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yawnxyz

What's the reasoning for setting the AGI at $73,000 or less? Does it go up as inflation goes up?

Why not set it at $100,000 or $500,000?

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Note, anyone regardless of AGI can use https://www.irs.gov/e-file-providers/free-file-fillable-form...

It fails on some really specific use cases, but it works for the vast majority.

On the other hand, paying 20 bucks just for a better user interface and a step-by-step guide is absolutely worth the money.

I would rather not pay the people that are lobbying Congress to prevent the IRS from making it easier to file tax returns. If all you have is W-2 and 1099 income, it is pretty easy anyway. Might take a few hours to read instructions one year, but all the subsequent years are pretty quick.

Is the reality not just paying 20 bucks, but also paying having your data both sold and eventually also breached?

> […] but also paying having your data both sold and eventually also breached?

Based on the emails I’ve received from six companies across six different industries in the last six weeks, this is apparently the end state for every commercial interaction I’ll have.

Not that it makes it OK by any stretch of the imagination.

It is illegal for a tax preparer to share your tax data without consent. I have certainly used tax software in the past that asked for this consent, though.

You can download the software (TurboTax, H&R Block, maybe others) and run it on your own machine and eFile on IRS directly. The data never has to leave your computer.

When I've eFiled in past years it's bounced through H&R Block's servers. I judged this less likely to get lost than paper filing so accepted the risk.

Is there a way to eFile directly with the IRS?

Yes, that's exactly what the parent comment in this thread linked to.

It's set such that the 70% of taxpayers will qualify [1]. Though not explicitly tied to inflation, it tends to go up with inflation as wages rise.

[1] https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-utl/Eight%20Free%20File%20MOU.pd...

I'm guessing tax preparation companies don't make a lot of money off those filers anyways. But if you start taking away the more expensive customers, i.e. the business owners, investors, etc... then it becomes a problem. Lobbying basically.

When I worked in Brooklyn they would setup sidewalk booths. Walk up with your w2 and someone would take a picture with an iPad. They would confirm the details and leave. It’s amazing how many people showed up for that.

I assume Intuit and their ilk lobbied for the limit. I recall reading that the IRS was developing a way to automatically do most people’s taxes, but the tax preparation companies lobbied Congress to stop that, and instead offered their services for free…with the caveat that higher income filers are excluded.

& that free service was offered only through a special link from IRS page. TurboTax intentionally named products like Turbo Tax Free yo confuse users with actual IRS page linked to Turbo Tax Free File.

The cherry (or pepper) on top, after certain years (in 2022), the discontinued that option, & progress by IRS for automated taxes were already lost.

Making it automatic is a step in the wrong direction. They need it heavily simplified or even entirely removed. Then they should worry about automation.

It is simple for most people. It can be automated, and then those who have complications can decide to file an amended return.

Surely, there can be a database at the IRS of everyone’s W-2 and 1099 income.

I'm assuming they picked the percent/number of people who should be covered and worked out where the AGI cutoff was to hit it.

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