- Transferring Last Year's Info (Mac)
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Transferring Last Year's Tax Info Using TurboTax for Mac
Updated: 1/22/2009
Article ID: 1793
With TurboTax, you can easily transfer relevant information from last year's tax return into your 2008 return. In this article, learn how to transfer from your TurboTax for Mac 2007 return to either a TurboTax Mac or Online 2008 return.
Select a link to learn how to transfer last year's TurboTax for Mac return:
- Before you start
- Transfer 2007 Mac return to TurboTax 2008 for Mac
- Transfer 2007 Mac return to TurboTax Online
- Other notes about transferring
Before you start
- Be sure to update TurboTax before you begin to ensure you have the latest forms and features installed.
- Have your tax file ready. You don't need last year's TurboTax program on your computer, but you must have access to last year's tax file in .tax format. If you don't remember where it is, find your return on your computer before you start.
- Transfer your information into a new TurboTax return. If you've already started your 2008 return, any information you've already entered is removed when you transfer.
Transfer to TurboTax for Mac
Here's how to transfer from your TurboTax for Mac 2007 return to TurboTax for Mac 2008:
- You need access to last year's tax return file, such as on your hard drive or a storage device (such as a floppy disk, CD, or other storage media).
- Open TurboTax and select Start New Return.
- TurboTax looks for prior year tax return files on your computer and asks if you'd like to transfer your return. If your file is listed here, select the file, and then select Transfer Return.
- If your file is not listed, select Browse to locate the file. Once you locate the file, highlight it and select Choose. Then, select Transfer Return.
- The relevant information is transferred from your 2007 return to your TurboTax 2008 return. You can review transferred information and add, edit, or delete items as necessary. (See Review, Edit, or Delete Transferred or Imported Information.)
Transfer to TurboTax Online
Here's how to transfer from your TurboTax for Mac 2007 return to TurboTax Online 2008:
- You need last year's TurboTax for Mac return file on your hard drive or a storage device (such as a floppy disk, CD, or other storage media). (See Find Your Return on Your Computer.) The default file name for Mac users is [FirstName] [LastName] 07.
- Rename the tax return file to add a .tax extension. For example, if last year's TurboTax for Mac return was named John Smith 07, rename it John Smith 07.tax.
- To launch TurboTax Online, go to www.turbotax.com and select the Online Products tab.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to select the product you want to use, and then create an account and sign in to TurboTax Online.
- At the Welcome screen, select Start a New Return. When asked if you used TurboTax last year, select Yes.
- At the Transfer TurboTax Information screen, select Browse. Navigate to your tax return file on your computer's hard drive, select the file, and then select Open. (Remember the default file name for Mac users is [FirstName] [LastName] 07.)
- Select Transfer Return, and then select OK to confirm the transfer.
- The relevant information is transferred from your 2007 return to your TurboTax 2008 return. You can review transferred information and add, edit, or delete items as necessary. (See Review, Edit, or Delete Transferred or Imported Information.)
Note: If you're using a Safari browser and having trouble transferring, try using the Firefox browser. See TurboTax Online Browser Support for a link to the most compatible version of Firefox.
Other notes about transferring
For more information, see Transferring in TurboTax.
- Always transfer from a prior year before you import information from financial software, such as Quicken or QuickBooks, or from financial institutions, such as a payroll provider or mortgage lender.
- You can only transfer information from one tax return. Information from additional returns must be entered manually.
- You can only transfer information from the prior tax year. For example, you can only transfer 2007 tax information to TurboTax 2008.
- .PDF files cannot be transferred. A .PDF file is a picture of your tax return, used primarily for record keeping and is not a data file. Be sure to save your tax return as a .tax file for transferring purposes.
- You can't transfer from TaxCut or TaxACT to TurboTax for the Mac. If you want to transfer from these products, try one of our TurboTax Windows desktop products.
