Which IB tax reports may be imported into TurboTax?

The only tax report for which IB supports import to TurboTax is the Worksheet for Form 8949. This IRS form is used by U.S. persons to report the sales of securities. It also serves to reconcile balances reported on Form 1099-B and provides summary computations for Schedule D.

How does file import work?

File import begins by logging into Account Management, selecting and downloading the file to your desktop and then importing from within TurboTax application. detailed steps for completing this process may be found within KB2030.

Do all versions of TurboTax support this file import feature?

No. While IB produces a file in a TurboTax Tax Exchange Format (.TXF), not all TurboTax applications accommodate this file import feature.  As a general guideline, the CD/download versions support this feature and the online versions do not.  Note, however, that this is only a guideline and the actual functionality may vary depending the specific CD/download software package your are using (e.g., Basic, Deluxe, Premier, Home & Business, Business) and whether you are using a mobile or tablet version.  Please refer to www.turbotax.intuit.com for additional details.

Is the .TXF file compatible with both the Windows and Mac operating systems?

Yes, subject to the guidelines and considerations noted above.

Is the .TXF file provided for all IB account types?
Yes, subject to the following:

1, The account is question has qualifying transactions required to be reported on the Worksheet for Form 8949; and

2. Those transactions do not include IRS required codes which TurboTax does not support.  If this is the case you will receive an error message when attempting to download the TXF file (i.e., “Your import file contains IRS required information, the import of which is not supported by TurboTax”). Here, TurboTax offers an alternative method which allows one to enter summary numbers from the worksheets into the electronic version of Form 8949, file electronically and mail in a schedules of trades thereafter. Detailed instructions for this method may be found within KB2026.

Does IB support the export of the Worksheet for Form 8949 in any other format?

Yes. In addition to the TurboTax .TXF format, IB supports the download of this worksheet in a Comma-Separated Values, or .CSV file format.  Files in this format can be opened in applications such as Microsoft Excel, Open Office Calc or Google Docs. The .CSV file format is not supported for purposes of import to TurboTax

Is there a transaction limit for TXF import?

While there is no transaction limit enforced by IB, TurboTax restricts the import to files containing no more than between 2,000 to 2,500 transactions for system performance purposes.  Note that the precise limit depends upon the volume of data in each transaction, which explains why TurboTax cannot provide an exact number.  In the event the import of a file containing transactions above the threshold is attempted, an error message will appear (e.g., “The selected file contains no importable tax information. Please select a different file”).  IB is not aware of any workaround for this restriction and suggest that you contact TurboTax Support for assistance.

Are there any dollar amount limits associated with the TXF file?

Yes. Again, while IB imposes no limits, TurboTax has a 9-digit limit in data entry fields; when exceeding that limit, you'll receive a message similar to “The value is too large for this field”