The tax code is particularly complicated – and then there are multiple states to worry about. It would be difficult for a single person to do this. Not impossible, maybe there are some CPAs which are also software engineers. Once the project becomes big enough, maybe more people would help.
The problem is then: are they shielded from liability? If there's a mistake and people sue, they won't have Intuit's lawyer army.
But let's say we have the perfect program. Would people be OK with printing out and mailing their returns? Because you have to be an authorized provider to e-file.
I would say that this IS impossible for any single individual. The amount of edge cases that software like this needs to capture is enormous and there isn't a single human in the world that could account for all of them. Not to mention the changes in the tax code every year.
The problem is then: are they shielded from liability? If there's a mistake and people sue, they won't have Intuit's lawyer army.
But let's say we have the perfect program. Would people be OK with printing out and mailing their returns? Because you have to be an authorized provider to e-file.