Review of IRS-Authorized E-Filer Online Taxes at OLT.com 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟

reveurgam (60)in #review • 5 years ago (edited)

This is my review of the 2018 IRS-Authorized tax e-filer, Online Taxes at OLT.com. My original article, Review of IRS FreeFile Companies, became too big to keep as one article. Go there for all the details of my test of the 12 providers, and links to the reviews of each.

IRS FreeFile - Should I Use It? - Plus Earned Income & Child Credits is the prologue to this series - you may want to start there. It includes a chart based on both what the IRS reported about each provider and a few changes I made based on what I discovered, as well as other info about e-filing, including the Earned Income and Child Tax Credits, and my explanation of the criteria I used to test each provider.

I figured I wouldn't have any luck but most people probably won't encounter the problems I did. In any event, I suggest that you do the 1040 paper version (or you can edit the PDFs on your computer, which I think is easier) to make sure the provider you choose doesn't screw up before you e-file. Also, again, remember that I used special circumstances to test these providers - many people will not encounter these problems!

Note: "Option to donate to Presidential Election Campaign Fund:" refers to the opportunity to have $3 contributed to the election campaign, but doesn't cost you anything. It appears to come out of the taxes paid. It also pays for pediatric medical research.

Note: Customer Service Support types are those that are offered free-of-charge for free e-filing. Certain companies offer phone support for paying customers.

Note: The word "responsive" below is a programming word that means that the program changes what you see on the same page and ensuing pages. For example, if you answered "yes" to having gotten married this year, it would show you fields to enter info about your new spouse, but if you answered "no", that wouldn't appear or - if shown already - would disappear. Responsiveness is programming that is designed to make your experience more pleasing, easier and it adjusts to your screen-size (which is called "mobile first").

Given the complexity of tax laws these days, and the peculiarities of the scenario I set up, I am not surprised that every company had a problem helping me, and some either refused to or couldn't because of site limitations. All companies offered some sort of FAQ/written help section, but they varied in quality, completeness and accuracy.

THIS TEST SCENARIO DOES NOT TEST ALL POSSIBLE SPECIAL SITUATIONS, AND SOME ASPECTS OF IT ARE UNUSUAL, SO WHEN MAKING DECISIONS BASED ON THE REVIEWS I'VE PROVIDED, MAKE SURE TO TAKE THIS INTO CONSIDERATION BEFORE CHOOSING YOUR E-FILER.

Online Taxes at OLT.com

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Saint Joseph, MO
Summary: The best of the 12, recommended for virtually all taxpayers, they have what is likely to be the most replete support of forms and schedules, although some things are later on in the process, and I did notice some glitches that confused me but didn’t affect my returns, which were correct once I was finished. Also, even though they state that they require a minimum AGI of $14,000, they still allowed me to file with less than that – for free. In fact, they gave me the choice of going back to IRS.gov, free-filing, or paying! Although you’ll need some understanding of taxes, I found this was a really good experience aside from the odd ordering of things.

Security & Confidence

Security: 3 security questions, security code (like captcha) 2-factor (emailed/texted code), last 4 numbers of SSN, optional security PIN (3-factor), auto-logoff after a period of time – meaning you have 4-5 login security measures
Claimed Security certificates: TRUSTe, McAfee Secure (I confirmed both.)
BBB Accredited: Yes, since 2003
BBB Rating: A+
BBB consumer rating: ( reviews)🌟.5
Trust Pilot consumer rating: ( reviews)No reviews
Consumer Affairs consumer rating: ( reviews)No reviews
Glassdoor: 2 employee reviews 🌟.4
Indeed: No employee reviews
Google Safe Browsing: ok

User Experience

Completion mode: Sometimes guided, with choices pre-completed based on what the majority of people will answer, but each major section must be self-filled.
Forms: the only site that mentions Form 8332 (release/revoke your claim to exemption so the non-custodial parent can claim it) and explains it; auto-determines credits; possibly the most comprehensive selection of supported forms of all 12 sites. Auto-filled Milwaukee County on WI return, and guided me through parts of it. Some forms and menus didn’t list the right amounts, but the summaries were correct. Some forms are accessible later in the process for each return. Having things out of order can be a bit confusing.
Navigation: tabs and subtabs that you can navigate once you’ve used that area; sectional menus; “previous page”/”save & continue return”; previous button doesn’t take you back to where you jumped from. You have to go to “my account” to log out.
Interface: Offers 1040, 1040-SS (self-employed), 1040NR (non-resident alien) and 1040X (amended US individual); sophisticated, attractive, somewhat responsive on a screen, responsive between
Helpful links to info: Many , , and , and other links, and “get help” tab for FAQs, opens an info box over the screen, sometimes with a link to more info on irs.gov, plus at the bottom of the page (scroll down) there is often a lot more info. OLT provides the most comprehensive help support. Sadly, not everything that needs a help link/topic has one. However, sectional menus usually have no help links.
Guarantee: 100% Accuracy Guarantee "We guarantee our calculations and will pay your penalty and interest charges * whether or not the error is ours!" But it’s not in the user agreement.
Money-back Guarantee: (item 10 of the user agreement) “Without limiting anything in Sections 10 through 16, if for any reason you are not satisfied with the Software or Services at any time before filing a tax return, you may immediately stop using the Software and the Services, and contact On-Line Taxes Customer Service to request a full refund of the fees paid by you (if any) to On-Line Taxes for using the Software or the Services.” Which, for free-filers, means nothing.

Test Results

Filing status: There are links to apps at the bottom that help you figure it out, but neither the help file nor the app mention about non-resident aliens, which might result in incorrectly choosing qualified widower.
Option to donate to Presidential Election Campaign Fund: Yes
Salary correctly indicated as employment instead of consultant income: I was able to put it on line 1 using the 1099-MISC for miscellaneous income, and the help at the bottom DOES discuss the scenario I’ve outlined, but doesn’t mention the 8919 (which is in “other forms”). It offers Sched. C, Sched. F, Form 4835, Form 1040 Line 1 or Form 1040 Sched. 1 Line 21, as well as scholarship/grants to report the income. Although I reported less than their minimum $14,000 for income, they still gave me the option to continue. Using the 8919, I was able to delete the 1099-MISC because their version of the 8919 creates a 1099-MISC on its own.
Allowed me to report my full income easily: Yes, I had to report it on 8919 in “other forms” without a 1099-MISC.
SS-8 filing acknowledged: Although it’s not mentioned in help, it’s in the 8919 form in “other forms”.
Reporting missing SSI/Medicare taxes (Form 8919): Yes, although it’s not mentioned in the help, on the “other forms” tab, it’s there and auto-completed. $826 (double the actual taxes)
Leave a note to the IRS: Yes, in “other forms”
Reporting Interest/Dividends with no 1099-INT/DIV: Yes
Reporting healthcare: Yes
Taking Additional Child Tax Credit: Yes, $435
Taking EITC: It showed there wasn’t one on the credits menu, but the summary showed I got $2,170.
Taking WI Homestead Tax Credit: Not auto-calculated; accessible AFTER e-signing because state returns are separated into two tabs: “state” and then the state(s) you’re filing in. $684
Errors: It denied the EITC; reported my 8919 taxes as $826 but it was correct on the summary; EITC form didn’t show a credit, but the summary was correct; WI school property and Homestead tax credits not given; incorrectly filled in Milwaukee for city from zip code. WI EITC not listed but given in summary
IRS refund: $2,192
State refund: $923
States supported: All states plus DC and US territories
Fees: Free
Customer Service: 🌟 🌟 🌟 .5 It took a while to get an auto-confirmation response to each ticket I opened but, once I got it, I got an answer in an hour or less from Sarah, Trisha & Diane S. Answers were brief and to the point. I guess they’re so overwhelmed with all the queries that they have to be brief, but at least my questions were answered! Provides support for their site, not for taxes.
Support types: Email ("Responses are usually received within 24-48 hours.")

If you see any incorrect or incomplete, or you want to comment or give feedback, please leave a comment. I had a problem with the editor blitzing some of the content when I saved it. This series of articles took me 1.5 weeks of solid work for more than 12 hours on most days. Please show your appreciation!

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