Minnesota Tax Authority Advises Taxpayers Not to Use Intuit

The Minnesota Department of Revenue is advising the state’s taxpayers not to use Intuit products to file their 2012 taxes electronically or on paper due to what it claims are “multiple issues” with the company's products.

The Department of Revenue warned taxpayers on Friday, “Intuit has discovered multiple issues with their products. The issues could jeopardize the accuracy of your return or delay your refund.” The letter advises tapayers who have not yet prepared or filed their tax return to file "using a different product" than TurboTax, Lacerte, Intuit Online or ProSeries, and then links to an “approved software” page.

  • Taxpayers who have prepared their returns using an Intuit product, but did not file, should "wait to file until Intuit communicates the problems are corrected," the Department of Revenue advised.
  • Taxpayers who have already filed their tax returns should call Intuit at a specified help line, 1-(866) 888-4609.

The problems in question apparently include errors with property tax refunds, education expenses and political contributions.
Intuit is aware of the issues and has already released software fixes to resolve programming errors in its individual and professional tax products, as well as worked directly with the Minnesota tax authority to help resolve the matter, according to Intuit vice president Bob Meighan.

“We’ve had all hands on deck to address these issues and reassure the state and our customers that Minnesota state products are accurate and complete,” said Meighan. “We are continuing to work closely with the Minnesota Department of Revenue to fully resolve any remaining impact to customers’ returns. We are providing regular progress updates to the state and remain committed to ongoing and transparent communication in service to Minnesota taxpayers. Nothing is more important than delivering an accurate return to our customers and building the trust and confidence professional preparers and taxpayers have in Intuit.”

Approximately 10,000 tax returns have been affected this tax season, according to Forbes, and just over 2.5 million individual tax returns were filed in Minnesota in 2009.

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