I got IRS e-file authorization as a solo bootstrapped founder. Here's what I'm building with it.
Toozi is bookkeeping and tax filing entirely by text — built for barbers, braiders, and side hustlers who will never open accounting software.
After 20 years in corporate tax, I kept watching the same people get failed by every tool: barbers, braiders, lawn care operators, side hustlers. They don't sit at desks. They never open QuickBooks. They track nothing all year, then panic in April.
So I built Toozi... bookkeeping and tax filing entirely by text. You text "made $340 from braids" or "drove 12 miles to a client" and it keeps your books across every hustle you run, then files your federal and state returns directly with the IRS. I hold the e-file authorization myself (EFIN, ETIN, ERO), so filing is included... no tax-season upsell like Keeper or TurboTax.
Where I'm at: solo, bootstrapped, no investors. IRS MeF production approval, which is the hard credential moat. A handful of paying customers, first ones retained. Currently running an extension-deadline campaign since October 15 is the last filing date for US extension filers.
What I've learned so far: cold email is dead for this audience, trust is the entire game in fintech, and repetition beats cleverness. I post the same one-sentence description every day and it outperforms everything creative I've tried.
Happy to answer anything about the tax and compliance side of building fintech solo. The licensing path is genuinely underdocumented.
