How come it is making me pay for an upgrade to file my taxes?

Depending on how complex the investments are, you can't do a lot with them on a basic package. You have to select the package that allows some IRA investments. Those are Premier or Home and Business. I used to get Premier, but now get Home and Business as I also have a rental.

Yes, you will need to upgrade to get the saver's credit. However, you can disqualify yourself to avoid this. You may want to make sure you are not throwing away free money before you do this.