Getting the most out of your tax prep using H&R Block AI Tax Assist
Block understands how important simplifying tax season is to our customers. That’s why we’re committed to giving you more access to tools that improve your tax filing experience.
The newest addition to our offering is H&R Block AI Tax Assist, a generative artificial (GenAI) experience designed to make the DIY tax preparation process even easier for individuals, the self-employed and small business owners.
How does AI Tax Assist work?
You can take advantage of AI Tax Assist in our Deluxe, Premium and Self-Employed products. It combines data from H&R Block’s world-class The Tax Institute with the power and efficiency of artificial intelligence to provide 24/7 tax filing assistance — all backed by H&R Block’s guarantees, including audit support, maximum refund and 100% accuracy.
AI tools and tax? That might sound complicated, especially if you’re new to AI experiences. We get it. But fear not – we’re here for you with tips to help you make the most of this new tool.
How AI Tax Assist can help
First, we should note that this is a completely optional service – you can still file your taxes DIY without using this new feature. But here’s why you may want to use it: think of AI Tax Assist as a virtual companion you can lean on when you have questions during the guided interview. Although AI Tax Assist only recently launched, tax filers are already asking it a variety of questions, from deductions to retirement savings and everything in between!
As a reminder, our DIY paid editions also include access to live expert help from an H&R Block tax professional at no additional charge — so if you have additional questions you want to dig into or have a follow-up question about any information you receive from AI Tax Assist, don’t hesitate to ask one of them for help.
Tips and tricks for writing effective questions
You may be familiar with getting information from the web by typing text into search engines. If so, you know that the more detail you share, the more helpful the results. For example, if you type in “pizza” to a search engine vs. “how to make pizza,” you could get some really different answers.
For AI tools, these inputs are called “prompts,” and the more you can share about the intent of your question, the better the tool is able to respond.
So, how can you up your AI-prompt game? We’ve got you covered! Check out the examples below. You can use them as a guideline as you give AI Tax Assist a try.
| Lower intent prompts (meaning they have less detail) … | …can be written with more intent (more detail)… | …for a better result. |
| “Teacher” -or- “Teacher deduction” | “Can I get a federal deduction for my teacher expenses?” | The word “teacher” alone doesn’t give AI Tax Assist enough context to provide a usable answer. Typing “teacher deduction” is slightly better, but results in an overly broad response that might not answer your question. Adding detail about a federal deduction for teaching-related expenses returns a more specific and thorough answer. |
| “1099” -or- “Why 1099 nec” | “Why did I receive a 1099 for work I did?” | Typing “1099” alone leads to an answer with too much information about the many types of 1099 forms and how they’re used. “Why 1099 nec” also doesn’t give the tool enough to understand the question, so it may give a less than helpful answer. Specifying the reason for the question about the 1099 not only explains why the filer may have received a 1099, but also how to report it on their return. |
AI Tax Assist: Where it began. Where it’s going.
We partnered with Microsoft to build this new tool, and a team of H&R Block CPAs, tax attorneys and enrolled agents in The Tax Institute translated complex tax rules to train the tool. This includes resource sites in The Tax Institute. Together, they subjected it to rigorous testing as part of the development process.
But our commitment to AI Tax Assist didn’t end there.
We also built in the ability for customers like you to provide feedback on specific answers — in the form of a thumbs up or thumbs down — to help further refine the system. Each day, a dedicated team reviews this feedback, monitors the tool’s performance, and continually adds and updates content.
Thanks again for taking AI Tax Assist for a spin, and please share your feedback so we can make this exciting new offering even better!
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