expired Posted by DesertGardener | Staff • Jan 24, 2024
Jan 24, 2024 4:37 PM
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expired Posted by DesertGardener | Staff • Jan 24, 2024
Jan 24, 2024 4:37 PM
Intuit TurboTax Deluxe 2023: Federal & State (PC/Mac Digital Download)
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That said, there are a number of free filing services endorsed by the IRS that you can use for free. These can be great if you have relatively simple finances. List is available from the IRS here: https://www.irs.gov/filing/free-file-do-your-federal-taxes-for-free [irs.gov]
Always use caution when providing your financial information to an online service provider. It is recommended to use only trusted sources, such as IRS.gov, for these types of services.
Note also that this does not address your state filing requirements. Check with your state for local options, as some states do offer free services.
NY made it illegal to charge for e-filing because it obviously takes more work for them to process paper. I'm shocked they're the only ones.
That said, many states offer free e-file directly on their own department of revenue website. Here is a blog post with a list of those states:
https://thefinancebuff.
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Cash app taxes does e-filing and it's free but I wouldn't say they're any better than the other free programs. They're missing a lot of forms, and definitely don't support almost everything. Anyone with complicated taxes - like business income, multi-state filings, and K-1 income - should really be working with a professional, regardless.
Cheaping out on tax preparation when you've got complex income is just asking for trouble.
I have multiple jobs (1 solo), bonds, investments, roths, etc... and use Free Tax USA with no issues. Have used it several years now and compared to other "premium" ones with no difference.
My mom used TT last year and is still trying to get last years taxes fixed from their mess. So paying does not mean it works better.
My mom used TT last year and is still trying to get last years taxes fixed from their mess. So paying does not mean it works better.
I stand by my comment: If you have a complex tax situation, consider a professional, such as a CPA or EA (Enrolled Agent) over a software solution.
last year i used TT prem, and because i wanted to compare, also tried tax slayer and tax act, since they're free. tax slayer and tax act had differences due to them not handling some things correctly.
i think if you just work and have no investments, tax slayer and tax act are probably a great choice.
there is a separate question of whether deluxe is as good as premier, prem is advertised as better for stocks/investments, but some say that deluxe does it just as good. unless someone actually buys both and compares, i dont know how we'd ever know.
for me the extra cost of prem is justified because it claims to be better for stocks and id happily lose the extra money to avoid an audit.
This article covers all the wrongdoing
The fact that you can do your taxes through desktop software with turbotax and mail it in, rather than submitting online to turbotax is even better in terms of security.
I stand by my comment: If you have a complex tax situation, consider a professional, such as a CPA or EA (Enrolled Agent) over a software solution.
I have multiple business degrees and still use the Free Tax USA. I compared it to others years ago, TT and other free ones, and it works just fine for my "complex" return.
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Note, Intuit sneakily requires Premier ONLINE version to include brokerage/stock importing, but the deluxe is all you need for the desktop Pc/Mac version. Intuit is slime.
This was pretty much the only reason I was getting TT Premier so if Deluxe does the same, I'll gladly use that instead.
The fact that you can do your taxes through desktop software with turbotax and mail it in, rather than submitting online to turbotax is even better in terms of security.
Reputable tax filing websites are SSL encrypted and send data directly to the IRS upon filing. The only time data exists on the preparer's server is when it's in a draft state.
When you request to review filings, that's an API pulling it from IRS servers and generating a nicely wrapped up PDF. Again, entirely SSL encrypted.
How much encryption does sending your return by mail provide?
And the desktop software? That's still web based. You aren't getting a fully offline experience in these recent versions, you're just installing a back channel for Intuit to feed you ads. Besides, storing everything locally in a file format that only TurboTax can open is severely outdated and open to ransomware attacks or unforseen data loss.
Moreover, TurboTax HAS had data breaches. So not only are they doing reprehensible things to prevent filing from being 100% free to file and far less complicated (their reach into US tax law is mind blowing on levels that would make Raytheon blush), they can't even stand behind their services being better or more secure.
The only people who have anything good to say about TurboTax are Intuit shills, people who went to H&R Block and found out what a scam that was (they are to tax preparers what GreatClips is to haircuts — total amateurs), or the grossly misinformed.
Intuit is the reason we still have to pay so much for tax software.
They want it complicated so you think you need their software and services to avoid audit or "maximize" your return.
If it were up to the IRS, you would either get a refund or a bill at the end of the year and it would then be up to you to itemize your deductions to challenge what they already automatically calculate and what more often than not is accurate.
You know how this is easily proven? Most people end up taking the standard deduction over itemization and they get their return back insanely quickly.
It's simply not complicated enough for a majority of Americans in order for the IRS to waste resources finding more hoops for you to jump through.
If you really believe the IRS finds it more efficient to be told what they already know rather than simply tell you right off the bat and not have to deal with over 95% of us, you're drinking the obstructionist Kool aid.
https://www.irs.gov/e-file-provid...able-forms
That is also good if you do taxes on the side and run out of "free Federal e-files" on your other software (like TurboTax or H&R Block). I've used it before where I used H&R Block to do someone's taxes, then once complete print it out and key it into the Free File Fillable Forms for unlimited free e-files.
This was pretty much the only reason I was getting TT Premier so if Deluxe does the same, I'll gladly use that instead.
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Reputable tax filing websites are SSL encrypted and send data directly to the IRS upon filing. The only time data exists on the preparer's server is when it's in a draft state.
When you request to review filings, that's an API pulling it from IRS servers and generating a nicely wrapped up PDF. Again, entirely SSL encrypted.
How much encryption does sending your return by mail provide?
And the desktop software? That's still web based. You aren't getting a fully offline experience in these recent versions, you're just installing a back channel for Intuit to feed you ads. Besides, storing everything locally in a file format that only TurboTax can open is severely outdated and open to ransomware attacks or unforseen data loss.
Moreover, TurboTax HAS had data breaches. So not only are they doing reprehensible things to prevent filing from being 100% free to file and far less complicated (their reach into US tax law is mind blowing on levels that would make Raytheon blush), they can't even stand behind their services being better or more secure.
The only people who have anything good to say about TurboTax are Intuit shills, people who went to H&R Block and found out what a scam that was (they are to tax preparers what GreatClips is to haircuts — total amateurs), or the grossly misinformed.
On the flip side, online tax software does store your data on their server while you're working on it as well as after in case you need an amendment. I don't think they pull back from the IRS via an API, but I don't have a reference to prove it (nor do you). Data is probably encrypted at rest and encrypted in transit, but the details of the encryption method at rest and whether employees could access that data is unknown. I'm sure the privacy polices may clarify some of this. We also know that Intuit has had data breaches.
They want it complicated so you think you need their software and services to avoid audit or "maximize" your return.
If it were up to the IRS, you would either get a refund or a bill at the end of the year and it would then be up to you to itemize your deductions to challenge what they already automatically calculate and what more often than not is accurate.
You know how this is easily proven? Most people end up taking the standard deduction over itemization and they get their return back insanely quickly.
It's simply not complicated enough for a majority of Americans in order for the IRS to waste resources finding more hoops for you to jump through.
If you really believe the IRS finds it more efficient to be told what they already know rather than simply tell you right off the bat and not have to deal with over 95% of us, you're drinking the obstructionist Kool aid.
The IRS clearly doesn't have us do the most efficient thing. And neither does Intuit. If they did, we could pull all the data the IRS has already directly into the existing tax software. They get a copy of all W2, 1099, etc forms already - why do I have to reenter all this data? To waste my time and risk a transcription error? The IRS wastes time on this too. Intuit lobbying of the federal government is what prevents this from happening.