Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using the HLin CPA Tax Document Portal (“Portal”), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service (“Terms”) and our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated herein by reference. If you do not agree to these Terms, do not access or use the Portal. These Terms constitute a binding legal agreement between you and Harry C. Lin, CPA — A Professional Corporation (“HLin CPA,” “we,” “us,” or “our”).

2. Eligibility and Authorized Use

The Portal is provided exclusively to individuals and entities who are current clients of HLin CPA and have been granted access by an authorized staff member. Access is non-transferable. You agree to use the Portal only for the purpose of securely submitting and managing tax documents in connection with services provided by HLin CPA, and in compliance with all applicable federal, state, and local laws.

3. Your Documents and Data

You retain ownership of all documents you upload to the Portal. By uploading documents, you grant HLin CPA a limited, non-exclusive license to access, store, and process those documents solely for the purpose of providing tax preparation, filing, and advisory services to you. This license terminates upon completion of the applicable retention period described in Section 4.

You represent and warrant that you have the legal right to submit all documents you upload and that such documents do not infringe any third-party rights.

4. Document Retention

Uploaded documents are retained for seven (7) years from the date of upload, consistent with IRS Publication 552 record-keeping requirements, regardless of any deletion request you submit. This retention obligation is a legal requirement and applies even if your engagement with HLin CPA ends. See our Privacy Policy for full details on data retention and your rights.

Documents subject to a legal hold (e.g., due to an IRS audit, litigation, or regulatory inquiry) may be retained beyond the standard retention period until the hold is lifted.

5. Automated Document Analysis

With your separate consent at the time of upload, documents may be processed by automated AI-powered data extraction to assist staff in reviewing your submissions. This processing is optional. See our Privacy Policy Section 3 for the full §301.7216 disclosure and subprocessor details.

6. Security Responsibilities

HLin CPA implements technical, administrative, and physical safeguards to protect your information, including encryption at rest and in transit, role-based access controls, multi-factor authentication for staff, malware scanning of all uploaded files, and immutable audit logging of all document access.

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials and for all activity occurring under your account. You must notify us immediately at security@hlincpa.com if you suspect unauthorized access to your account.

7. Prohibited Conduct

You agree not to:

• Upload documents belonging to third parties without their explicit authorization
• Attempt to access, modify, or delete other users' data or accounts
• Use the Portal to upload malicious files, malware, or any content intended to harm Portal systems or other users
• Attempt to circumvent security controls, rate limits, or access restrictions
• Use the Portal in any manner that violates federal or state law, including IRS regulations governing the handling of taxpayer information
• Reverse-engineer, decompile, or extract the source code of the Portal

8. Termination and Access Revocation

HLin CPA reserves the right to suspend or terminate your access to the Portal at any time, with or without notice, for any violation of these Terms or at the end of your client engagement. Termination does not affect our obligations to retain your documents for the required retention period under Section 4.

9. Disclaimer of Warranties

The Portal is provided “as is” and “as available” without warranty of any kind. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, HLin CPA expressly disclaims all warranties, express or implied, including but not limited to implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. HLin CPA does not warrant that the Portal will be uninterrupted, error-free, or free of security vulnerabilities. Your use of the Portal is at your sole risk.

10. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable California law, in no event shall HLin CPA, its officers, employees, or agents be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising out of or related to your use of the Portal, even if advised of the possibility of such damages. HLin CPA's total cumulative liability for any claims arising out of or related to these Terms or the Portal shall not exceed the greater of (a) the total fees paid by you to HLin CPA in the twelve (12) months preceding the claim, or (b) one hundred dollars ($100). Some jurisdictions do not allow certain exclusions or limitations of liability, so the above may not apply to you in full.

11. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to its conflict-of-law provisions. Any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms or your use of the Portal shall be resolved exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Los Angeles County, California, and you consent to personal jurisdiction in those courts.

12. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. We will notify you of material changes via email or a prominent notice within the Portal at least 30 days before the changes take effect. Continued use of the Portal after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

13. Contact

For questions about these Terms, contact us at: