Skip saving federal return online

[Questioner7]

I have downloaded the 2023 software to my laptop. I have completed my federal return and want to work on my state return. TurboTax will not let me proceed unless I first save my federal return online. I have saved the federal return to my desktop. I do not want to save the federal return online. How do I skip saving the federal return online so that I can begin my state return?

[VolvoGirl]

Never heard of that.  Are you sure you are in the Desktop program?  We see people all the time that bought the Desktop program but ended  up in the Online browser version.  Is there a black menu bar on the left side with the menu items, Federal, State, File etc. That is Online. The Desktop program is blue across the top and the menu items like Federal, State, Review, File go across the top.

Can you post a screen shot of it saying you have to save federal online?  

[Questioner7]

I am in a place where I don't have an internet connection. So I want to skip saving it online and move on to my state return. 

[VolvoGirl]

Oh so you already filed federal?  Can you just click on State tab at the top to bypass this?  I don’t know.  When I file I file both federal and state at the same time and am always online.  Don’t know why it wants an internet connection to save a return.  Have you started state yet? To do state you do need to download the state program first by going online.

[Questioner7]

I have not filed the federal return. I have already downloaded the state software. It won't let me work on the state return without saving the federal return online which I can't do now, without an internet connection. Frustrating. Thanks anyway. 

[xmasbaby0]

That makes no sense.  When you use the CD/download, your return is never saved online.  It is only saved to your own hard drive or any back up device you use like a flash drive.   Returns prepared using desktop software are never stored in your online account.

[rjs]

@Questioner7 

It doesn't say it will save your return online. It just says it will save your return. It will save it on your computer. The separate "no internet connection" message is for something else, not for saving your return. And it's telling you to "Come back to TurboTax" later, so it sounds like it's going to exit the program for some reason. That's why it wants to save your return.

I think you might have accidentally gotten into something that requires an internet connection. It might be trying to update the software. That requires exiting the program, and an internet connection. Or you might have accidentally gotten into purchasing a different state. You might have accidentally clicked the wrong state in a list of states. You said you already downloaded the state software, but did you install it? It might be trying to install the state software, which could also require exiting the program and having an internet connection.

[rjs]

@Questioner7 

What I suggest you do is connect your computer to the internet, start your state return, and let TurboTax do whatever it needs to do to just get the state started. Then you can disconnect from the internet and continue working on your state return offline.

It will never save your return online. There is no way it can do that.

[Questioner7]

I spoke to a TurboTax agent. You must, in fact, save the federal return to your online account in order to proceed to the state return. For those who do not want their returns saved to their online account, the only option is to go back in and delete the return from the online account once you are done. 

[rjs]

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@Questioner7 wrote:

You must, in fact, save the federal return to your online account in order to proceed to the state return.

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That's news to me. I have prepared and filed several state returns without having to save the federal return. I just tried it now with a couple of returns and I was able to start a state return without saving the federal return.

[VolvoGirl]

@Questioner7 
Something I just thought of.  It may be trying to go online to update the program.  So change it to not automatically update.   If you are using the Windows Desktop program, the first thing I do after installing the program and doing the first update, is change the Updater settings to ask me first.  To change the Windows program Update Preferences settings go up To Online - Updater Preferences.

[Opus 17]

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@Questioner7 wrote:

I spoke to a TurboTax agent. You must, in fact, save the federal return to your online account in order to proceed to the state return. For those who do not want their returns saved to their online account, the only option is to go back in and delete the return from the online account once you are done. 

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If true, this is new behavior.  I think the agent was wrong or confused, and the program is having some other kind of problem.  I am going to flag this for review.

You should be able to save your tax data file at any stage, locally only.  If you are working on your file, can you go to the save menu and click "save as..." to save a copy in a different location or with a different name?