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Level 2

Solved

updates

Forum|Forum|6 years ago
January 23, 2020
18 replies
65 views

What was changed in the latest updates to TurboTax?

Best answer by GabiU

Thanks to your feedback, Release Notes is making a comeback! We're working on a process to make sure you all get updated information.

You've made a difference and we appreciate you taking the time to reach out to us on the community.

Happy filing!

Show previous replies

kwo

Level 2

Is this a joke? TT tells me there are critical updates, then it gives me a link to a web page that isn't active, then it sends me to the Community web page where TT won't provide any information about the "critical" update, and then the only thing here are users complaining about the lack of information regarding updates - critical or not.

Can a company be this arrogant? Does TT think this low of it's customers? Am I just stupid for using their product? So many questions, and certainly no answers here.

johnli1822

Level 2

Based on this thread, it appears software update release notes are no longer provided. So, we no longer know what is contained in a release or when the software is considered final for Fed or State.

Further reading of this stream also appears to indicate that Turbotax will notify me by email if any update impacted my return (Fed and/or State? It's unclear. What if I print my returns and don't e-file through TurboTax, will I know if I am impacted?).

Yet, the software update pop-up screen gives update links to dead pages. Apparently, the product managers didn't bother to think about the confusing user experience they left with this change. If the product strategy is to proactively tell me know when an update impacts me, that's great. I get the product strategy you want to take.

BUT, make the pop-up screen say what you will let the user know if an update impacted the return, when you will notify us (before we file? after we file?) and clearly communicate that release notes won't be provided going forward. I spent precious time clicking links you sent hunting down notes that don't exist, searching this community forum for information that does not exist, and getting pissed off at the whole experience.

What TurboTax product manager idiot at TurboTax decided these changes? Obviously, one who didn't seem to care about the user experience with support. The user experience with support has seriously deteriorated.

photobug56

Level 5

Why would someone not efile? In some states, it's required, and wherever it is, efiling is cleaner and quicker, and can't get lost in the mail or eaten by your dog.

NM1

Level 5

Because some states' returns are simple enough that it's not worth the TurboTax fee to do it through the software. Also, some states have their own e-file portal that only takes 15 minutes to walk through and then submit (free), so it's still not going to get lost in the mail or eaten by the dog.

Intuit is not omniscient. We, their customers, need to know which forms and other important procedures have been updated so that *we* can determine whether they affect our tax returns in ways that TurboTax may not be aware of. The decision to turn it into a black box and urge us to just trust them is not acceptable.

pastordl

Level 2

Please Intuit Turbo, allow us to access what has been updated. Every time the program updates it offers us to see the detail as it has for years past just to route us to a "turbo tax has support has been moved" page. I have found the information useful and informative. That or may rename the link page to "Turbo tax support has been removed"

ak525

Level 2

Who knows, only the shadow?

We need to know if it impacts a return that has already been filed.

MatthewSD

Level 2

As a Product Manager for the world's largest retailer, I'm ashamed for whoever the Principal Product Manager for TT is. Dead links for critical information like what you've updated in the product I'm relying on to insure I get all the money I'm owed back from the government and keep me out of jail for potential tax fraud - really? Not to mention still extremely buggy when it comes to correctly handling education expenses and 529s for more than one child. Seriously considering an alternative solution for next year.

photobug56

Level 5

I don't know who made the decision, but I've been advised that not everyone inside Intuit agrees with this odd change in policy. I spent over 20 years as a developer, and most of 40 years working in financial institutions, and makes no sense to me. I do know not all changes are planned - sometimes bugs are found and fixed, and the change notes told us about fixes, level of progress and more. I suggest we find more ways to reach the bosses behind this, including seeing if they are in FB and other sites. As many people as possible.

spl518

Level 2

This is still an issue with the 3/20/2020 update and I certainly agree with others here that you should at least give us a clue of what's changed or been updated. Clicking the link on the update window simply hits a dead end on the TT website!

DaraLO

Level 12

Release notes for updates have been discontinued. If there are any updates that affect your return, you will be notified via email.

@spl518 Can you explain what update issues you are experiencing?

**Say "Thanks" by clicking the thumb icon in a post. **Mark the post that answers your question by clicking on "Mark as Best Answer"

spl518

Level 2

That is totally irresponsible IMO and many other customers in this conversation! And I dont actually buy this claim that Turbotax is going to notify me if there's been an update to forms or the program that effects my return after it has been filed. I don't believe this is even possible in some cases. For example, what if my email and address has changed? Please provide this feedback to upper management.

dwmcc

Level 2

There are several Turbo Tax Deluxe features that Intuit has apparently decided to let stay "broken". The ability for customers to see the details on each software update was very helpful but no longer works even though the links remain in the program. While I can appreciate the difficulty of keeping the forms and calculations updated, the details gave customers the ability to review each update to assess whether it impacted their own return. As of 3/25/20, I am still dealing with a faulty form 8615 that keeps getting rejected due to a form calculation error. Turbo Tax reports that the form was corrected 3/19/20 but the return continues to get rejected. As I wait for more updates, I currently have no way to know if the update was associated with this form so I have to repeatably e-file and get rejected to find out.

photobug56

Level 5

Are you using the 'script' or are you manually filling in the form? I'd be doing the latter under the circumstances. Though that doesn't excuse their not telling us what the updates are.

GabiUAnswer

Level 13

**Say "Thanks" by clicking the thumb icon in a post . **Mark the post that answers your question by clicking on "Mark as Best Answer"

NM1

Level 5

Yeah, not really fixed.

The "More Details" links on the TT update page no longer goes to an error page, which is kind of the minimum expectation. However, all of those links, no matter what type of update they were associated with, go instead to a page that says:

Thank you for choosing TurboTax, America's #1 brand of tax software!

We update our software regularly to ensure 100% accuracy and your maximum tax

refund – guaranteed.

This release may include general maintenance, bug fixes, performance improvements,

and program enhancements so you can file your return with confidence and ease. At this

time, all federal and state tax forms are final.

This is so generic that it is utterly useless. Customers do realize that your updates are for those purposes. This is not the sort of information you used to provide, and it is not what we were asking for (as I'm sure everyone at Intuit understood). It is also not what the "release notes are coming back!" response implied would happen.

Please make this right. Your customers are not stupid, so this is insulting as well as pointless. Thank you.

photobug56

Level 5

As I quoted above in my post on June 5, the now-generic "release notes" page stated, "at this time, all federal and state tax forms are final". So why, when I started up TT today, did it find updates to both federal and state forms - especially something that is flagged as "Critical"?? What critical updates could there have been to supposedly-long-finalized federal tax forms less than a week before a deadline that was extended by three months?

If Intuit were still doing the right thing with TT release notes, I would know what was affected. But you aren't, so I don't. This is a *perfect* illustration of why specific release notes are so important to your customers.

Not only would I appreciate knowing what changed on July 9th, I would really appreciate Intuit taking this seriously. Thank you.

Ignoring how nonsensical it sounds to have updates to 'final' forms, it is beyond my comprehension how there could be emergency updates whose details Intuit won't provide to us when we absolutely need to know if the errors they fix could have messed up our tax submissions. It's actually rather scary.