TurboTax rejected return: fix it and refile

TurboTax rejected return: what the email is telling you

When TurboTax emails that your federal return was rejected, the IRS has turned the submission away and nothing has been filed yet. A TurboTax rejected return is almost always fixable in a few minutes, because the rejection names the exact data point that failed.

The email itself usually does not contain the full code. The details live in your account, and that is where you make the correction and send it again. You do not need to buy anything new or start over.

Open the rejection message

Sign in on a computer browser rather than the phone app if you can. Intuit's own reject articles tell mobile app users to exit the app, open a browser and sign in to MyTurboTax.com to follow the fix steps.

Once signed in, select Fix my return. TurboTax shows the rejection code, such as IND-031-04, next to a plain-English explanation. Write the code down before you change anything; you will want it if the same reject returns.

How to fix a rejected return in TurboTax Online

Intuit's help article on rejected returns lays out a four-step path for TurboTax Online:

1. Sign in to TurboTax.
2. Select Fix my return to see the rejection code and explanation.
3. Select Fix it now and follow the prompts to update the information that caused the reject.
4. When the error is fixed, select File and follow the instructions to e-file again or to file by mail.

Some fixes happen outside the guided screen, for example editing a dependent in the Personal Info section. In that case Intuit describes a different way back to the send step: select File in the menu, choose Continue on the Welcome back screen instead of Fix my return, then select Start next to Step 3 to refile.

Turbotax my return was rejected for AGI: the fastest route

For the two AGI codes, the Fix it now (or Revisit) screen asks for last year's AGI directly, then offers a Continue to refile button. The details, including when zero is the right entry, are in TurboTax rejected AGI.

TurboTax Desktop: resend from the File section

In the Desktop program the fix happens on the computer where the return file is saved. Open TurboTax Desktop, open the rejected return and select Fix my return. Follow the prompts, then go to the File section to transmit again.

• Open the same return file you transmitted from, on the computer where it is saved, so the fix and the resend apply to the rejected return.
• Accept any update TurboTax offers before you resend, so the return goes out with current forms.
• Stay connected to the internet until the transmission screen confirms the return was sent.

Rejected returns for earlier tax years

Intuit states that a rejected return for tax year 2024 or earlier has to be fixed in TurboTax Desktop and mailed. If you are still sorting out an older year, you may first need the file itself; see download a prior-year return from TurboTax.

Why TurboTax keeps rejecting my return

A repeat rejection usually means the correction went into the wrong place or used the wrong source. The codes below are the ones Intuit has dedicated fix articles for, with the document each one needs.

For the last code, the full walk-through is in TurboTax Form 1095-A rejection. What each IRS business rule means legally is outside what this site covers; here the focus is where to change the entry in the software.

Four reasons the same code comes back

• Amended AGI used. If you amended last year, the IRS still matches the AGI from the return you first filed.
• Rounding. Round 50 cents or more up and 49 cents or less down, the way Intuit instructs.
• Split joint AGI. Spouses who filed jointly last year both enter the same full AGI, not half each and not zero for one.
• Name formatting. A hyphen, a missing middle initial or a married name not yet updated with Social Security can trigger R0000-500-01 again.

If you have checked the source document and the reject still repeats, Intuit's fallback is to print the return and file it by mail. The rejected return resubmission guide explains the 10-day paper window.

Does TurboTax charge again to refile?

Intuit's article on fixing a rejected return does not list any new fee or purchase step in the refile path. You are correcting the return you already prepared, and the steps return you to the File section of the same account.

Read any payment screen before you confirm it. If the fix means adding a form that your current edition does not cover, the software may offer an upgrade; treat that as a separate product choice, not a fee for the rejection.

After you resend a TurboTax federal return rejected earlier

Once you transmit again, TurboTax shows the return as sent and waits for a new acknowledgment. The IRS says you can start checking status within 24 hours of it receiving an e-filed return.

• State return: a state return tied to a rejected federal return is denied too. Resend it after the federal is accepted; see TurboTax state return rejected.
• No update for days: if the status never moves past sent or pending, that is a transmission problem, not a rejection; see TurboTax stuck on transmitting.
• Deadline week: if your first submission went out on or before the due date, the corrected one stays timely through the fifth calendar day after it.