Drake Software error codes and what to do about each

Where are Drake error codes explained?

Drake Software explains its error codes in the Drake knowledge base at kb.drakesoftware.com, where most articles are titled Drake Tax followed by the message or number. Search it with the exact wording of the message rather than a paraphrase. Tax Software Desk is independent and is not affiliated with Drake Software.

Drake software error codes fall into two families. Program errors come from Windows or the software itself and stop Drake from opening, updating or saving. EF messages and acknowledgments are raised when a return is checked for e-file or after it is sent, and they block transmission until the input is corrected.

What does Drake tax error 20 mean?

As of September 2026, Drake's public knowledge base has no article that defines a message shown only as error 20, so we cannot give you a verified meaning. Guessing would risk sending you to the wrong fix.

1. Copy the complete message, including any text or file path after the number.
2. Note the action that triggered it: opening Drake, logging in, opening a return, updating or transmitting.
3. Search kb.drakesoftware.com for the full message text.
4. If the message mentions a path or drive, check Setup > Data Locations and confirm the drive is mapped and reachable.
5. If nothing matches, contact Drake Support through its support site with the message and the steps above.

Drake software error 70: Permission Denied

Drake software error 70 means a file or folder cannot be opened because of security settings at the file, folder, drive or network level. Drake says each user must have full permission to read and modify every folder inside DrakeYY, where YY is the tax year.

If error 70 appears when opening Drake

1. Log in to Windows as an administrator.
2. Right-click the Drake desktop icon, choose Properties and confirm the Target points to the correct Drake program file.
3. Open the FT folder inside DrakeYY and start DrakeYY.exe directly. If it opens, delete the old shortcut and create a new one.

If error 70 appears during login or while working

1. Right-click the DrakeYY folder, choose Properties and clear the Read-only box, applying it to all subfolders and files.
2. Give each Drake user Full Control, or Read and Write (Modify), on all DrakeYY subfolders.
3. On a peer-to-peer network, confirm the sharing paths at Setup > Data Locations.
4. Restart the computer and repeat the action that failed.

Drake tax application error: Drake has encountered a problem

The Drake tax application error that reads Drake Tax has encountered a problem and needs to close has three causes in Drake's article: antivirus interference, backup services such as Carbonite competing for the same files, and low system memory on older computers.

• Let a running backup finish before opening Drake, and schedule backups outside business hours.
• Add Drake to your antivirus exclusions following Drake's antivirus configuration article.
• Open Task Manager with Ctrl + Shift + Esc and close programs you do not need to free memory.

Install, update and sign-in errors

For the authentication message, copy the case-sensitive e-file password from Account > E-File Password on the Drake Support website and paste it into the ERO setup screen instead of typing it. Then click Test Account, close and reopen Drake so it can take updates, and confirm the firewall allows Drake to transmit. Older builds may call it the BBS password.

Drake tax software reject codes and EF messages

Drake tax software reject codes are IRS or state business rules returned in the acknowledgment; Drake shows them after you run EF > Process Acks. To read one, open EF > Search EF Database, enter the SSN and click the underlined code, or use the F4 - Reject Code Lookup tab. Pressing F10 on that screen opens Drake's online reject database.

EF messages are different: Drake raises them before transmission, in the EF > Select Returns for EF screen, and a return with an open message cannot be sent. Double-click the message to read it. A return calculated more than 7 days earlier is grayed out until you recalculate it and confirm no new messages appear.

• EF message 5299: the requested payment date on the PMT screen breaks IRS rules, which would cause IRS reject FPYMT-072-01. A later debit date has to be scheduled through irs.gov/payments or EFTPS instead.
• EF message 5630: tied to foreign income or foreign tax entries for Form 1116; the fix depends on which screens were used, per Drake's Form 1116 FAQ.
• DRKPARSE acknowledgment: Drake's own pre-IRS check failed, so the return was not sent. Typical causes are a paired field left half blank, an invalid value such as a negative number or a hyphen in a ZIP code, a blank referenced form or incomplete spouse details.

When Drake returns go missing from the EF screens

If a return does not appear when you search by SSN or EIN, Drake's EF troubleshooting article lists a repair sequence. Work through it in order and review each warning, because the return repair can remove unneeded state files.

1. Confirm Setup > Data Locations points to the right folder, then recalculate the return.
2. Delete print files at Tools > File Maintenance > Delete Print Files.
3. Run Tools > Repair Index Files > Repair all indexes.
4. Open the return and press Ctrl + Shift + R on the main data entry screen to repair it.
5. Recalculate and check the EF selector again.

If you also use another professional program, compare how it handles the same problems in our ProSeries error codes and UltraTax error codes guides, or go back to the professional tax software hub.