the Cost of Online Tax Filing

I was looking for a quick refund without having to pay a lot of money to a professional tax preparer. Instead I found an online tax preparation company that would allow me to file my taxes electronically and get a faster refund without having to go to a tax preparation firm.

The website was very easy to use. It walked me through step-by-step, asking questions in plain English. It gave options to allow me to itemize my deductions or file a standard return. It also asked questions to determine whether there were self-employment or small business taxes to work on. The program automatically assessed certain tax credits based on my answers to its questions. It even attempted a form EIC, but informed me immediately that we do not qualify for that particular tax credit and why.

The $35 covered an electronic filing fee of $25 for the Federal return and $10 for the actual charges of using the website. All calculations are guaranteed. My refund arrived in less than two weeks.

As far as filing the federal return was concerned, I had no problems. The forms were easy to navigate and very straightforward. I chose this website because the State return was free if I used their site to file my Federal return. Unfortunately, the State forms were not available at the time of filing. I have continually checked back, and the anticipated date of availability gets pushed back a few days each time I visit the website. Other State forms have become available, but I have been waiting a full two months to file my State return.

My suggestion would be this: If you are going to use an online tax preparation company to file your own taxes, be sure that all the forms you need are supported at the time you commit. Once you've filed your federal return through one site, you won't be able to file your State return through another site.