Uploaded amended tax return into Turbotax desktop as PDF from CPA for a prior year

[taxquestionquery]

Hello,

I filed my 2023 Federal and State tax returns on Turbotax Home and Business desktop version. 

I had received a one time bonus from my prior employer prior to 2023 but had a vesting period, as I left prior to the vesting completion, I had to repay the unvested portion of the bonus. I had paid federal and state taxes on the bonus in the prior tax year prior to 2023. 

In order to obtain a tax refund for the over tax paid for the bonus that I had to return to my prior employer, I hired a CPA to file an amended 2023 tax return. The CPA provided me with a PDF but not original tax file after filing the 2023 amendment. I received a federal and state refund for the tax I had paid for the returned bonus amount. 

I now downloaded 2024 Turbotax home and business. The prior non amended 2023 tax return is recognized in the software. However. when I try to upload the PDF of the amended 2023 return, Turbotax states that: "The import was unsuccessful. The file you selected is too big. Make sure you selected the right file. Don't worry, if it's still too big, we'll help you enter your info manually so you can keep working on your taxes." 

Would appreciate any guidance. Do I need to request the raw tax data file from the CPA? I have an independent contractor business as well as rental homes with depreciation schedules, etc so would prefer not to have to enter all the info manually.

Thank you very much.

[rjs]

You cannot transfer information from a PDF into TurboTax. You can only transfer into 2024 TurboTax from a .tax2023 data file created by 2023 TurboTax. The CPA almost certainly used professional tax software, not TurboTax, so you would not be able to transfer information from his "raw" data file.

[taxquestionquery]

Thank you. There were only a few changes made in the amendment compared to the original return I filed. Would I be able to use the 2023 original Turbo Tax return to help fill in information for the Turbotax 2024, and then manually make changes as needed, i.e. to AGI, individual deductions?

Or could I "re-create" the changes made in the addendum by the CPA in Turbotax in 2023 as if I was filing my own addendum. Then say I will mail the addended return. Then use the 2024 version to pick up the "addended" turbotax 2023 return?

I very much like Turbotax and would like to continue to use the product for 2024 and future years. It would seem that I am otherwise stuck using a CPA moving forward.

[rjs]

From your original question it sounds like your tax return is somewhat complex. The better course of action would be to open your original tax return in 2023 TurboTax, then use "Save As" to save a copy of it with a different name. (Add "amended" or "updated" to the name, for example.) Make the changes in the new copy of the 2023 return. Then start your 2024 tax return and, instead of transferring from the original 2023 tax return, transfer from the updated version. This will be safer than trying to make the changes in 2024 TurboTax, and less likely to cause errors.

If you use the 2023 software to make the changes, as I recommend, you cannot change AGI directly. You have to change the income items or adjustments that feed into AGI.

[taxquestionquery]

Thank you very much.