I live in Bogotá, Colombia and use Turbo Tax. Turbo Tax doesn’t allow me to file my return electronically from Colombia, but the IRS does deposit my refund directly to my bank in the US. What gives? Why can’t I file electronically from here?
It is hard to say but I would imagine it is security related. I can easily imagine scams where people in foreign countries file fake returns (maybe many of them) electronically and get money for it. The IRS depends more on after-the-fact audits rather than real-time verification to make sure that returns are legit. Tracking down tax scams from people in foreign countries would be a nightmare. You said your bank account is in the U.S. so they are already covered there.
Thanks Shagnasty… Your answer makes a lot of sense, but I think the internet is more safe with its security measures than ordinary mail from here. It seems like Turbo Tax could secure all electronically transmitted returns. Anyway, thanks.