TurboTax Basic Federal with efile for Tax Year 2009 was designed to make doing your simple taxes easy, by guiding you step by step through your federal tax return. Federal efile is now included when you do your taxes with TurboTax. TurboTax Basic Federal gives you everything you need to easily prepare, print, and efile one federal return. Includes FIVE free Federal efiles plus unlimited Federal Return calculations and printing.

Choose TurboTax Basic if any of the following apply to you:

You file a 1040EZ or other simple tax return
You own your home but don't have a mortgage
You rent your home

Everything you need to easily do your simple tax return.
Asks Easy Questions, Tailored to You - Guides you step by step through your tax return, then puts your answers on the right tax forms for you, including 1040EZ, 1040A, and 1040. Skips interview questions that don't apply to you, so you can finish your return faster.

Automatically Fills in W-2 and 1099 Info - Gets your W-2 and 1099 data directly from over 100,000 participating employers and financial institutions and automatically puts it in the right tax forms. A brief summary lets you review and edit downloaded information if necessary.

Transfers Last Year's Tax Info - No retyping necessary. Fills in information from your previous year's return to save time and increase accuracy. Shows you what you're importing and where it goes in your return. You can also import from other tax software including TaxACT and H&R Block's TaxCut.

Imports Your Financial Data - Imports information from your financial software (including Quicken, QuickBooks 2007 and higher, and Microsoft Money) so you can skip the cut and paste this year.

Provides Help When You Need It
Live Tax Answers - Get live answers online from TurboTax experts and other TurboTax users in Online Live Community. Plus you'll have instant access to answers to commonly asked tax questions on every screen.

Straightforward Guidance & Advice - Find help on any tax topic from anywhere within TurboTax. Get plain-English explanations of specific tax areas and helpful examples when you need them.

Life Events Expert - Explains how changes in your life, such as purchasing a home, changing jobs or becoming a parent, will affect your taxes so you can prepare your return with confidence.

Guide Me - Not sure how to answer a tax question? We'll guide you to the right answer, making your taxes even easier.

FREE Technical Support - Got a software question? No problem! Get answers from a TurboTax expert via e-mail, phone, or live chat.

Spots Errors and Shows How to Fix Them
Checks for Mistakes - Double-checks your return for errors, so you can be confident your taxes are done right.
Guaranteed Accurate Calculations - If you should get hit with an IRS or state penalty or interest due to a TurboTax calculation error, Intuit will pay you the penalty and interest.

Keeps You Up-to-Date with the Latest Tax Forms - With a single click you can check for updates each time you start to ensure your return includes the latest IRS and state tax forms. No more disruptions while you work on your return.

Get Your Refund Faster with Included Federal Efile
Shows Your Tax Refund in Real Time - Watch your refund add up as you complete your return. Our improved Dual Refund Monitor constantly displays and updates both your federal and state refunds (or taxes due) as you complete your federal return.

Federal Efile Included - Get your refund in as few as 8 days with efile and direct deposit. One federal efile is now included with TurboTax at no extra charge. If you're a returning user, we'll automatically transfer your efile information from your previous year's return to save you even more time.

Plus, includes these helpful features to make doing your taxes even easier:
Search Topics or Forms - Looking for a specific form? Just type in the name of the form and TurboTax will take you to it.

Compares Sales Tax vs. State Income Tax Deduction Savings - Shows you which tax deduction will get you the biggest savings: sales tax paid or state and local income tax paid.

Takes the Confusion Out of Vehicle Registration Deductions - Tells you if you can deduct vehicle registration costs and how to take the deduction.

Summarizes Your Tax Situation - Compares this year's return to last year's return and shows you how your numbers compare with the U.S. average, so you can rest assured your taxes are accurate.

Explains AMT and How to Avoid It - Gain a better understanding of the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) and how it affects your bottom line. Learn why you may be subject to AMT and how you can avoid it in the future.

Helps with Education Credits and Deductions - Tells you who qualifies for education credits, which expenses are deductible and how to save the most money.

Handles Social Security and Other Types of Income - Provides extra help for entering Social Security income, Disability income, Supplemental Security income, and dependent's Social Security income.

Simplifies Estimated Tax Payments - Explains how estimated taxes work and tells you if you need to make estimated quarterly payments.

Guides You Step by Step Through Amending Returns, if You Need To - TurboTax makes it easy to amend your return. Need more time? You can submit an application for a filing extension with just a few clicks.

Additional Returns
You can also use TurboTax to prepare additional returns. It's just $9.95 to prepare, efile, and/or print each additional federal return. You pay only when you're done preparing each return and are ready to file.

TurboTax Basic Federal Videos

A TurboTax customer testimonial.

Charitable Contribution Tips from the IRS.

Information on How to E-File Taxes

TurboTax Basic Federal Reviews & Ratings

Tell us what you think about TurboTax Basic Federal. Write your own review!

Editor's Review

No Shipping Costs!

The TurboTax Basic software simplifies the process of filing tax returns by providing detailed instructions in an easy to understand interface that includes preconfigured digital efiles. The software is equipped with all of the information needed to file tax returns quickly and with little effort and knowledge. Included with the software are five free Federal efiles that can be filled out and printed within the same simple interface.

The software walks users through the process of filing taxes step-by-step, acting as a virtual tax return agent. The filing process can even be done automatically as a the software can retrieve financial information from installed accounting software such as Quicken, QuickBooks, and Microsoft Money. Users no longer have to copy and paste this information to complete the yearly tax filing process.

In many cases, the w-2 form is also filled in automatically, as the software can fetch this information from over 100,000 financial institutions. Before the information is final, a summary is presented and all of the input information can be adjusted to provide complete accuracy. The user can even transfer the previous year's tax info into the present efile for maximum convenience.

Instead of filling out forms manually, the user will be asked a series of questions based on a few occupational settings. Once the user answers these questions, the info will be used to fill in multiple tax forms. This information is then presented to the user for verification and added to the printable efile. Since the software has background information regarding the users occupational status, the user will never be asked unnecessary questions during the virtual interview.

TurboTax Basic is anything but basic, and it even includes an insightful feature known as the Life Events Expert. This feature is an educational tip utility that explains the effects that certain life events will have on taxes. For example, the software may explain how buying a house or having children can affect the status and result of future tax returns.

The software even spots errors, brings them to the user's attention, and recommends ways to fix them.

In fact, the developers of the software are so confident in it;s ability to prevent tax filing errors that it will pay any IRS penalties that are the result of using TurboTax. On top of all of these incredible features, the user will also receive their tax return in less than 8 days, and the total return amount is calculated within the software in real time.

TurboTax Basic Federal with efile: What We Liked

So simple even a first time tax filer can file their tax returns confidently.

The tips included in the software are written in easy to understand phrases with no technical jargon or elite language involved. The software does a good job of walking novice tax payers through the process.

The included efile allows for faster returns, and instead of a check the user can receive the funds via direct deposit directly into their bank account.

The convenient search function makes finding specific tax forms quick and easy.

Users can configure their tax returns to receive the highest possible return amount by comparing the benefits of filing for "sales tax paid" or "stat and local income tax paid".

TurboTax Basic Federal with efile: What We Didn't Like

Unlimited efiles would be nice, but then again that may be asking too much.

Intuit Support

Free tech support is included with this product via email, phone, or live chat. Intuit offers customer support via FAQ's, forums and a comprehensive online knowledge base. All of this information can be found at the Intuit customer support center.

About Intuit

Intuit software is the leading developer and distributor of financial and tax preparation software for small businesses, accountant firms and individuals. Intuit has built it's reputation with programs such as TurboTax, Quicken, Intuit Eclipse and more. The company was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California, USA.

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