I'm trying to remove the $40 "pay with your refund" fee from my billing but there is no "revisit" option" that I can see after clicking "file". How can I edit my billing?

[kurt.heck]

I followed  the help instructions but there is no revisit option visible

[mesquitebean]

@ kurt.heck 

Hopefully, you haven't yet filed, in which case you should be able to remove it.

If you have already efiled, then your chances are less, depending on the results of the efile.

Have you already efiled?   If so, at the Tax Home is the efile status showing pending, accepted, or rejected?   If you already efiled, and it's subsequently rejected, then you may be able to remove that payment option.

Are you in California or a non-California state?

Since you said $40, the following is the method for non-California states:

If you have not yet efiled:

I don't know exactly what screen you are referring to.

When you went to the FILE tab, did you actually proceed on to the Just...more step screen?  That's the screen that should have the "Revisit" link next to the "pay out of refund" choice.

See this FAQ for detailed instructions:

FAQ:  How do I remove "pay with my refund" fees in Online TurboTax? (states other than California)

https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/downgrading/help/how-do-i-remove-pay-with-my-refund-fees-in-turbot...

[kurt.heck]

 Thanks for answering.   No, I haven't filed, I haven't got there yet. I live in Thailand and e-filing seems not to work from here. Couldn't get it to work last year anyway...

I've seen the instructions that talk about  a "Revisit link".  My problem is that link does not appear on the "Just...more step" screen anywhere.  Using Safari browser on a Mac, I also tried on Firefox.  Perhaps it's browser issue?

[mesquitebean]

---

@kurt.heck wrote:

 Thanks for answering.   No, I haven't filed, I haven't got there yet. I live in Thailand and e-filing seems not to work from here. Couldn't get it to work last year anyway...

I've seen the instructions that talk about  a "Revisit link".  My problem is that link does not appear on the "Just...more step" screen anywhere.  Using Safari browser on a Mac, I also tried on Firefox.  Perhaps it's browser issue?

---

I don't have a way to look at those screens where one would bring up the payment options again.  But I know someone who might be able to comment.  The fact that you live in a foreign country, however, adds additional challenges.

If you live in Thailand, how were you able to use that "Pay out of refund" option in the first place?  It shouldn't be an available option if you have a foreign address.  

TurboTax says: "If you're deducting fees from your refund with the optional Pay With My Refund service, you'll need a U.S. or APO/FPO/DPO address."   See this FAQ:

https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/e-file/help/can-i-e-file-with-a-foreign-address/01/25923

 If you are ultimately able to remove it, I assume you are going to pay with a credit/debit card with a USA billing address.  It won't accept a card with a foreign billing address.

I'll ask someone who has likely seen those screens to comment in this thread, but he won't be around for a few hours.   If you don't get any additional suggestions in this forum, are you able to phone TurboTax Support's 800 numbers in the USA (some countries don't allow, and it won't be free internationally)?  We can tell you how.

  Or do you have Twitter or Facebook to contact Support? We can tell you how.

@DoninGA   

You are probably more familiar with the FILE "Steps", and I have no way to look at them.  Do you know any additional reason that this user who wants to remove refund processing does not see a Revisit link when he goes through the Steps in the FILE section to get back to the payment options to pay instead by credit card?  He says he is following the exact instructions in the FAQ to remove the "pay out of refund" option.   Since he lives in a foreign country, I don't know how he was able to choose that option in the first place.

Thanks!

[kurt.heck]

To answer your question, I'm not sure why I was presented that option.  I have my Thailand address registered with Turbotax but they have my brother's US phone number.  I was presented with the option to pay the $90 Turbotax fee with my refund but the "pay with refund" fee of $40 was not mentioned.  I decided to pay that way but after selecting that method I got a message saying I couldn't because my tiny refund ($110) didn't cover the $90 + $40 = $130.    Had I known there was a fee for this I wouldn't have selected it in the first place.

My intention is to pay with my US credit card (registered to my brother's US address) as I've done in past years.

I would indeed be interested in that phone number and Facebook page you mentioned.  

Thanks

[mesquitebean]

---

@kurt.heck wrote:

To answer your question, I'm not sure why I was presented that option.  I have my Thailand address registered with Turbotax but they have my brother's US phone number.  I was presented with the option to pay the $90 Turbotax fee with my refund but the "pay with refund" fee of $40 was not mentioned.  I decided to pay that way but after selecting that method I got a message saying I couldn't because my tiny refund ($110) didn't cover the $90 + $40 = $130.    Had I known there was a fee for this I wouldn't have selected it in the first place.

My intention is to pay with my US credit card (registered to my brother's US address) as I've done in past years.

I would indeed be interested in that phone number and Facebook page you mentioned.  

---

It gets more and more confusing.   You just now said "I got a message saying I couldn't (use that payment method) because my tiny refund ($110) didn't cover the $90 + $40 = $130."   So that's another reason it shouldn't have let you choose it.   After you got that message saying you couldn't use it, are you even sure you actually ended up with that payment method in the first place??   If the refund doesn't cover the fees and service charge, it shouldn't even let one continue with that option.  In fact, you said it told you that you couldn't use it.  It should have forced you to choose another payment method.    Are you sure it even added that "pay out of refund" to your order, i.e, that there's anything there that even needs removal?  Maybe you just need to now pay the $90 by credit card. 

I've already summoned someone to assist in this thread during the day.  Maybe he can tell you how to get to the credit card screen.

So I'd wait and see if he adds anything in this thread.   After that, if it's still not resolved, and if you wish to phone TurboTax Support and can do so from your country, you can use  (800) 446-8848.  It won't be toll-free internationally, so be mindful of phone charges if you are on hold a while.

Hours are 5AM-9PM Pacific (8AM-12 Midnight Eastern) 7 days/week.

Or you can contact a TurboTax Support agent directly via messaging at Twitter or Facebook:

https://twitter.com/TeamTurboTax
or
https://www.facebook.com/turbotax

[kurt.heck]

I didn't write the software - it obviously has some issues - I was presented with the option to pay without divulging the fee for this option, so I clicked on it.  I'm also confused as to why the option was presented in the first place.    I'm a CPA so yes I'm sure of what I'm looking at and that I was charged $40.  I'm looking at a shopping cart/invoice with the 2 charges on it $90 and $40 - that cannot be edited or emptied. 

[DoninGA]

@mesquitebean The pay with refund option is available for user's with a foreign address.  But they must use a US bank located in the US for the direct deposit of the tax refund.

The $40 service charge for the Pay with Refund option is shown on the Payment Options screen right after the user is shown a Review of the current charges.

Once the user completed Step 1 of the file section there is no reason I can see why they cannot go back to the File section, Revisit Step 1, Review the charges and then land on the Payment option screen to click on Pay with Credit Card.

Click File on the left side of the screen.  On Step 1 click on Revisit.  Review the account fees and click on View payment options.  On the screen How would you like to pay for TurboTax? click on Pay with Credit Card

[mesquitebean]

---

---

@ DoninGA wrote:

 The pay with refund option is available for user's with a foreign address.  But they must use a US bank located in the US for the direct deposit of the tax refund.

---

Not according to this FAQ.   See the 4th bullet point here where it says one cannot use the refund processing option if filing with a foreign address:

FAQ:  Why can't I deduct my TurboTax fees from my Federal refund?

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

I suspect it says they can't in case a direct deposit fails from SBTPG's bank to a foreign user's US bank, then SBTPG probably doesn't want to mess with having to mail a check overseas and the problems and logistics that could arise from that, including fraud.  But that's just a guess as to why it says they can't.

DoninGA wrote:  "Once the user completed Step 1 of the file section there is no reason I can see why they cannot go back to the File section, Revisit Step 1, Review the charges and then land on the Payment option screen to click on Pay with Credit Card.  ."Click File on the left side of the screen.  On Step 1 click on Revisit."

That's why the user posted the thread.  He says he doesn't find a Revisit link.  But I had no way to know if he was on the correct screen.   I had no idea why he couldn't find it in that section.   The instructions just say go to the  "Just...more step" screen, whatever that means, to get to the Revisit link.  I don't know why TurboTax words it oddly like that.    So it sounds like it refers to Step 1.    Thanks for looking at this!!!

[kurt.heck]

If I go back into the software, click on "file", I see the "just 3 more steps" screen,  Next to Step 1 there is only a "Start" button.  I click on that and I see a shopping cart logo at the top of the screen, "nice job your almost done,  and an uneditable pro-forma invoice with the 2 items TTax Premier and Pay with your Refund.  I posted my issue to the Facebook group and got this response: 

::snip::

Hello Kurt, thank you for reaching out. If you made it to the final section, where it has steps 1-3 on the same screen, and you have already completed step 1 there will not be a way to be able to clear any selections. If you have not yet, then you can use the side menu to navigate backward a section and progress forward. -Deria::snip::

It looks like I'm hosed

[mesquitebean]

@ kurt.heck 

I'm just thinking out loud, but if it were me, I might try this:

A TurboTax FAQ says:  "If you switch from e-filing to paper-filing (for example, your return keeps getting rejected), then any Pay With My Refund fee is automatically removed."

So if it were me, I'd see if I could switch filing methods and fool the program by indicating I was going to mail it, in which case that  "pay out of refund" option is not allowed.   But then I wouldn't really mail it.  Instead, I'd go back and change the filing method again and switch from mail back to efile, and then this time choose to pay the $90 fee by credit card.

I don't know if that will work, but that's how "I" might approach it.

[kurt.heck]

I was able to resolve the problem.  I clicked on "view payment options" on the bottom of the pro forma invoice. That took me to the "how would you like to pay for TurboTax" screen. There I saw  message that said "Unfortunately, you’re not eligible to pay for TurboTax with your refund because you have a foreign address and your federal refund is not large enough to cover the fees. You can continue and pay your TurboTax fees using one of the methods above."   I clicked on the "pay now" button to get to the credit card screen, then backed up 2 pages into the pro-forma invoice and the $40 charge was gone.

Thanks for your help. 

[DoninGA]

@mesquitebean I was just going on what I remembered from prior experience with overseas folks and Refund Processing Service.  But you are absolutely correct...There are FAQ's which state the pay with refund option is not for foreign addresses.

Your workaround looks like it should work for getting rid of the pay with refund.  Great Work!

[mesquitebean]

@DoninGA 

It's moot now.  😃   User found the "View payment options" link and has apparently resolved his issue.

So I'll bid a good day to both of you.  Thanks again!

[gravyrice33]

This is a complete scam by Turbo Tax and its 3rd parties. They have made over a 1 billion a year on this scam. They have been sued but always manage to influence congress to stop the suit saying it was fair how we cheated our customers. This will be my last year to use Turbo Tax. I  have used them for over 10 years but if they are now cheating and scamming customers how do you trust the software not to cheat you and somehow put more money into their pocket. These guys are suppose to help us with taxes and they rewards us with a $40 scam to efile and accept return that way. If you pay with credit card it doesn't charge you but I had to research for over an hour to figure this one out. TURBO TAX should now be called TURBO CHEATS!