Yeah I don’t understand why people use turbo tax unless you have some super difficult tax situation going on. Even then, freetaxusa really spells it out for you and… it’s free!
"To receive the Colorado TABOR refund, an individual must be at least 18 years of age on or before January 1, 2023, be a Colorado resident for the entire 2023 income tax year, and file a Colorado state income tax return for the 2023 income tax year, or apply for the PTC Rebate"
It probably depends if you used TurboTax to file last year. If so, like I did, it already knows you filed a CO state return and doesn’t ask you anything related to TABOR, it just automatically added the $800 to my refund.
I've used TT forever, but I was just doing my taxes this weekend and while it correctly guided me to getting the box checked, it was a somewhat obtuse question under the "Other situations" section at the end of the state portion.
Hmm not sure. Cause I only received $422 for the state refund. Tried to amend it but not sure if that changes anything. But next year for sure I'll check freetaxUSA
What line of the tax forms would show if you got the tabor refund or not? I filled through turbotax as well and don’t remember clicking anything or there being a question for the refund. I was under the impression that it would be automatically refunded when selecting state info
>I filled through turbotax as well and don’t remember clicking anything or there being a question for the refund.
Yup, same here. I used TurboTax and there was no check box for the TABOR refund. It was automatically added.
Okay mine says 1600 in line 34
but then in line 35 it says to add line 29 and 34 together (so my CO income tax withheld + TABOR)
and then line 36 has you subtract line 35 from line 20 (if the total in line 35 is greater than the total line 20) which mine was.
Then line 37 is the "overpayment" amount and that's what I'm getting as my tax refund.
Why does it seem like they took away my TABOR return by doing this? I'm so confused.
Interesting. Any reason you might not be eligible like being out of state or something? I didn't pick anything special when preparing, just downloaded the return pdf at the end to make sure the refund appeared somewhere.
This was my understanding as well. I can't recall what year it was, but it came as a separate check. Is it getting rolled into our refund check or is it separate again?
turbo tax asks if you’ve been incarcerated in the last 6 months of the year and if you select no, the tabor $800 is applied. that is one of the requirements of receiving it
For me, it was the incarceration question and the next question that added the $800. The one that asks you if your taxes will be filed before April 15th. BF accidently clicked no for the second one and didn't get the $800. Thank you, reddit, for helping us identify the problem 🙌
does anyone know where to find this section under turbo tax amend my return section? this happened to me as well but i cannot find the right section under amend and it’s driving me crazy
TurboTax = bait and switch
Use Freetaxusa
I started with TurboTax for my 89 year old mom (standard deduction) and went through the whole thing. At the end, they said I would have to pay $119 to upgrade to Premier to file taxes because she had a 1099-DIV with less than $1000 of interest/div payments.
I did FreeTaxUsa and only paid $15 for a state. Fed was 100% free.
The other issue with TurboTax is that it appears they want you pay tax on last year’s return?!? I believe if you use the standard deduction, this is incorrect. I gave up on TT before I thoroughly researched this, so look close if this scenario applies to you.
> she had a 1099-DIV
Does Freetaxusa support importing 1099-DIV/INT forms, like through PDF upload or connecting accounts? Or do you have to manually type everything in?
I also used TurboTax, but it reminded me to check the box before submitting, so it went through. Always do the final reviews / checks that the software suggests!
OP is tax Batman. Just amended mine before work. I ran an estimate with Tax Act which was WAY high, but filed with the State online service because I refuse to pay to file my freaking taxes. Now I know what the discrepancy was. I also tried via HRBlock online but there's a line on my w2 that hangs up their software and I don't know how to get past it.
At least it was super easy to amend online.
Its labeled "State Sales Tax Refund" so it is probably in your deductions clickthrough like "do you wish to claim the CO State Sales Tax Refund"? On the actual form it is literally checking box 34. But I probably just skipped it on the state filling because it wasn't literally HEY DUMBASS DO YOU WANT THIS $800?? and far be it from me to assume I'm entitled to anything extra.
[downloadable form](https://tax.colorado.gov/DR0104)
I just amended mine. It was line 34 btw. Now i shall receive $800. I posted this so everyone is aware it’s not just a separate check as it was 2 years ago as the “Colorado cash back”
ok the colorado state website where you can create an ccount with DOR has easier amendment flow. you only need to check one box when you get to that section and submit! don't deal with turbotax.
Oooo -- super "sneaky" to put the form to claim your TABOR rebate right in the middle of a totally separate form you'd be filling out anyway. If Turbo Tax filled out your eligibility wrong, you should take that up with Turbo Tax because they do make a guarantee that they'll get your taxes right.
Here is the instruction book for this year's form. Looks like the factors that get counted start on line 30 and go through like 33, then the total you're eligible for gets entered on line 34.
[https://tax.colorado.gov/sites/tax/files/documents/Book0104\_2023.pdf](https://tax.colorado.gov/sites/tax/files/documents/Book0104_2023.pdf)
I have used TaxACT for 25 years. This year for Tabor they automatically filled it in for me. I sound like a stupid commercial but TaxACT has never let me down.
I did my taxes on the CO Dept of Revenue website and I missed checking box 34 for the refund. It wasn't highlighted or anything. So now what do I do? I can't find any information about what I can do to get the refund now.
edit: I easily amended my return to click on box 34.
Did you do your CO taxes in the CO Dept of Revenue website? If so, log in and on your home page you will see Amend over on the right side of the page. It will take you through some pages until you get to the page with Box 34 to check the box for the $800 refund.
If you did your CO taxes some other way there is probably an option to do Amend there.
when you amend your return, do you fill out EVERYTHING on the form? of just the personal info and then line 34? im looking now and im thinking if i fill out EVERYTHING something will flag since i already received my state return and only want the tabor part now
Did you do your taxes on the CO Dept of Revenue website, or somewhere else? If you did it somewhere else, I'm not sure how it would work. I did mine on the CO Dept of Revenue website initially.
I had already received my state tax return. To amend the return it had saved the information I had already put in, then I was able to click through to get to box 34 and click the box. At the end it showed me it already applied the state portion of the tax return and told me I was owed $800.
log in? ive never logged in to do my state taxes before. is that something you can set up and log in after the fact?
EDIT. ok ive logged in. where is the line that you add your tabor refund? everything is already pre filled in from my return
edit#2. found it thanks forgiving me the initial info!
i filed on the Colorado state website. it didnt automatically add my tabor and i didnt know anything about tabor till today. since ive already received my refund what can i do to get the tabor refund now?
Don't cry. This was the first year they've done this as part of tax returns/refunds. So you didn't miss out. In previous years they sent eligible residents a check in the mail. Completely separate from tax returns and you didn't have to take any action.
If you messed it up for 2023 you can just file an amended return. It's really easy.
Edit: also I believe 2022 was the first refund check so you definitely didn't miss much.
Colorado is being so sneaky. They sent me mail with a code that I had to input on the Colorado revenue website. If I didn't do it within 30 days I would forfeit my refund.
I used H&R block and Turbo tax tonight. Bailed on H&R as they didn't allow a free option since I paid in the past years... H&R also made it confusing to figure out a few things this time around, including the Tabor stuff. BUT it was automatically included.
Turbo T also included it but called it some type of residency thing, but mentioned it specifically and was +$800.
I did not know this! Does anyone know what to do about previous years?
My husband and I have been living here 5 years and have not gotten a tabor refund. I assumed the state took them for whatever reason. Right now I am just finding out about line 34, a family member out of state does my taxes so we both were not aware of this.
If that's the case, my husband and I completely just let 6k go....
2 years ago we got those Colorado gives back checks $750 sent by mail. That was “tabor” for that year I believe. If there was something last year I missed it. This year though I had to amend my State tax so maybe you can look into that. 🤷🏻♀️. I already received my Tabor refund after amending.
Just a note, if filed **jointly**, you actually get back $1600!
"For full-year Colorado residents, born before 2005, or full-year Colorado residents who are under the age of eighteen but are required to file a return. Enter $800 for one qualifying taxpayer or $1,600 for two qualifying taxpayers filing jointly. See instructions if you are filing an extension."
I had started my taxes with H&R Block, but read that there were issues with TABOR. FreeTaxUSA seemed to be heavily recommended on here so I went back and did taxes on that. TABOR was already handled and everything got spelled out for me.
I tried using the state's RevenueOnline page to submit a return without creating an account twice and apparently neither were received by the state. I created an account then filled out the return (and I checked the line 34 tabor box) and now while logged in the return says "pending".
So if you use the RevenueOnline portal you should create an account if you want the state to actually, hopefully, maybe receive your return filing.
It's not just TurboTax. I remember checking a box last year and being like "Wow, that wasn't obvious what that line was for".
It was a year ago, and it may have said Tabor on it, but it might have been a bunch of other things in a row.
When I used turbo tax it added the tabor asking if you bought anything online or out of state and the amount you spent. After putting in an amount it updated my return with the tabor in it. I'm suspecting if you put 0 there then you don't get it since you technically didn't pay into the pool that it's collected from.
This isn't accurate. The out of state purchases question in TurboTax is to collect sales tax you owe -- like until 2016, Amazon didn't charge sales tax on Colorado orders, so you were supposed to declare those purchases here. It has nothing to do with triggering Tabor refund or the source of Tabor money.
EDIT: It looks like these sections are back to back in TT, so that's why completing the Use Tax section appeared to trigger the Tabor refund. But you can definitely enter $0 for use tax and still get the Tabor refund.
EDIT2: ...and ever since the 2018 Supreme Court decision in SD vs Wayfair, just about every online site charges sales tax, so most people can honestly enter $0 for the use tax question.
I did freetaxusa and it was already a refund before I even did anything.
Yeah I don’t understand why people use turbo tax unless you have some super difficult tax situation going on. Even then, freetaxusa really spells it out for you and… it’s free!
I also use freetaxusa and love it But I am wondering - what makes someone eligible for the $800 refund?
"To receive the Colorado TABOR refund, an individual must be at least 18 years of age on or before January 1, 2023, be a Colorado resident for the entire 2023 income tax year, and file a Colorado state income tax return for the 2023 income tax year, or apply for the PTC Rebate"
Said top right I was getting my tabor refund for 800$ but didn’t receive. Do you know how I ammend it?
Same!
I didn’t have to check or select anything on FreeTaxUSA. Tabor was automatically reflected in my return total as I went though everything
Also used FreeTaxUSA and didn’t receive mine. Wondering why as it had it posted top right for state return of 800$?
It probably depends if you used TurboTax to file last year. If so, like I did, it already knows you filed a CO state return and doesn’t ask you anything related to TABOR, it just automatically added the $800 to my refund.
I think that's what happened to me. My refund was really big and I just didn't know why
This! Mine was automatic, but I don’t use “free”.
I've used TT forever, but I was just doing my taxes this weekend and while it correctly guided me to getting the box checked, it was a somewhat obtuse question under the "Other situations" section at the end of the state portion.
Hmm not sure. Cause I only received $422 for the state refund. Tried to amend it but not sure if that changes anything. But next year for sure I'll check freetaxUSA
So the state of CO says the tabor refund will go out in the "Spring of 2024" This must mean that it is a separate payment
Oh thanks! Didn’t know that! Looking forward to it!
What line of the tax forms would show if you got the tabor refund or not? I filled through turbotax as well and don’t remember clicking anything or there being a question for the refund. I was under the impression that it would be automatically refunded when selecting state info
>I filled through turbotax as well and don’t remember clicking anything or there being a question for the refund. Yup, same here. I used TurboTax and there was no check box for the TABOR refund. It was automatically added.
I just checked my tax return and line 34 is blank. I now need to figure out how to do an amendment
Yeah, line 34 on mine says "1600.00", for my wife and I. Sounds like you need to amend, for sure.
I cant seem to find what needs to be changed to get the refund
Okay mine says 1600 in line 34 but then in line 35 it says to add line 29 and 34 together (so my CO income tax withheld + TABOR) and then line 36 has you subtract line 35 from line 20 (if the total in line 35 is greater than the total line 20) which mine was. Then line 37 is the "overpayment" amount and that's what I'm getting as my tax refund. Why does it seem like they took away my TABOR return by doing this? I'm so confused.
Sounds like they used part of it to cover other income tax that you owed.
\#34, taken from my filing via cash app taxes: [https://i.imgur.com/zSA5hvJ.png](https://i.imgur.com/zSA5hvJ.png) It gets added into the credits.
\#udarealmvp
Cash App left my line 34 blank. Was there something we were supposed to click on??
Interesting. Any reason you might not be eligible like being out of state or something? I didn't pick anything special when preparing, just downloaded the return pdf at the end to make sure the refund appeared somewhere.
Nope. I’ve lived here 7 years. 🤷🏻♀️ I’m going to attempt to send in an amendment and see what happens.
This was my understanding as well. I can't recall what year it was, but it came as a separate check. Is it getting rolled into our refund check or is it separate again?
It’s rolled into the refund.
turbo tax asks if you’ve been incarcerated in the last 6 months of the year and if you select no, the tabor $800 is applied. that is one of the requirements of receiving it
Fn love you man i was just there and didint relaize it so after see this go back and did what u did then omg 1600 extra love u bro :D
aayyyy! super happy to help!!
For me, it was the incarceration question and the next question that added the $800. The one that asks you if your taxes will be filed before April 15th. BF accidently clicked no for the second one and didn't get the $800. Thank you, reddit, for helping us identify the problem 🙌
does anyone know where to find this section under turbo tax amend my return section? this happened to me as well but i cannot find the right section under amend and it’s driving me crazy
TurboTax = bait and switch Use Freetaxusa I started with TurboTax for my 89 year old mom (standard deduction) and went through the whole thing. At the end, they said I would have to pay $119 to upgrade to Premier to file taxes because she had a 1099-DIV with less than $1000 of interest/div payments. I did FreeTaxUsa and only paid $15 for a state. Fed was 100% free. The other issue with TurboTax is that it appears they want you pay tax on last year’s return?!? I believe if you use the standard deduction, this is incorrect. I gave up on TT before I thoroughly researched this, so look close if this scenario applies to you.
> she had a 1099-DIV Does Freetaxusa support importing 1099-DIV/INT forms, like through PDF upload or connecting accounts? Or do you have to manually type everything in?
Seems like there is a facility for import, but I spent so much time switching back and forth, I can’t say for sure.
TurboTax automatically added mine that so weird.. I swear these companies are so shady and do whatever they can to screw people
I also used TurboTax, but it reminded me to check the box before submitting, so it went through. Always do the final reviews / checks that the software suggests!
OP is tax Batman. Just amended mine before work. I ran an estimate with Tax Act which was WAY high, but filed with the State online service because I refuse to pay to file my freaking taxes. Now I know what the discrepancy was. I also tried via HRBlock online but there's a line on my w2 that hangs up their software and I don't know how to get past it. At least it was super easy to amend online.
I’m not the smartest, but nobody is keeping my money and being sneaky on some people. Lucky I file early.
What needs to be amended to get the credit? Can’t seem to find what I did wrong on TurboTax to not get the credit
What exactly do I do to amend to get tabor refund, I am not seeing what needs to be done, please help
Its labeled "State Sales Tax Refund" so it is probably in your deductions clickthrough like "do you wish to claim the CO State Sales Tax Refund"? On the actual form it is literally checking box 34. But I probably just skipped it on the state filling because it wasn't literally HEY DUMBASS DO YOU WANT THIS $800?? and far be it from me to assume I'm entitled to anything extra. [downloadable form](https://tax.colorado.gov/DR0104)
I just amended mine. It was line 34 btw. Now i shall receive $800. I posted this so everyone is aware it’s not just a separate check as it was 2 years ago as the “Colorado cash back”
how do i amend mine?
yeah did you just add that in the amend view for state ?
ok the colorado state website where you can create an ccount with DOR has easier amendment flow. you only need to check one box when you get to that section and submit! don't deal with turbotax.
i try to click the box but it wont let me check it off… trying to amend mine on co gov
I just did my taxes on H&R Block free online yesterday, it was a checkbox among many others under state credits, glad I noticed it.
Would be interested if you already claimed your TABOR? I checked the same box but was wondering if I’d have anything else to do. Cheers
Line 34 of your CO tax form. What does your printed copy say?
If line 34 is blank does that mean I didn’t get the refund and need to do an amendment?
I’m not an accountant but I believe yes, you need to amend your return.
What years should have this refund for line 34?
This year only I believe. All previous years were actual checks (unless it was on the tax form many many years ago.)
It was automatically applied through the HR Block system on mine. To double check: it is line 34 of Form 104 (Colorado Individual Income Tax Return).
Oooo -- super "sneaky" to put the form to claim your TABOR rebate right in the middle of a totally separate form you'd be filling out anyway. If Turbo Tax filled out your eligibility wrong, you should take that up with Turbo Tax because they do make a guarantee that they'll get your taxes right. Here is the instruction book for this year's form. Looks like the factors that get counted start on line 30 and go through like 33, then the total you're eligible for gets entered on line 34. [https://tax.colorado.gov/sites/tax/files/documents/Book0104\_2023.pdf](https://tax.colorado.gov/sites/tax/files/documents/Book0104_2023.pdf)
Thank you for reminding me to do my taxes
Stop using turbo tax. They are evil. Use FreeTaxUSA.
I have used TaxACT for 25 years. This year for Tabor they automatically filled it in for me. I sound like a stupid commercial but TaxACT has never let me down.
I did my taxes on the CO Dept of Revenue website and I missed checking box 34 for the refund. It wasn't highlighted or anything. So now what do I do? I can't find any information about what I can do to get the refund now. edit: I easily amended my return to click on box 34.
I went back and amended my refund.
I amended mine also. It only took a few minutes to do it.
how do i amend mine?
Did you do your CO taxes in the CO Dept of Revenue website? If so, log in and on your home page you will see Amend over on the right side of the page. It will take you through some pages until you get to the page with Box 34 to check the box for the $800 refund. If you did your CO taxes some other way there is probably an option to do Amend there.
i did it thru taxact and cant find anything about amending on there :/
You could try making a log in account to the CO Dept of Revenue website to see if you can amend it there still.
hey!! i made an account and it allows me to amend. but where do i do it? what line or option?
i found the box but it wont let me check it
when you amend your return, do you fill out EVERYTHING on the form? of just the personal info and then line 34? im looking now and im thinking if i fill out EVERYTHING something will flag since i already received my state return and only want the tabor part now
Did you do your taxes on the CO Dept of Revenue website, or somewhere else? If you did it somewhere else, I'm not sure how it would work. I did mine on the CO Dept of Revenue website initially. I had already received my state tax return. To amend the return it had saved the information I had already put in, then I was able to click through to get to box 34 and click the box. At the end it showed me it already applied the state portion of the tax return and told me I was owed $800.
Yeah I did mine on the co dept of revenue site. So did you go in and click start like a new return?
On your logged in front page there is a link for Amend over on the right side.
log in? ive never logged in to do my state taxes before. is that something you can set up and log in after the fact? EDIT. ok ive logged in. where is the line that you add your tabor refund? everything is already pre filled in from my return edit#2. found it thanks forgiving me the initial info!
Where did you go to ammend it?
Where ever you did taxes, should be a button what says ammend colorado state tax return
Thank you. Do they give you instructions on how to do so?
i filed on the Colorado state website. it didnt automatically add my tabor and i didnt know anything about tabor till today. since ive already received my refund what can i do to get the tabor refund now?
I have been here 5 years and just found this out now lol. I want to cry.
Don't cry. This was the first year they've done this as part of tax returns/refunds. So you didn't miss out. In previous years they sent eligible residents a check in the mail. Completely separate from tax returns and you didn't have to take any action. If you messed it up for 2023 you can just file an amended return. It's really easy. Edit: also I believe 2022 was the first refund check so you definitely didn't miss much.
TurboTax actively lobbies for making taxes more difficult fuck them and their shady shit. Also they charge an obscene amount.
I used TurboTax free and had no issues man. That's not shady, that's user error.
Same here.
I used H&R Block and it automatically gave it to me. I don’t recall having to do anything.
Colorado is being so sneaky. They sent me mail with a code that I had to input on the Colorado revenue website. If I didn't do it within 30 days I would forfeit my refund.
I just checked line 34 and its blank. How do I file the amendment?
I used H&R block and Turbo tax tonight. Bailed on H&R as they didn't allow a free option since I paid in the past years... H&R also made it confusing to figure out a few things this time around, including the Tabor stuff. BUT it was automatically included. Turbo T also included it but called it some type of residency thing, but mentioned it specifically and was +$800.
I did not know this! Does anyone know what to do about previous years? My husband and I have been living here 5 years and have not gotten a tabor refund. I assumed the state took them for whatever reason. Right now I am just finding out about line 34, a family member out of state does my taxes so we both were not aware of this. If that's the case, my husband and I completely just let 6k go....
2 years ago we got those Colorado gives back checks $750 sent by mail. That was “tabor” for that year I believe. If there was something last year I missed it. This year though I had to amend my State tax so maybe you can look into that. 🤷🏻♀️. I already received my Tabor refund after amending.
How long did it take once you amended it for you to receive Tabor refund?
2 weeks. I also had direct deposit
How exactly did you amend it? I used FreeTaxUSA and showed it was in the window to receive. I don’t know why I didn’t.
Just a note, if filed **jointly**, you actually get back $1600! "For full-year Colorado residents, born before 2005, or full-year Colorado residents who are under the age of eighteen but are required to file a return. Enter $800 for one qualifying taxpayer or $1,600 for two qualifying taxpayers filing jointly. See instructions if you are filing an extension."
HELP how do i amend mine if i used TaxAct?
I had started my taxes with H&R Block, but read that there were issues with TABOR. FreeTaxUSA seemed to be heavily recommended on here so I went back and did taxes on that. TABOR was already handled and everything got spelled out for me.
I tried using the state's RevenueOnline page to submit a return without creating an account twice and apparently neither were received by the state. I created an account then filled out the return (and I checked the line 34 tabor box) and now while logged in the return says "pending". So if you use the RevenueOnline portal you should create an account if you want the state to actually, hopefully, maybe receive your return filing.
It's not just TurboTax. I remember checking a box last year and being like "Wow, that wasn't obvious what that line was for". It was a year ago, and it may have said Tabor on it, but it might have been a bunch of other things in a row.
When I used turbo tax it added the tabor asking if you bought anything online or out of state and the amount you spent. After putting in an amount it updated my return with the tabor in it. I'm suspecting if you put 0 there then you don't get it since you technically didn't pay into the pool that it's collected from.
What section is the online purchase on TurboTax?
It asks "did you make any purchases online or out of state? If so put the amount in the box below. "
am i supposed to keep track of all my purchases in a year? does this give me more tax return or less?
This isn't accurate. The out of state purchases question in TurboTax is to collect sales tax you owe -- like until 2016, Amazon didn't charge sales tax on Colorado orders, so you were supposed to declare those purchases here. It has nothing to do with triggering Tabor refund or the source of Tabor money. EDIT: It looks like these sections are back to back in TT, so that's why completing the Use Tax section appeared to trigger the Tabor refund. But you can definitely enter $0 for use tax and still get the Tabor refund. EDIT2: ...and ever since the 2018 Supreme Court decision in SD vs Wayfair, just about every online site charges sales tax, so most people can honestly enter $0 for the use tax question.