The “but TurboTax said it was OK” defense doesn’t fly with the IRS or the Tax Court…
Case in point:
Self-preparer Cannot Rely on TurboTax Defense: Taxpayer underreported the taxable amount of her pension distribution by $101,998, which (along with other discrepancies) led to a proposed tax deficiency of $43,668 plus the substantial understatement penalty. Taxpayer argued that her mistakes were “honest mistakes resulting from her lack of familiarity with the TurboTax program.” Plus, she thought the audit portion of the program “would catch any mistakes she otherwise might make.” Citing the well-known “garbage in, garbage out” rule, the Tax Court rejected her arguments because she, not the program, was responsible for the mistakes.
Just some friendly advice — if you have a major event in your life (like, say a $101,998 taxable pension distribution) it is worth it to hire a CPA to prepare your return to make sure everything looks kosher. Give our office a call at 770-478-7424 to speak with a CPA about your situation.
