What is a Certifying Acceptance Agent?
Short answer
A Certifying Acceptance Agent (CAA) is authorized by IRS agreement to help applicants get an ITIN and to certify their identity documents so originals stay home.
What it is
Acceptance Agents help people complete Form W-7. A Certifying Acceptance Agent goes further: under its agreement with the IRS it reviews the applicant's original identity documents, certifies copies with a Certificate of Accuracy, and submits the application. For the primary and secondary applicants the CAA can certify passports and other listed documents; for dependents, the documents it may certify are more limited.
CAAs complete IRS training, undergo a suitability check and renew their agreement. The IRS lists them by location.
Why it matters for a tax firm
Without a CAA, an ITIN applicant mails a passport to the IRS and waits weeks without it. A CAA on staff is a service advantage in immigrant communities and a reason clients choose a firm.
How XyloDocs handles it
XyloDocs' co-founder Sergio Ponce Veliz is an IRS Certifying Acceptance Agent, and the product's bilingual intake was first built for his ITIN clients.
Related terms
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Sources
Questions about Certifying Acceptance Agent
What is the difference between an Acceptance Agent and a Certifying Acceptance Agent?
Both help with Form W-7. Only a Certifying Acceptance Agent may certify the applicant's identity documents, so the originals do not have to be sent to the IRS.
How does a firm become a CAA?
By applying to the IRS Acceptance Agent Program, completing the required training, passing a suitability check and signing an agreement with the IRS.
Last reviewed: October 16, 2026. This glossary explains terms; it is not legal or tax advice. Check the cited source for the current rule.
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