
should do the following.
• Sign and date.
• Enter “ABC Corporation” as the authorized person.
• Enter “Jane Doe,” followed by “President,” which is her
title with respect to ABC Corporation.

A partnership representative designation is not in effect
if there was a failure to designate a partnership
representative on the original Form 1065, a resignation
has occurred, or if the IRS has determined that no
designation is in effect.

Part II. Revocations or Resignations
Section A. Revocation or Resignation of an Entity
Partnership Representative or Designated
Individual

Example 2. John Smith is an authorized person
signing Form 8979. He should sign and date on the first
line and enter his name on the second line. The third line
should remain blank because John is an individual and
not an entity.

Complete this section if you are revoking the entity
partnership representative or designated individual or you
are resigning as the entity partnership representative or
designated individual. Enter both the entity partnership
representative and designated individual’s name, mailing
address, TIN and the telephone number.

Example 3. GEF, LLC, is an authorized person
signing Form 8979 to revoke the partnership
representative. Mary Smith is authorized under applicable
state law to legally bind GEF, LLC. Mary should do the
following.
• Sign and date.
• Enter “GEF, LLC” as the authorized person.
• Enter “Mary Smith,” followed by her title with respect to
GEF, LLC.

Section B. Revocation or Resignation of an
Individual Partnership Representative
Complete this section if you are revoking the individual
partnership representative or you are resigning as the
individual partnership representative. Enter the name,
mailing address, TIN, and the telephone number.

Section B. Resignation of the Entity Partnership
Representative

Part III. Designations and/or Appointment

Complete this section if you, the designated individual, are
making a resignation on behalf of the partnership
representative. Enter the information as requested,
including the name of the entity partnership representative
and designated individual. You must sign and date the
form.

See Partnership Representative, earlier, for more
information on who can be a partnership representative.

Section A. Designation of Entity Partnership
Representative and/or Appointment of a
Designated Individual

Section C. Resignation of the Individual
Partnership Representative

Complete this section if you are designating an entity
partnership representative and/or appointing a designated
individual. Enter both the entity partnership representative
and designated individual’s name, U.S. mailing address,
TIN, and a telephone number with a U.S. area code.

Complete this section if you are resigning as the individual
partnership representative. Enter your name, sign, and
date the form.

Note. Both the partnership representative and
designated individual must have substantial presence in
the United States. See Substantial presence in the United
States, earlier, for more information.

Section D. Resignation of the Designated
Individual
Complete this section if you are resigning as the
designated individual. Enter your name, sign, and date the
form.

Section B. Designation of an Individual
Partnership Representative
Complete this section if you are designating an individual
partnership representative. Enter the individual
Instructions for Form 8979 (Dec. 2023)

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Reduction Act unless the form displays a valid OMB
control number. Books or records relating to a form or its
instructions must be retained as long as their contents
may become material in the administration of any Internal
Revenue law. Generally, tax returns and return information
are confidential, as required by section 6103.

Section E. Designation of the Partnership
Representative
Complete this section if you are an authorized person
designating a partnership representative (and appointing
a designated individual, if applicable) because there is no
partnership representative designation in effect. Enter the
information as requested, including the name and title of
the authorized person. You must sign and date the form.
See the earlier examples in Part IV.

The time needed to complete and file this form will vary
depending on individual circumstances. The estimated
burden for business taxpayers filing this form is approved
under OMB control number 1545-0123 and is included in
the estimates shown in the instructions for their business
income tax return.

Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the
information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue
laws of the United States. You are required to give us the
information. We need it to ensure that you are complying
with these laws and to allow us to figure and collect the
right amount of tax.
You are not required to provide the information
requested on a form that is subject to the Paperwork

If you have comments concerning the accuracy of
these time estimates or suggestions for making this form
simpler, we would be happy to hear from you. See the
instructions for the tax return with which this form is filed.

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Instructions for Form 8979 (Dec. 2023)