Last week I purchased and installed TurboTax 2021 Premier, and started a tax return for 2021. Now, today when I start TurboTax it does not find the saved file, but only allows starting a new return. It does not show the previous return that had been started but all data is blank. Also, when I start TurboTax 2020 that ALSO does not find the returns, but only allows starting a new return. So right now I cannot view the return I filed for 2020 or the "What Ifs" done in TurboTax 2020 for 2021. Neither one of those were a problem last week. Why is everything missing (In both TT 2021 and TT 2020) and how can it be found?
Sounds like you may have an uninstalled WIN OS update hiding in the shadows ... try updating the OS at least twice and reboot the computer at least twice ... then try the programs again.
When you close the return you should always save the progress and make sure you are saving to the C Drive ... the program cannot find it on other drives or storage mediums.
Thank you for the quick response and suggestion! I did check for updates and installed 3 new Windows updates, and rebooted, and checked for updates again and it said it was up to date, and I rebooted 2 more times, but that did not resolve the problem. I have not had an issue like this in the past. Even last week I was able to bring up 2020 version "what ifs" as well as the 2020 return that had been filed, and also bring up a return in progress with TT 2021 also.
When clicking to Begin New Return in TT 2021 it does show "Good News! We Found Your Tax Info and buttons next to each to "Transfer Return" However I had already Transferred in the past and edited with new information since then.
The same happens when starting TT2020, that is, it shows the option to transfer returns from the past.
However neither version brings up any existing returns, which TurboTax has done in the past.
(By the way, yes they have always been saved on C drive after editing return with any changes.)
What could be other suggestions to determine why returns no longer display, and how to correct?
Make sure the files didn't wind up in the trash ... the Win Updates tend to put them there and the program cannot find them there. You may need to uninstall the program and do a fresh install ... the early versions of the program are very buggy.
If nothing else works contact TT support for assistance : See this TurboTax support FAQ on how to contact Support - https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/using-turbotax/help/how-do-i-contact-turbotax/00/26991
Thank you. There was nothing in Recycle Bin before or after the Windows update. So if for some reason an update somehow pushed files into Trash and I emptied it recently they would have been cleaned away. I have never seen that happen before, in the years I have used TurboTax.
It doesn't seem likely that a Windows OS update would have pushed the TT files into trash since prior to today the last Windows update install was 10/22/21. I installed TT 2021 on 11/3/21 and was successfully using that version to work on a new transferred return, and also successfully doing what if changes to saved returns on TT2020, and able to go back into each and pick up where I left off in subsequent days....until today when existing returns are not visible in either.
Sadly many have reported WIN updates doing strange things like putting thing in the trash which is why you should always save a backup to a removable storage medium for safekeeping.
Contact support for more assistance.
I talked with support and discovered the reason TurboTax wasn't finding the existing returns automatically upon startup. I had recently moved a folder, which contained a TurboTax folder which contained my TurboTax files, from the Desktop into another folder on the Desktop and therefore apparently TurboTax wasn't finding the files automatically upon start up. The solution I performed was to move those files into a TurboTax folder in the Documents folder and then open each file and save, so it will find them automatically when starting TurboTax.
Ok ... glad you found out about the cardinal rule in the TT program ... don't mess with the automatic functions and if you do then you must direct the program to the change.
It appears that TurboTax creates a folder named TurboTax in the Documents folder on a Windows PC as the default location where the tax files are stored. Does that sound correct?
At least that is what it looked like to me, when seeing that having moved a folder that contained a TurboTax folder caused my problem, and when working to rectify it I deleted a different instance of a folder named TurboTax (which was empty and contained no files) from the Documents folder. However after starting up TurboTax and later looking in the Documents folder there was another empty TurobTax folder there. I ended up copying the TurboTax files into that folder and after opening and saving the different files all is working as it did before the problem, that is, when starting TurboTax it automatically shows existing returns (without having to do a search to find them to open them.) So I don't know if the folder TurboTax is always created in the Documents folder, but that is what it looks like, at least in my instance.
Yes. Turbo Tax makes a folder in your Documents.
The data file ends in .tax2019, .tax2020 etc. and should be in Documents in a Turbo Tax subfolder. Search your computer for all files ending in .tax. And check the Recycle Bin. The PDF file should be saved there too. If you don't have the actual .tax file you might the the temporary file you can use. It also ends in .tax but starts with a Tilde ~ sign.
Find your Tax file in Windows
Same problem here re TT 21. I had been working on it over the past few weeks, but a mistaken entry I made today re a K1 lowered my refund even though I went back and fixed it, so I didn't want to save these changes. Nothing I did would get the refund number back to before the error, so I selected - DO not save - figuring it worked like WORD, that just these last changes wouldn't be saved. Nope - whole return is gone. I have looked in TT/Documents. I have IDrive and can't even find a doc in there checking only minutes later. It is not in trash and I haven't done a windows update recently. Sounds like that can create as many problems as it solves. Before I try that, can you please just tell me what a temp file might look like for my 2021 return that I can recover so I don't have to start all over! Thanks.
There still should be a saved file from before. The times before did you say to save when you exited? I would look around. The tax files (and PDF files) should be in your Documents then in a Turbo Tax subfolder. If you can't find them do a search for all files ending in .tax or .tax2021 or .tax2020 etc. And check the Recycle Bin. For Windows 10 check the One Drive. Did you make any backups? Like DropBox.
If you don't have the main .tax2021 file you might have one that starts with a Tilde sign ~ like
"~your name.tax2021".
That file is if your computer crashes or your real file gets lost or deleted or corrupt so you can restore it.
Find your Tax file in Windows
When you use the "do not save" option it just means it will not overwrite a previously saved file ... hopefully you did save the file previously ... do look around for it.
Thank you for your quick response. Yes, I've been in and out of turbotax a few times over the past few weeks and must have hit save as the file was always there when I opened tt. I would have no reason not to hit save as it was something I gave some thought to today when I didn't want to continue from where I was. But somehow maybe I didn't? idk.
TT did an update this morning, then I opened the file, worked a little, didn't want to save and hit don't save. I have done all of the things suggested including at that link. I have had to hunt for lost files on other things before. This is so confusing. It's not on my I'Drive (cloud storage) either. I have also enabled show hidden files in windows explorer. So bizarre. I see a bunch of odd files and folders today in Appdata/Local/Temp but don't know where to begin there.
Here are also a couple of text logs from when the app installed in January - but those won't be of help. Not in my trash. At this point, it will likely be easier to start over than keep looking.
Thanks much.
Did you try going up to File-Open and see if it finds your return? What Windows are you on? . For Windows 10 check the One Drive.
See this user, he found his files in the Administrator account
https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/taxes/discussion/re-files-are-all-gone/01/2242561#M804987
You are so kind to make these suggestions. I followed the one with the guy who found his using admin credentials. Also tried opening as admin - didn't make a difference. Could not find any folder that was user/admin. I have checked the show hidden files. Also worked in the command prompt to find any admin folder. I have no idea why I have no admin folder. Another mystery. I have accepted that this file is lost and started over. I started a new return and am half way to where I was before. I saved the file with a different name just in case this one reappeared but it's nowhere to be found. Also I am working on a microsoft surface windows 10 and checked my onedrive as someone suggested. No luck. Found some pictures I thought I had lost forever from 5 years ago - so thank you for that! Moving on with life now.. no explanation for this at all. I've used tt for years. Never had this happen before.
You can (and should) save the return often and regularly not just when you close the program. You have the option to change the file name every time so you never over write any other file ... like you can add "after W-2 ", "after Sch C", "after Sch E" etc .... you just need to make sure you continue using the latest tax file unless you want to go back to a prior version.
In case you did not already know ....
This is my mini version of a tutorial that should be in the downloaded program:
Forms Mode lets you view and make changes to your tax forms "behind the scenes."
If you're adventurous, you can even prepare your return in Forms Mode, but we don't recommend it. You may miss obscure credits and deductions you qualify for, and you may forget to report things that will come back and haunt you later.
Forms Mode is exclusively available in the TurboTax CD/Download software. It is not available in TurboTax Online.
If you want to play around with different figures and tax scenarios without affecting your original return you can ….
Once you have filed successfully … you can shut off the auto updater function and then save the return & .taxfile.
It's always a good idea to make a backup copy of your tax data file, in case your original gets lost or corrupted. Here's how:
If you make changes to your original tax return file, repeat these steps to ensure your original and backup copies are in-synch.
AND save it as a PDF so you have access to a copy even if you don’t have the program still installed and operational :
AND protect the files :
*** Other clues to the downloaded program ***
In the forms mode ... double click or right click on a box on a form to data source it ... sadly it doesn't work on all boxes.
When you look at an onscreen tax form using Forms Mode, you might wonder why one figure is blue and the one next to it is red or black.
These colors indicate the source of that data.
Color | Meaning |
Blue | You entered this data, either in the interview or Forms Mode. |
Black | The program entered this data or calculated this amount. |
Red | This data has either been overridden or is invalid (for example, a ZIP code that doesn't exist). |
Red italics | You marked this amount as estimated. |
Black italics | The program calculated this amount from an amount you marked as estimated. |
Purple | This information has supporting details. |
Aquamarine | This data was transferred over from last year. |
Green | This data was imported from Quicken or QuickBooks. |
Yellow fields (Windows) | Yellow fields allow user input. Anything you enter here shows up in blue. |
If you has a WIN OS update check the trash ... sometimes files end up in there?
I have a similar problem. I used the 2020 premier disk and it asked me to save the 2020 disk's return into a PDF. I could upload the files but only 4 category showed up and all of the data was missing from rental sections. No names or any other data. None the last years interest or dividend.
I have called the helpline 3 times and 2 times I am sure the person answering has never filled out their own return so they seemed completely lost when discussed the missing data fields. Each time they say that they will return the call after research but none have. incredibly frustrating
Please reach out to us directly using the information in the Help Article here. We are not able to review account information in this forum, but we would be happy to assist you directly via phone.
The program saves the return as a .taxfile automatically if you ask it to save the return as you close the program. Saving as a PDF must be done purposely. To transfer the prior year info to the next tax year you MUST use the .taxfile ... what little comes over from the PDF is not worth the effort.
I downloaded the 2021 in Windows 10 Microsoft Edge.
I started my input 2021, saved it and closed. I tried to open it the next day and the info was gone and the program sat there on a slow spin. I entered the "asked for" info to sign again multiple(!) times and it always came up "no match found". A few times it stated the problem was on "there end" and they were on it. Nothing ever happened. There is no way to sign in if the program does not match the primaries file info. I've phoned several times for support and was linked to the same "sign-in" page it still no match found. Last phone call was dropped while waiting for a representative. I tried to set up a new account that finally led to this.
Last year the Fed did not accept TurboTax filing and I ended up mailing it. Took much longer but was accepted with $20 interest refund for taking so long. We've used this program for years but am so frustrated I am about to stop. Please help us and not send us links that go in endless loops.
Lastly-how do I get to a schedule C without buying an additional $89 program. I've filled out the "C" for years and never had a problem using it.\
I do really appreciate you support on these matters.
Thank you. mc--531 William Ebert & Charlene Renne/ or char1935
@mc--531 You don't need to sign into the Desktop program. Are you trying to get into the Online version by mistake? The Online version has a black menu bar down the left side.
You still can enter Schedule C into all the Desktop programs. Should be the same as before.
Try rebooting your computer. Did you get the program installed and Activated with the 16 digit License Code?