can you take payment from my refund

[xmasbaby0]

https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/charges-and-fees/help/why-can-t-i-deduct-my-turbotax-fees-from-my-...

If your refund is enough to cover your TurboTax fees PLUS the extra “refund processing” fee of $40 ($45 in CA) and your forms are ready then when you are in the FILE section you can choose to have your fees deducted from your federal refund by a third party bank, who will take out your fees and send you the rest of your refund after the IRS issues the refund. 

Please make note that if your refund takes too long to arrive (IRS delays, etc.) then you will also be agreeing that the TurboTax fees can be extracted from your bank account even before your refund is issued by the IRS.  This comes as an unpleasant shock to many people every year.  

 If you can possibly pay your fees upfront using a debit or credit card, it will save you that extra fee and even more importantly, the possible aggravation and delays that are often the result of poor handling/poor customer service by that third party bank.  We see way too many instances where refunds are delayed for months when users choose refund processing. There have been lots of complaints; there are a number of things that can go wrong when you use refund processing.  I suggest avoiding that situation if at all possible.  

And....you can never pay state tax due from a federal refund, so do not expect that.   The state tax due has to be paid directly to your state.

What is Refund Processing Service?

How can I see my TurboTax  fees?   

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/intuit-account-billing/review-fees-turbo...

[Dhackler]

I chose this option and some 3rd party company took half of our return. Why is that? Is that even legal???

[xmasbaby0]

@Dhackler We do not know how much "half" of your refund was.   Did you check to see the amount that was actually issued by the IRS?  What does the IRS refund site show?

You need your filing status, your Social Security number and the exact amount  (line 35a of your 2024 Form 1040) of your federal refund to track your Federal refund:   

https://www.irs.gov/refunds

Sometimes the IRS reduces your refund for various reasons like child support, back taxes or mistakes they found.   If that is not it, then take the amount that the IRS says they issued and subtract the amount for your TurboTax fees and the refund processing fee you agreed to (it will be $40 or $45) ---that is how much you should have received from the third party bank.

Santa Barbara Tax Products Group, LLC  (SBTPG) is the bank that handles the Refund Processing Service when you choose to have your TurboTax fees deducted from your refund. This option also has an additional charge from the bank that processes the transaction. 

You can contact them SBTPG, toll-free, at 1-877-908-7228 or go to their secure website www.sbtpg.com 

How can I see my TurboTax  fees?   

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/intuit-account-billing/review-fees-turbo...

[Dhackler]

We were supposed to get $900ish after back taxes taken out. We got $375.