What you can build with the Remitian API
An overview of what the Remitian Public API does, how its data fits together, and the two ways to integrate it.
What it is
The Remitian Public API lets your platform manage tax payments on behalf of accounting firms and their clients. You can sync firms and taxpayers from your system, schedule and track tax payments, import tax forms, and embed Remitian flows inside your own product.
When you need it
- You run a platform for accounting or tax firms and want payments to happen without users leaving your product.
- You want firm, taxpayer and payment records in Remitian to stay in step with your own system.
- You are scoping an integration and need a map of the pieces before reading the full docs.
How it works
Every record hangs off the one above it, so you create them in this order:
- Firm. The accounting or tax firm. Everything else belongs to a firm, so it comes first.
- Firm users and taxpayers. Firm users are the people who manage the firm's clients. Taxpayers are the clients, each linked to a firm.
- Tax entities. The individual or business that owes tax, held under a taxpayer.
- Tax accounts. One per tax authority (for example federal or state) for each tax entity.
- Tax payments. Scheduled against a tax account and funded by a bank account. Bank accounts can be US accounts on the ACH network or Canadian accounts on the EFT network.
The use case guides in the full docs include a diagram for each step.
You then choose an integration path:
| Path | What you build |
|---|---|
| Embedded widgets (recommended) | Use the JavaScript SDK to open Remitian flows, such as Pay with Remitian and Pay All, as a modal inside your app. Your backend syncs data through the API and issues a passwordless token. |
| Fully headless | Build every screen yourself and drive the whole flow through the API endpoints. |
Common questions
What do the main terms mean?
Firm: an accounting or tax firm. Firm user: a person at the firm who manages taxpayers. Taxpayer: a container for a client's tax entities and tax accounts. Tax entity: an individual (SSN) or business (EIN). Tax account: a tax entity's obligation with one tax authority. Tax authority: the government body that receives the payment, identified by a code such as US_IRS. External ID: your own system's ID for a record, stored in the externalId field so you can match records without keeping Remitian IDs.
Which tax authorities are covered?
The docs list the IRS plus a set of US state and District of Columbia authorities. See the tax accounts use case guide for the current list.
In Canada, the API runs on a separate Canadian instance with its own Developer Portal, and Canadian data stays in Canada. Canadian tax accounts use the Canada Revenue Agency (CA_CRA) and Revenu Québec (CA_QC).
Should we use widgets or build headless?
The docs recommend the widgets for embedding Remitian in your app. A headless build gives you full control of the interface, but you own every screen and step.
Can we use our own IDs?
Yes. Firms, firm users, taxpayers, tax entities, tax accounts, bank accounts and tax payments all accept an externalId.