topic I finished my taxes thinking the fee would come out of the refund but they want it now? I can't afford... It what do I do,? in Get your taxes done using TurboTax

I finished my taxes thinking the fee would come out of the refund but they want it now? I can't afford... It what do I do,?

ruthiebagierek-h — Mon, 23 Feb 2026 10:45:40 GMT

Will the taxes be filed at all or not till I pay?

Re: I finished my taxes thinking the fee would come out of the refund but they want it now? I can't afford... It what do I do,?

ee-ea — Wed, 18 Jan 2023 06:26:27 GMT

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/intuit-account-billing/deduct-turbotax-fees-refund/L7izIIFJq_US_en_US?uid=lcwvq7o0

Re: I finished my taxes thinking the fee would come out of the refund but they want it now? I can't afford... It what do I do,?

fanfare — Wed, 18 Jan 2023 10:59:55 GMT

If you can't afford TurboTax most likely you qualify for IRS Free File program.

visit the IRS at https://www.irs.gov/filing/free-file-do-your-federal-taxes-for-free

to find truly free filing. Note that some include free state as well; that's important.
Otherwise, If you have to file a state return, and don't want to do that yourself, you will need software that you pay for.

@ruthiebagierek-h

Re: I finished my taxes thinking the fee would come out of the refund but they want it now? I can't afford... It what do I do,?

xmasbaby0 — Wed, 18 Jan 2023 14:15:51 GMT

https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/charges-and-fees/help/why-can-t-i-deduct-my-turbotax-fees-from-my-refund/00/25621

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 ever 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.

How can I see my TurboTax fees?

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/2565973-how-do-i-review-my-fees-in-turbotax-online

What is Refund Processing Service?

Re: I finished my taxes thinking the fee would come out of the refund but they want it now? I can't afford... It what do I do,?

xmasbaby0 — Wed, 18 Jan 2023 14:33:21 GMT

If you cannot afford to pay to use the TurboTax software, you should take a look at the IRS Free File site to see if you can use that.

Use this IRS site for other ways to file for free. There are 8 free software versions available from the IRS Free File site

https://apps.irs.gov/app/freeFile/