US HB6956

Electronically prepared tax returns filed on paper must include a scannable barcode that converts the return data to electronic format when scanned by the IRS

IRS must use optical character recognition (OCR) technology to transcribe paper tax returns that were not prepared electronically and paper correspondence received by the agency

Treasury Secretary may waive the barcode and OCR requirements if the technology proves slower or less reliable than manual transcription, but must report such determinations to Congress within 30 days

Individual income tax returns subject to requirements beginning January 1 of the first calendar year more than 180 days after enactment; estate and gift tax returns after 24 months; all other returns and correspondence after 12 months