To download last year's tax return from TurboTax, sign in to your TurboTax Online account with the same user ID you used in previous years, then access your tax documents from the Tax Home screen or the Documents menu. From there, select the prior tax year you need and download the PDF copy directly to your device, this is the fastest path for most users who filed online and need a copy for income verification, loan applications, or financial planning.
Download last year's tax return from TurboTax Online
TurboTax Online keeps your filed returns available for the past seven years, so you can retrieve a prior-year PDF whenever you need it. Use either of the two navigation methods below, depending on where you land after signing in.
Method 1: Use the Documents menu
- Sign in to your TurboTax account using the same user ID as in previous years.
- Select “Documents” from the menu at the top of the screen.
- Use the dropdown menu to choose the tax year you want.
- Select “Download tax PDF” next to that year’s return.
Method 2: Use Tax Home
- Sign in to your TurboTax account.
- From the Tax Home screen, scroll down and select “Your tax returns & documents.”
- Choose the specific tax year from the list.
- Select “Download/print return (PDF)” to save the file.
If you’re signing in for the first time in the current tax year, you’ll see a screen showing your prior-year summary. Select “Continue,” then on the product and pricing screen, scroll down to “Your tax returns & documents,” choose the year, and select “Download/print return (PDF).”
For TurboTax Online Business accounts, the process is slightly different: sign in to your Intuit Account, select “Documents,” choose the applicable tax year from the dropdown, locate the tax return PDF, and select the three-dot menu icon to download it.
What if your tax year is missing or access has expired?
If the year you’re looking for isn’t visible, the most common cause is that you’re signed into a different TurboTax account. Check whether you have multiple user IDs and sign in with the one you used when you filed that return. TurboTax Online stores returns for seven years, so anything within that window should appear once you’re in the correct account.
If access to your prior-year return has expired, TurboTax will display a link with instructions on how to regain access. Follow that link to restore the ability to view and download the PDF. If you still can’t find the year, verify that you’re not looking at a return filed through a different product or a different Intuit account entirely.
CD/Download users: find your return on your computer
If you filed using TurboTax CD/Download software, your return is not stored online, it’s saved locally on your computer as a .tax file. You must access it from the same computer where you created and filed that return. Look in the folder where TurboTax saves its files (often under Documents or My Documents), search for the .tax file with the year in the filename, and open it with your TurboTax software to view or export the PDF. If you’ve moved to a new computer, you’ll need to transfer the file from your old machine or restore it from a backup, if you no longer have the original file, you can download old tax returns from turbotax by requesting a free transcript from the IRS.
Can't access your return in TurboTax? Try the IRS
If you can’t retrieve your return through TurboTax, whether because the account is inaccessible, the year is older than seven years, or the file was lost with an old computer, you can request a free tax return transcript from the IRS for the current tax year and the three prior years. This transcript shows key line items from your filed return and is often accepted for income verification and loan applications. For older returns or full copies of the actual return, you can file Form 4506 with the IRS for a fee, which can take up to 60 days to process. Use this route when you need the complete return document rather than a summary transcript.
