3 ms·

Maybe. Or maybe a lot of people will leave refunds on the table because the software will be bad at helping people identify their deductions. Also, my wife pai

Maybe. Or maybe a lot of people will leave refunds on the table because the software will be bad at helping people identify their deductions. Also, my wife paid a joint filing online under my SSN, and the system couldn't figure that out and claimed we were in arrears. I'm not hopeful.

stetrain 3y ago
How will I know the software is properly optimizing my deductions without a 30 second animated progress bar with the words "Optimizing Deductions" flashing on screen, while also advertising to me that I could be leaving savings on the table unless I upgrade to the TurboTax Pro Ultimate package for no up-front cost* * cost of TurboTax Pro Ultimate will be deducted from your refund amount, plus interest.
- Alupis 3y ago
  Generally speaking, if you are in a position where deductions and credits matter (ie. not standard deduction), you really aught to seek a professional to review your filing before submission, or at a minimum use two different softwares to compute your taxes and look for any disagreement (in theory, they should have the same output). Either way, the $49 to use the software is trivial (under this situation) and often is only paid if you use that software to submit your taxes (meaning you can "get a second opinion" for free).
  - ghaff 3y ago
    The model is that someone with a W-2 and a 1099 or two and just taking the standard deduction should be "Yep, looks OK." If it gets more complicated than that you probably need to either spend a bunch of your own time or hire a professional.
    - nightski 3y ago
      That's basically how the services work today for that segment of citizens, and they are free.
      - stetrain 3y ago
        Well, they're supposed to be. https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/03/ftc-sues-intuit-its-deceptive-turbotax-free-filing-campaign https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/03/... https://www.nbcnews.com/business/consumer/turbo-tax-settlement-how-to-receive-payment-rcna27474 https://www.nbcnews.com/business/consumer/turbo-tax-settleme...
      - Alupis 3y ago
        It's been for many years now that eFile with IRS is free, but eFile with your State is paid. You can always choose to print out your forms and mail them though.
- nkingsy 3y ago
  * deducting turbo tax fees from your refund amount incurs a 59.95 convenience fee (hopefully they don't do this anymore. They did it to me a few years ago and wouldn't refund the charge when I didn't notice and called to cancel it).
  - stetrain 3y ago
    Then you click Cancel, followed by another 30 second animation of the progress bar going backwards while "Un-Optimizing Deductions" flashes on screen.
LeafItAlone 3y ago
A lot of these services offer a “if we can find a better refund, pay us; if not, no charge”. That model could still exist and if you are right, these business will still continue to be useful.
gamblor956 3y ago
Also, my wife paid a joint filing online under my SSN, and the system couldn't figure that out It's not surprising the system couldn't figure that out. There is no such thing as a joint-filing under a single SSN. You need to include both spouse's SSNs or ITINs on the 1040 to file jointly, and the return is treated as a "joint" return (meaning, equally by both spouses).
- lr4444lr 3y ago
  We did include both, but we either had to make an account under one of our names, or the check had a name that didn't match on another spot (it was quite a while ago). Despite the IRS having our filing records, they couldn't match it to the payment. It's really not a hard problem.
  - gamblor956 3y ago
    The check doesn't have to match either name, since names are not what the IRS uses to match payments to returns. The check simply has to have the SSN (or ITIN) of at least one of the joint filers. It's really not a hard problem. It's actually an extremely hard problem if you try to match payments by name, since there are a lot of people with the same exact name, many of whom even live in the same state or same city. Most checks don't include an address, and even those that do don't always match the address the taxpayer gave on the return. It sounds like you failed to include your SSN on the check, which means this problem was one of your own making. That being said, if you could provide proof that payment was timely sent and the check details (check #, account, etc.), the IRS can match the payment received and will void penalties and interest that were assessed.
    - lr4444lr 3y ago
      They weren't. The account had the SSN. The payment came under the other SSN. The filing was joint with both of our SSNs through the accountant. The agent I finally got on the phone after days confirmed that the problem was some mismatch between SSNs in the account, check, or filing. Of course it was cleared up, but the point is that at least one of our SSNs was on everything. That should be a trivially easy for record merging or linking.

stetrain 3y ago

How will I know the software is properly optimizing my deductions without a 30 second animated progress bar with the words "Optimizing Deductions" flashing on screen, while also advertising to me that I could be leaving savings on the table unless I upgrade to the TurboTax Pro Ultimate package for no up-front cost* * cost of TurboTax Pro Ultimate will be deducted from your refund amount, plus interest.

Alupis 3y ago
Generally speaking, if you are in a position where deductions and credits matter (ie. not standard deduction), you really aught to seek a professional to review your filing before submission, or at a minimum use two different softwares to compute your taxes and look for any disagreement (in theory, they should have the same output). Either way, the $49 to use the software is trivial (under this situation) and often is only paid if you use that software to submit your taxes (meaning you can "get a second opinion" for free).
- ghaff 3y ago
  The model is that someone with a W-2 and a 1099 or two and just taking the standard deduction should be "Yep, looks OK." If it gets more complicated than that you probably need to either spend a bunch of your own time or hire a professional.
  - nightski 3y ago
    That's basically how the services work today for that segment of citizens, and they are free.
    - stetrain 3y ago
      Well, they're supposed to be. https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/03/ftc-sues-intuit-its-deceptive-turbotax-free-filing-campaign https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/03/... https://www.nbcnews.com/business/consumer/turbo-tax-settlement-how-to-receive-payment-rcna27474 https://www.nbcnews.com/business/consumer/turbo-tax-settleme...
    - Alupis 3y ago
      It's been for many years now that eFile with IRS is free, but eFile with your State is paid. You can always choose to print out your forms and mail them though.
nkingsy 3y ago
* deducting turbo tax fees from your refund amount incurs a 59.95 convenience fee (hopefully they don't do this anymore. They did it to me a few years ago and wouldn't refund the charge when I didn't notice and called to cancel it).
- stetrain 3y ago
  Then you click Cancel, followed by another 30 second animation of the progress bar going backwards while "Un-Optimizing Deductions" flashes on screen.

LeafItAlone 3y ago

A lot of these services offer a “if we can find a better refund, pay us; if not, no charge”. That model could still exist and if you are right, these business will still continue to be useful.

gamblor956 3y ago

Also, my wife paid a joint filing online under my SSN, and the system couldn't figure that out It's not surprising the system couldn't figure that out. There is no such thing as a joint-filing under a single SSN. You need to include both spouse's SSNs or ITINs on the 1040 to file jointly, and the return is treated as a "joint" return (meaning, equally by both spouses).

lr4444lr 3y ago
We did include both, but we either had to make an account under one of our names, or the check had a name that didn't match on another spot (it was quite a while ago). Despite the IRS having our filing records, they couldn't match it to the payment. It's really not a hard problem.
- gamblor956 3y ago
  The check doesn't have to match either name, since names are not what the IRS uses to match payments to returns. The check simply has to have the SSN (or ITIN) of at least one of the joint filers. It's really not a hard problem. It's actually an extremely hard problem if you try to match payments by name, since there are a lot of people with the same exact name, many of whom even live in the same state or same city. Most checks don't include an address, and even those that do don't always match the address the taxpayer gave on the return. It sounds like you failed to include your SSN on the check, which means this problem was one of your own making. That being said, if you could provide proof that payment was timely sent and the check details (check #, account, etc.), the IRS can match the payment received and will void penalties and interest that were assessed.
  - lr4444lr 3y ago
    They weren't. The account had the SSN. The payment came under the other SSN. The filing was joint with both of our SSNs through the accountant. The agent I finally got on the phone after days confirmed that the problem was some mismatch between SSNs in the account, check, or filing. Of course it was cleared up, but the point is that at least one of our SSNs was on everything. That should be a trivially easy for record merging or linking.