General Information for Software Developers and Transmitters- e-file for Tax Professionals
- Individual e-file for Tax Professionals
- Software for Tax Professionals
- e-file Forms and Publications
- News & Updates
- e-Programs Customer Service
- Individual e-file Frequently Asked Questions
- Individual e-file Calendar
- e-file Enrollment Requirements
- Paperless Schedules K-1
- Business e-file
- Business e-file Frequently Asked Questions
- 100/100S e-file Calendar
- 565/568 e-file Calendar
- Software Developers/Transmitters
To participate in the California e-file Program as a software developer or transmitter, you must:
- Be currently enrolled in the IRS e-file Program.
- Have an approved electronic filer identification number (EFIN) and
electronic transmitter identification number (ETIN).
Note: FTB no longer requires separate enrollment- Get more information
- Pass our yearly Participant Acceptance Testing System (PATS).
Be sure to update any information changes with the IRS. We will automatically receive any updates you make to your IRS account.
Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) Program
The purpose of the MOA Program is to establish written agreements between the FTB and those commercial vendors who request a presence on the FTB Website. Based on eligibility and approval, the FTB will provide hyperlinks to the Websites of certain commercial vendors from the FTB Website. The FTB Website will also include commercial vendor information as a public service to taxpayers and tax professionals. If you are interested in participating in the FTB's MOA Program, please contact our MOA Program Coordinator at (916) 845-3798.
Planned system maintenance schedule
We reserve Tuesday mornings from 5:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. for scheduled system maintenance. We plan to consolidate all non-critical maintenance activity into this window. If you receive a transmission error during this time, please try again after 6:00 a.m. We will notify you via email whenever our system is down outside the normal maintenance window for longer than one hour. All times listed are Pacific Standard Time.
Individual e-file Technical Information
The following publications provide technical information needed to participate in our Individual e-file program.
FTB Pub. 1346, 2007 e-file Specifications and Record Layouts for California Individual Income Tax Returns. Contains the data communication procedures, transmission formats, character sets, validation criteria, error codes, and record layouts for e-filing California individual income tax returns.
FTB Pub. 1436, 2007 Test Package for e-file of California Individual Income Tax Returns—Participant Acceptance Testing System (PATS). Contains instructions and test cases for software developers and transmitters. After you pass PATS, we will send you a year-specific acceptance letter acknowledging that your software is approved for e-filing California individual returns and your password to use that year.
Business e-file Technical Information
The following publications and links provide information and technical guidance for software developers and transmitters developing software for California Business e-file returns.
FTB Pub. 1346B, 2007 Business e-file Guide for Software Developers and Transmitters. Contains the technical information needed to participate in our business e-file program. It outlines the data communication procedures, transmission formats, Business Rules, data types, and XML Schemas for e-filing California business tax returns.
FTB Pub. 1436B, 2007 Test Package for e-file of California Business Tax Returns. Contains instructions and test cases for software developers and transmitters.
Current Valid FTB XML Schemas - 100/100S/100W
Current Valid FTB XML Schemas - 565/568
Current Valid IRS 1120 XML Schemas
Current Valid IRS 1065 XML Schemas