No, you do not have to complete the federal tax return before filing for an extension. However, if you have taxes owed on the federal tax return, those taxes have to be paid on or before April 18, 2022 to avoid a failure to pay penalty from the IRS. The taxes owed can be paid with the extension request.
Filing for an extension gives you until October 17, 2022 to file the federal return.
Go to this TurboTax website to e-file an extension request - https://turbotax.intuit.com/irs-tax-extensions/
