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How to access previous tax returns? I filed with turbotax in 2018 and when I go to the document section it just says "Get PLUS benefits." Also, no live help is awful.

Do they really not let you speak with a real person for help unless you pay for the current year? This is mind numbing.
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How to access previous tax returns? I filed with turbotax in 2018 and when I go to the document section it just says "Get PLUS benefits." Also, no live help is awful.

It's possible you haven't proceeded far enough, or you could have more than one account.   You have to at least minimally start a 2023 return, if you haven't already, to get to the section to download past returns.   See the info below, and I'll also tell you how to look for multiple accounts, if necessary.

 

First, I'll assume your prior tax returns were prepared in Online TurboTax.  Any return prepared in desktop software will not be in an online account.   And you have to be sure you are in the right account.  Many people end up with multiple accounts without realizing it. Here's how one would normally find past-year online returns and how to troubleshoot for multiple accounts (User IDs) if necessary.

 

Sign in to your account.   What you see next depends on whether or not you have already started a 2023 return in that account.   If your left column menu is minimal, and does not have a Tax Home tab displayed, that would imply you have not started preparing a 2023 return in that account.  If you haven't yet started a return, it will start asking you some questions.  Answer those preliminary questions (you don't actually have to prepare a return), and then when far enough into the process the left menu column will change, and you'll see a Tax Home option.  Do not click the Documents tab.  Instead, click on Tax Home.  Then on the Tax Home screen, scroll way down to the bottom to "Your Tax Returns & Documents".  Expand that section and choose the past year you want.   If your past returns are not shown there, then you likely have multiple accounts and signed into the wrong one.  I'll tell you below how to troubleshoot.

 

On the other hand, if you log in, and if you've already started a 2023 return in that account, then it may already open at the Tax Home.  If not, click the Tax Home tab in the left column menu and follow the instructions that I gave above to find and retrieve the past returns.  Do not use the Documents tab.   Go to the Tax Home then scroll down to "Your Tax Returns & Documents."   If the past returns are not there, see the steps below.

 

You can have up to 5 accounts that use the same email address for notification purposes.  A User ID may be an email address, but it doesn't have to be.  It might be only part of an email address, or it can be anything at all.

 

To get a list of your User IDs, reset password, and recover account access, etc., you can use the tool at the link below.  When using the Account Recovery tool, try using your phone number first if you can still access it.   After that, if necessary, then run the tool on your email address(es) you can access.

NOTE: Before running the account recovery tool below, log out of all Intuit accounts including this user forum, or you might end up in a loop.  Then clear your browser Internet cache, close your browser, then reopen it, and go to the link below.  You may wish to copy this link so you can paste it into the new browser session.

https://myturbotax.intuit.com/account-recovery

If still no luck after running that on your phone number you can still access and email address(es) that you can access,  here's another method:

Go back to the tool again, but this time leave the data field blank, scroll down a bit, then choose the small blue link that says "Try something else", and it will look you up by other parameters.

How to access previous tax returns? I filed with turbotax in 2018 and when I go to the document section it just says "Get PLUS benefits." Also, no live help is awful.

In 2018 if you filed for free you need to purchase Plus benefits to view that return.  Click on the link and pay for the benefits and then you will be able to view your 2018 return.

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