Desktop Turbotax won;t file my return electronically

[Citrusdude]

It keeps reviewing the same error which I cannot get past.  O the Capital Gains/Losses worksheet, the Part III box is checked for "Sale includes a disallowed wash sale loss (code W) with a 0 value in the amount box.   All financial data was imported from my financial advisor's firm.  Turbotax says to leave the box blank if the entire gain should be excluded.  I've overridden the entry and left the box blank, but it still comes back as Check this Entry when I try to file.  I have 4 or 5 of these wash sales that show  up as Check this Entry.  Any way to get around this so my return will file?  Thanks.

[AnnetteB6]

If you are using one of the CD/downloaded versions of TurboTax, please be sure you have updated it to the latest version.  A recent update has corrected an issue similar to what you described.

Take a look at the following TurboTax article for instructions:  How do I update my TurboTax CD/downloaded software program?

If you are using the latest version and the error persists, see the following information:

The error messaging you are seeing with regard to the wash sale entries is a result of automatic rounding of the number imported from your broker or typed in by you.  If the wash sale adjustment is $0.49 or less, then it is automatically rounded to zero.  This type of rounding is allowed by the IRS.  Unfortunately, zero is not a valid value for this field -- thus the error message.

To resolve the issue, you can edit each individual transaction (although not from the screen in the review process) and delete the amount entered in the wash sale adjustment if it is $0.49 or less.  This will clear the error message.  

To do this, you will need to revisit the input section for the Form 1099-B transactions.  Use the following steps:

• On the top row of the TurboTax online screen, click on Search (or for CD/downloaded TurboTax locate the search box in the upper right corner)
• This opens a box where you can type in “1099-B” and click the magnifying glass (or for CD/downloaded TurboTax, click Find)
• The search results will give you an option to “Jump to 1099-B”
• Click on the blue “Jump to 1099-B” link
• Click Edit beside the institution name
• Click Edit beside each transaction that contains a wash sale adjustment amount of $0.49 or less
• Delete the wash sale adjustment amount and click Done

If you have too many transactions that would require editing, you can consider deleting your imported information and entering a summary of the different categories of transactions reported on your Form 1099-B (short-term covered, short-term not covered, long-term covered, long-term not covered).  This may require you to mail a copy (not the original) of your Form 1099-B from your brokerage to the IRS within three days of filing your return.  The Form 1099-B would be attached to Form 8453, which will print with your return.  

[G2K2]

My tax return this year is 350 pages long.  The reason is because turbo tax lists every single stock transaction individually instead of summarizing them by short term or long term and gains and losses per each brokerage account.  But because TT insists on listing each one individually, creating 100's of pages of info, it is always the case that there is enough missing info, no matter how trivial, in the downloads from the brokerage firms, that an e-file filter rejects the return for e-file, and you have to print it out and mail a physical copy.

The conclusion seems to be that if you have significant equities, and you do NOT want to file an actual physical return that is the size of a telephone book (remember those?) with the IRS, turbo tax is not useful for you.  It will not allow you to e-file.  They won't tell you that ahead of time, and they do not seem interested in fixing the problem. And of course, there is no help desk staffed by human beings that will respond to you either.  Other than that, it's great.