H&R Block 2023 crashes on import of last year's taxes

[Morac]

I bought the H&R Block tax software. I used it last year on my MBA M1 Mac without issue. This year it's a universal app. It crashes any time I try to import last year's tax file. I've tried running it both as Apple Silicon and through Rosetta 2. If I create a new return it seems to work, though once it crashes it has a tendency to crash again.

Anyone else have a problem?

 

[RIP_SJobs]

Same here - literally JUST bought this from Best Buy on Black Friday sale, and same exact thing. Of course, the updater showed an update as "coming January 5th" so hopefully it works then, after a month and a half of hope that it will even import to START using the software as originally intended (and advertised - do any software companies ever test their trash these days?).
NOTE: My import is of a TurboTax file, and I switched back to HR Block for 2023 (about a decade ago printing my taxes was VOLUMINOUS compared to the smaller TurboTax printouts) after TurboTax issues last year, where if I worked on different Macs, the file saved on the one will not open (says it is corrupted) if I simply copy it anywhere than where it was first created (usually save my file on a USB stick to easily work and update where/as needed). I finally got 2022 taxes done after having to restart 3 times before I realized that moving the file would ALWAYS corrupt it somehow (I suspect some other forced protection they implemented behind the scenes last year, like it fingerprinted the computer on which the file was first created, if not also specifically where on same?! Who knows with these tax software scumbags...). Intuit is already the WORST, but when they said I had to be CONSTANTLY logged-into their CLOUD nonsense JUST to open and use the 2023 version, well, I am back here to HR Block and now this. These tax companies all suck...
Guess we have to either start from scratch, or wait until January 2024 or later?

 

[Thirio2]

I just ordered it from Best Buy today. Last year the license was for up to 5 computers as I recall. If it crashes on my m2 mini I maybe can install it on my windows machine. I wanted to preview where I stand in my tax bracket and maybe adjust my IRA withdrawals. Based on the comments above I may just enter my data manually.

 

[nonunion]

I bought the H&R Block tax software. I used it last year on my MBA M1 Mac without issue. This year it's a universal app. It crashes any time I try to import last year's tax file. I've tried running it both as Apple Silicon and through Rosetta 2. If I create a new return it seems to work, though once it crashes it has a tendency to crash again.

Anyone else have a problem?

Yes. H & R Block 2023 deluxe & state bought today crashes when I try to import my 2022 Turbo tax tax return into the 2023 H & R Block version on my mac. You would think the dumb clucks at H&R Block would warn you about this problem. But no ... they are only into the sale -- whether you can get it to work is then your problem. In any event, here's the fix for me, and probably for most people: The prior year's Turbo Tax RETURN is encrypted, thus fouling the attempted import to this year's H&R. Open last year's turbo tax RETURN. Go to files, press button to create a "duplicate". On the "next" screen do NOT check the box for "encrypt". Save the new dup file as UNENCRYPTED. Import THAT ONE to H&R. It imports. Works & Solved. Good luck.

 

[Morac]

Well at least it’s broken for everyone. I tried calling H&R Block and got a message to call back during office hours Monday to Friday. Today is Friday.

In any case as I bought it from Amazon, the download file contained both the Windows and Mac installers so I decided to get Parallels (Black Friday sale) and install the Windows version. That imported without issue and I could then use the save in the Mac version, so at least that’s a work around.

Note my last year’s was from H&R Block 2022 and was encrypted. I did think to try an remove encryption.

 

[NoBoMac]

Save the new dup file as UNENCRYPTED. Import THAT ONE to H&R. It imports. Works & Solved. Good luck.

I did think to try an remove encryption.

Or just don't save as encrypted (going forward).

M and T Macs are always encrypting files, so turn on FileVault (it's instantaneous and will not notice day-to-day since everything is encrypting by default). Using Time Machine, turn on encryption for that volume. External disk, also encrypt that volume. When copying to a cloud service, now will want to encrypt but can encrypt the file with some tool vs via tax software.

I've been doing all the above for years as trusting the software (TT or H&R) to "just work" and or remembering the file's password correctly just seems to add another point of potential trouble/failure.

 

[RueMore]

I'm having a similar problem with H&R Block 2023 Basic on an M2 MBA. The app doesn't crash, but when I browse to the .T22 file from the previous year and select it the file doesn't show up in the selection box: it's as if I didn't pick a file. That same file still loads without trouble with the TY22 version of H&R Block. The .T22 file isn't encrypted.

The 1/5/2024 update didn't make any difference. This is pretty frustrating. I tried running the Universal executable as x86 with arch but it just said the app file wasn't executable. Perhaps I did it wrong?

arch -x86_64 "/Applications/H&R Block 2023.app"

 

[Morac]

I'm having a similar problem with H&R Block 2023 Basic on an M2 MBA. The app doesn't crash, but when I browse to the .T22 file from the previous year and select it the file doesn't show up in the selection box: it's as if I didn't pick a file. That same file still loads without trouble with the TY22 version of H&R Block. The .T22 file isn't encrypted.

The 1/5/2024 update didn't make any difference. This is pretty frustrating. I tried running the Universal executable as x86 with arch but it just said the app file wasn't executable. Perhaps I did it wrong?

arch -x86_64 "/Applications/H&R Block 2023.app"

First off if you are using a M2 you should be using the Apple Silicon version of the app. H&R Block 2023 is a universal app.

Second did you give permission to the app to read from the folder where the .T22 file is (usually Documents)?

 

[RueMore]

Yeah, trying to run the universal app as x86 on my M2 was just an attempt at a workaround, given that the 2022 version was x86. Probably a dumb idea.

Granting permission to the Documents folder was exactly what I needed to know. Thank you so much Morac! I'm surprised HRB didn't give me a warning or request for permission. In any case it's fixed now and I'm back in business. Nicely done.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Patience grasshoppers. As you may recall, there are typically many updates to tax software at least into February. Since it's a problem for more than one person, it's almost certainly a bug. A future update in the next week or three will likely resolve it.

If I'm not mistaken, no one can even file yet. I believe earliest possible is at least mid January... if not a week or two later. Personally, I usually just let this stuff sort itself out and file in MAR or even APR... when all updates are complete.

As forgiving as we can be for Apple software bugs- sometimes for YEARS- we might want to give Block programmers more than 7 days after end of the year to get their app into fully functional form.

 

[Morac]

FYI, there was an unscheduled update in December (not the Jan 5th one). After that I was able to import the encrypted .T22 file.

 

[RIP_SJobs]

I gave up on trying to import the .tax2022 file, itself, and simply grabbed my PDF export from TurboTax, edited that by deleting their header page and any other unecessary pages, and the H&R Block software did an excellent job importing that, so I could start working on this and just correct any issues from that PDF import.

@NoBoMac - this is done when working with others, especially any tax person, which I've done in the past. Just b/c the file is encrypted by the OS, there may be other legit reasons to still have to enter a password to open the file, itself, and on top of that one security concern you do mention...
@HobeSoundDarryl - that's NOT the point. The point is not losing 1-2 months of prep and filling-in and running sample scenarios/numbers BEFORE having to file, so you CAN file right away and get this crap over with in Feburary, not just START then...

UPDATE: Just for fun, I more recently tried to see if it would import the .tax2022 file, and instead of crashing, it now does prompt for a password for the file, but the guaranteed (and tested with TT2022) password just makes it prompt over and over to no avail. So, definitely still glad I did not wait and started using the PDF export instead of trying to get tax software to do anything as smart and basic as import its competitor's files, as advertised (let alone w/o simply crashing, lol!). 🙄

Good luck w/ TY2023, all!