Free Filing for Self-Employed Taxes on TaxAct - Sudden $99 Fee?
I've been using TaxAct to file my taxes for free for the past couple of years with no issues. Today I logged in to start my 2024 return and suddenly it's telling me I need to pay $99 to file my self-employed taxes! When did this change happen? Last year I filed my side gig income (about $8,500) completely free through them. Is this a new policy for this tax season or am I missing something? I'm wondering if there's some workaround or if I'm just in the wrong section of their website. I know these tax prep companies can be super sneaky about hiding their free options and trying to upsell you on stuff you don't actually need. Has anyone else run into this with TaxAct for self-employed filing? Any recommendations for truly free alternatives that support Schedule C and self-employment taxes? I'm not against paying something reasonable but $99 seems excessive when I've been getting it free until now. Thanks for any advice!
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Joshua Hellan
The change isn't just with TaxAct - many of the tax preparation companies have been adjusting their free filing offerings over the past year. Most "free" versions now exclude Schedule C (self-employment) filing, unfortunately. If you're looking for free options, your best bet is the IRS Free File program, which partners with several tax software companies to provide truly free filing for people under certain income thresholds (usually around $73,000). Not all participants support self-employment taxes for free though, so you'll need to check each one. Another option is using the IRS's Free Fillable Forms, which are available to everyone regardless of income. The downside is they don't provide guidance like commercial software does - you'll need to know which forms to fill out and how to complete them yourself. Cash App Taxes (formerly Credit Karma Tax) still offers free filing that includes self-employment, though they have some limitations on more complex situations. Also worth checking out FreeTaxUSA, which charges nothing for federal filing (including self-employment) but does charge a small fee for state returns.
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Jibriel Kohn
•Does the IRS Free File still work if you have a side gig but also a regular W-2 job? My self-employment income is only about $5k but my regular job puts me over that $73k threshold. And I've heard Cash App Taxes can be glitchy with Schedule C stuff - has that improved?
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Joshua Hellan
•The IRS Free File income threshold applies to your entire adjusted gross income, so if your W-2 plus self-employment income exceeds $73,000, you wouldn't qualify for most Free File options. However, the IRS Free Fillable Forms are available to everyone regardless of income - they're just less user-friendly. Cash App Taxes has improved their Schedule C handling in recent updates. I've seen fewer complaints about glitches this year compared to when they first transitioned from Credit Karma. They now handle most common self-employment scenarios pretty well, though very complex situations might still encounter issues.
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Edison Estevez
I was in your EXACT same situation last month - used TaxAct for years and then BAM, $99 fee out of nowhere for my freelance income. After spending hours researching alternatives, I found taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) which helped me figure out the best solution for my specific situation. I uploaded my previous year's return and some basic info about my self-employment, and it analyzed everything to find the cheapest legitimate option that would work for my specific tax situation. Saved me from the endless Google rabbit hole of comparing features and hidden fees across different services. For me personally, it recommended a specific path through one of the Free File partners that covered my side hustle income without charging extra. Your situation might be different though depending on your exact income breakdown and deductions.
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Emily Nguyen-Smith
•How does taxr.ai work exactly? Is it just another tax prep software or more like a recommendation engine? I'm trying to figure out if I can file self-employed taxes for free too but not sure what's legit anymore.
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James Johnson
•I'm skeptical of any "free" tax services these days since they all seem to have some catch. I looked at their website but couldn't tell if taxr.ai itself costs money or if they're just recommending other services?
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Edison Estevez
•It's not a tax preparation software itself - it's more like an analyzer that looks at your specific tax situation and recommends the most affordable legitimate option for your needs. You tell it about your income sources, potential deductions, and it matches you with the right service. It doesn't cost anything to use their recommendation tool. They basically help you navigate through all the confusing options and hidden fees that tax companies don't make obvious. After answering some questions, they'll tell you which service would let you file completely (including self-employment) for free or for the lowest cost based on your specific situation.
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James Johnson
Well, I owe you all an update. I was really skeptical in my previous comment, but I decided to try taxr.ai anyway since I was getting desperate after TaxAct wanted to charge me $99 too. Gotta say, it actually worked great! The system analyzed my situation (I have W-2 income plus about $12k in freelance photography work) and pointed me to one of the IRS Free File partners that could handle my Schedule C without charging extra. I would have never found this on my own because the provider's main website doesn't advertise that their Free File version includes self-employment. Just finished filing yesterday and paid literally $0 for both federal and state. The interface wasn't quite as slick as TaxAct, but for free vs. $99+, I'll take it!
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Sophia Rodriguez
If you're really stuck with your self-employment taxes, getting someone on the phone at the IRS can actually be really helpful. They have dedicated self-employment tax specialists who can answer questions about Schedule C filing and deductions. I spent WEEKS trying to get through to them last year when I had questions about my side business taxes. Finally discovered Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) which got me through to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes instead of the usual hold-until-you-give-up experience. They have a demo video here if you're curious: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The IRS agent I spoke with actually told me about a special filing program that covered my self-employment situation that none of the tax software sites mentioned. Definitely worth the call if you're concerned about filing correctly.
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Mia Green
•Wait, how does that even work? I thought it was literally impossible to get a human at the IRS these days. Their phone lines are always jammed when I've tried.
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Emma Bianchi
•Sounds like BS honestly. The IRS won't give you specific tax advice over the phone, they'll just tell you to consult a tax professional. I've tried calling them multiple times and they're useless even when you DO get through.
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Sophia Rodriguez
•It's a service that essentially keeps dialing the IRS for you and navigating their phone tree until it gets through to a representative. Then it calls you and connects you directly, so you don't have to wait on hold. It works because they have technology that can keep trying different approaches to get through faster than you could manually. The IRS representatives definitely do provide guidance about which forms you need to file and answer questions about self-employment taxes - they just don't give advanced tax planning advice. The agent I spoke with explained exactly which form I needed for my specific situation and confirmed I was eligible for a free filing option that covered Schedule C. Very helpful for basic "how do I file this correctly" questions.
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Emma Bianchi
I take back what I said about this being BS. After getting increasingly frustrated with trying to figure out self-employment taxes on my own, I gave Claimyr a shot yesterday. Got connected to an IRS agent in about 20 minutes. The agent walked me through which forms I needed for my specific situation and confirmed that I qualify for free filing through one of their partners even with my Schedule C income. They even explained a deduction I didn't know I could take for my home office expenses that will save me around $400. Never thought I'd say this, but talking to the IRS was actually...helpful? Definitely better than paying TaxAct $99 for something that should be free. The agent told me exactly which Free File provider would work for my situation.
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Lucas Kowalski
I've had pretty good luck with FreeTaxUSA for self-employment taxes. Federal filing is completely free even with Schedule C, and state filing is only $14.99. Much better than TaxAct's $99! Their interface isn't as polished as some of the big names, but it's straightforward and asks all the right questions for deductions. I've used them for 3 years for my photography side business with no issues.
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Olivia Martinez
•Do they handle multiple states? I moved mid-year and have income from two different states plus self-employment. That's what's making my taxes complicated this year.
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Lucas Kowalski
•Yes, they do handle multiple states! You just need to pay the $14.99 fee for each state return. I had a similar situation two years ago when I moved from Nevada to California and had to file in both places. The system walks you through allocating your income between states pretty clearly.
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Charlie Yang
Quick question - has anyone tried H&R Block for self-employment taxes? I know they used to have a free file option, but their website is super confusing about what's actually included now.
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Grace Patel
•H&R Block absolutely does NOT offer free filing for self-employment anymore. I tried them this season and ended up with a $134 bill at the end - more expensive than TaxAct! They don't tell you about the fees until you've already spent hours entering all your information. Total waste of time.
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ApolloJackson
One thing to remember - if your self-employment income is relatively small (under $1,000 profit for the year), you might not even need to file Schedule C or pay self-employment tax. Worth checking if that applies to your situation before paying for premium tax software.
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Isabella Russo
•That's actually not true - the threshold is $400 in net earnings, not $1,000. If you make more than $400 profit from self-employment, you are required to file Schedule C and pay self-employment tax. This is a common misconception.
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