Turbotax miscalculated my refund and I can't fix it without paying extra. How can I talk to someone to point this out? Thanks!

[marudigi]

turbotax wants me to get my 2020 stimulus check, but I was not a resident for tax purposes and did not qualify then. There is no place to indicate this in the system and I can't get to someone without paying extra, but I shouldn't have to because it's their error, not mine. I'd appreciate any help you can give me!

[xmasbaby0]

This is confusing.   If you were a non-resident alien for 2020 you are not supposed to use TurboTax.   If you are NRA for 2020 you should be using Sprintax.

NON RESIDENT ALIEN  

If you are a non-resident alien, your return must be filed on Form 1040NR, which cannot be prepared using TurboTax.  You can use TT’s partner, sprintax:

https://www.sprintax.com/non-resident-alien-tax-1040nr-turbotax.html

[mesquitebean]

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@ marudigi wrote:
turbotax wants me to get my 2020 stimulus check, but I was not a resident for tax purposes and did not qualify then. There is no place to indicate this in the system and I can't get to someone without paying extra, but I shouldn't have to because it's their error, not mine. I'd appreciate any help you can give me!

---

If you're using Online Deluxe (as is indicated underneath your question), there is no extra fee to talk to TurboTax Support.   But there may be a bigger problem.

You said you are a "not a resident for tax purposes."    Does that mean you were a non-resident alien in 2020 now trying to prepare a 2020 return?   If so, you cannot use TurboTax.   TurboTax can only prepare returns for US citizens and resident aliens for tax purposes.   TurboTax cannot prepare Form 1040NR for non-resident aliens, but has an affiliate partner that can.  

If you are not a US citizen, when did you first come to the USA and how long have you been here?

What visa are you under?

Are you married?

If necessary, I can ask someone familiar with international filing to assist you.

[marudigi]

hi mesquitebean, I did not say I am not resident for tax purposes, I said I wasn't when I filed in 2019 (using Sprintax as I have been for the time I spent in the US as an F1 with my husband as an F2). The IRS knows my 2019 status but not my 2020 status because I have not yet filed. I was a resident for tax purposes during 2020 as an H1B with my husband as an H4. I am in that weird transition limbo.

Everywhere I read about the stimulus check it said I was not eligible for the first or second one, so I don't want to submit this return that asks for the money. I think I will call the IRS because I was able to communicate with a turbotax person and he gave me a possible workaround, but I think I should ask anyway.

Wish me luck!

[mesquitebean]

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@marudigi wrote:

hi mesquitebean, I did not say I am not resident for tax purposes, I said I wasn't when I filed in 2019 (using Sprintax as I have been for the time I spent in the US as an F1 with my husband as an F2). The IRS knows my 2019 status but not my 2020 status because I have not yet filed. I was a resident for tax purposes during 2020 as an H1B with my husband as an H4. I am in that weird transition limbo.

Everywhere I read about the stimulus check it said I was not eligible for the first or second one, so I don't want to submit this return that asks for the money. I think I will call the IRS because I was able to communicate with a turbotax person and he gave me a possible workaround, but I think I should ask anyway.

---

Actually, you don't mention "2019" anywhere in your original question.  The following is exactly what you said in your question, which I paste here.  It references only 2020 and "then" in the same sentence:

"turbotax wants me to get my 2020 stimulus check, but I was not a resident for tax purposes and did not qualify then." 

That sentence also confused Champ @xmasbaby0  as you likely noticed in her reply above, too.

There's no way to know the ins and outs of your visa situation and tax status without asking you for details and clarification about it.

Here is an IRS article on eligibility for the Recovery Rebate Credit:

https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/recovery-rebate-credit-topic-b-eligibility

Expand question B1.

I'm not a tax expert, especially in regards to international filing, so I'm going to ask someone who is experienced with international filing to look at this thread and further assist you with this topic.

In the meantime, the expert may need to know if your current visa status was the same during all of 2020.

@pk 

  Are you please able to further assist this user who says "I was a resident for tax purposes during 2020 as an H1B with my husband as an H4"  in regard to filing and also her question in regard to Stimulus 1 and 2.   Thanks!

[pk]

@marudigi , having gone through all the  above, let us make sure that we are all on the same page. As I understand the situation:

(a)For  tax year 2020, you were a Resident for Tax purposes-- you have SSN, H-1B visa and therefore need to  file your return on form 1040, preferably using TubroTax

(b) In  2019  you were under  exempt status    ( when did you enter the country ?  2015 pr ?? ) and filed your return  using form 1040-NR  --- SprinTax  user

(c)  TurboTax for 2020 is asking if you had received  the  Economic Impact  Payments  for 2020 and your answered NO and therefore TurboTax  goes through a reconciliation process  and adds the amounts to your refund --- Yes?   You think you did not qualify for the  EIP and  suspect that TurboTax is in error.  Yes ?

Without knowing the  exact facts  and circumstances, it seems to me that TurboTax is correct   ( because the payment is based on your filing tax status in 2020 -- IRS just uses the  data from 2019 as a matter of convenience  )----- but first please answer  my questions - when did you enter this country with F-1,   when was the adjustment to  H-1B made, was there an absence  i.e. the end of F-1 and you wnet home and came back with H-1B or what, Whcih country are you from;  should I assume that your husband  is also a Non-Resident Alien for 2019 or ??

[marudigi]

Hi @pk, you are 99% correct in all you say.

a) all correct

b) I wasn't exempt, I was paying taxes (or getting a refund, it depended each year) since 2014, using the 1040NR

c) all correct

The adjustment to H1B was done in 2019, and there was an absence of three months after my F1 and before the H1B. I used Sprintax for my 2019 return. My husband was also a NR alien. Our country does not have an agreement of any sort for tax purposes with the US.

Thank you very much for your reply. I do understand the "convenience" aspect you mention, but from what I had read, if you had filed as non resident in 2019, you did not qualify. I will call the IRS and report back.

[pk]

@marudigi ,  sorry we could not be of help to you on this .   By the way --- when we speak of "exempt" we mean exempt from counting days  present  in the USA towards  the Substantial Presence Test and not exempt  from paying income tax.

stay safe

pk