The present invention is a system and method for preparing a tax return using electronically distributed tax return data. Electronically distributed tax return data (such as W-2 data or 1099 data) that is stored at a third party's computer system for a taxpayer is accessed to prepare the tax return. The location of the electronically distributed tax return data is provided to a tax preparer that accesses the electronic data and prepares the tax return. The taxpayer provides authorization for the tax preparer to access the electronically distributed tax return data stored at the third party system. After the current tax year, the tax preparer checks the availability of the electronically distributed tax return data. When the electronically distributed tax return data is determined to be available, the tax preparer accesses it and prepares the tax return.