Efile form 1040 and form 2555 T

[valmichelle1]

Why do I get a message when I try  to e-file  form 2555 T saying it is not ready ,  that  they will email me, when ready to file?   Is it an error?  I am trying to efile from abroad.

[CatinaT1 · Accepted solution]

Not an error, but that form is not available yet for e-filing.  Looks like it is currently scheduled to be available 2/4/2021.

IRS forms availability table for TurboTax individual (personal) tax products

[Sara4Rights]

Why is form 2555T still not available?  I need to e-file but Turbo Tax continues to decline saying this form is not available?  When can we expect it to be available through Turbo Tax?  This is extremely inconvenient and I have never encountered this with Turbo Tax in the past.

[AmyC]

The IRS has not opened yet. The IRS was delayed this year. Forms are delayed. The IRS works from most common to least. Once the IRS releases a form. we work to incorporate it quickly. 

I understand you are anxious to exclude your foreign earned income on the Form 2555. 

@Sara4Rights

[Sara4Rights]

Is there any projected date as to when the IRS will have this form updated and released?  Days?  Weeks?  Months?

[DawnC]

TurboTax's tentative release date for Form 2555, Foreign Earned Income is 02/18 -  see this chart which shows availability for federal personal tax forms.   

-T references taxpayer

-S ireferences spouse

@Sara4Rights

[linhanhmoreau]

I still don't understand because this form as been available on the IRS website since the end of January 2021 at the following link: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f2555.pdf

Does it really take a month to link a form to the TurboTax system?

If the form is not linked ASAP I will miss the deadline to apply for financial aid for my daughter's school, for which filing my US taxes is mandatory. This situation is affecting my family's livelihood as I am a single parent, so we rely heavily on financial aid for my child's education. Missing the February deadline would be a HUGE unnecessary financial blow for me.

Please find a way to link this readily available form.

[LinaJ2020]

As of today, the IRS expects to approve the form 2555 on TurboTax e-file as 02/18/2021.  The forms are available if you are going to download from the IRS.  However, e-filing is different.  Once the form is finalized by the IRS, it has to be coded into the special language the software uses and has to be thoroughly tested for calculations and e-filing acceptability.  IRS then has to approve it for e-file.  It always takes a little longer for a form to become available for e-file in a software program.  I hope this helps you understand the situation. 

You would use Form 2555 to calculate the excludable portion of your foreign income that you made and the housing exclusion deduction while working on foreign soil.  For 2020, the maximum exclusion amount has increased to $107,600.  Due to the global health emergency caused by COVID-19, the IRS has provided relief related to the time requirement necessary to meet either the bona fide residence test or physical presence test.  To  learn more, click here: https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i2555