@KONGAFINN wrote:
Why does turbo tax use Santa Barbara tax products group to process refunds? My daughter, Kelly, used Turbo Tax Deluxe and chose to pay her fees out of her federal refund of $1307. Santa Barbara and Turbo tax fees totaled $60. My daughter didn't like paying so much to process her return but did so to expedite processing of same, with her return accepted by the IRS on 2/11 but her refund not deposited into her local bank account until today. However, instead of receiving $1,247 ($1,307 less $60 in fees) my daughter only received $645.75, $601.25 less than what she was due to receive. Does Turbo Tax condone this kind of dishonest business relationship? If not, why partner with a dishonest bank? Appreciate if Turbo Tax would make my daughter whole, and no longer partner with Santa Barbara in processing refunds for clients. Thank you. Steve Finn
Almost all tax software companies use Santa Barbara Tax Group as they are about the only bank that processes tax refunds for paying fees.
Personally I would never pay for a short term loan when Credit card or pre-paid Credit card costs nothing.
The "convenience fee" for paying from your refund is not a TurboTax fee but a separate bank fee for making an unsecured loan to you to pay the TurboTax fees from your refund. That fee is from the Santa Barbara Tax Products Group (SBTPG)
Unsecured loan rates can be high because if you do not actually get the refund (the IRS denies it or there is a tax offset levied) then it can be difficult or impossible for the bank to get it's money back so the high fees reflect the risk involved.
Other payment methods such as a pre-paid credit card are usually much cheaper and does not delay the refund by being sent to the SBTPG bank first.
Contact the SPTPG this way
https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/3129412-why-is-my-federal-refund-on-hold-with-santa-barbara-tax-pr...
**Disclaimer: This post is for discussion purposes only and is NOT tax advice. The author takes no responsibility for the accuracy of any information in this post.**
