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Fix: Fatal Error 1603 When Trying to Update TurboTax

Fix: Fatal Error 1603 When Trying to Update TurboTax

Posted on August 25, 2021 by Madalina Dinita 8 Comments

TurboTax is one of the most popular tax preparation software in the US. The tool is of invaluable help when it comes to preparing and filing your taxes online. But if you use it on Windows, you may occasionally get the annoying “Fatal error 1603” alert.  The problem is that this error freezes your system, forcing you to use Task Manager to force-stop the TurboTax task. Unfortunately, if you restart your computer and launch TurboTax, error 1603 will rear its ugly head again. Here’s how you can get rid of it.

How Do I Fix Error 1603 on TurboTax?

Reinstall TurboTax and Run It as Admin

  1. Go to Settings, and select Apps.
  2. Scroll down to the TurboTax application. Or use the search field to quickly find the app.windows-apps-and-features
  3. Select TurboTax and hit the Uninstall button.
    • Note: If you can’t find TurboTax, launch Control Panel and select Uninstall a program. Click on TurboTax and hit the Uninstall button.
  4. Wait until your computer uninstalls the program, and then restart it.
  5. After you do that, disable your firewall.
  6. Then navigate C:\Program Files (x86)\Turbotax and rename the directory to TurbotaxOldInstall.turbotax-program-files-windows
  7. Log in to your Intuit account and download the TurboTax software again.
  8. Right-click on the installer and launch it as an administrator.
  9. Wait until your machine installs a fresh copy of TurboTax.
  10. Then launch the app and check if all the information you previously entered is still there. You should be able to pick up where you left off.

Many users confirmed that the only solution to fix Fatal Error 1603 is uninstalling and re-installing TurboTax from scratch. Other troubleshooting methods that involve restarting your PC, disabling the antivirus, or repairing TurboTax rarely do the trick. Remember to reinstall TurboTax as an administrator for it to work.

Manually Download the Update

Alternatively, you can also upgrade TurboTax to the latest version by manually installing the latest updates.

  1. First, close TurboTax and all the other programs running in the background.
  2. Keep only a single browser tab open and go to Intuit’s support page.
  3. Click on the w_perrelsuperpatch download link available on Intuit’s page.
  4. Then double-click on the update file to manually install the update.
  5. Check if error 1603 is history now.

Get a New TurboTax Disc

If nothing’s working, take a screenshot of the error and print it. Then take your TurboTax CD/DVD out of your computer, grab the printed copy of the error, and go back to where you bought it from. They should give you a new disc on the spot.

If the problem persists, contact customer support.

Conclusion

The quickest solution to fix TurboTax error 1603 is uninstalling and reinstalling the program as an administrator. Make sure you’re using an admin account. Otherwise, you won’t be able to get rid of this error. Alternatively, manually download the latest TurboTax updates from Intuit’s website. If the problem persists, contact Intuit’s customer support service. Did these ideas help you troubleshoot the problem? Let us know in the comments below.

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Filed Under: Windows Tagged With: Troubleshooting

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lisa F says

    April 9, 2022 at 5:28 pm

    OMG! It worked. We had the actual CD, but it all worked the same. Updated in 5 minutes and was back to work. This was after trying other solutions. Thank you!

  2. Alice S says

    April 5, 2022 at 1:07 pm

    FINALLY!!!! I had tried all the other suggestions – a dozen times, with varying results – sometimes it said it worked, but then the next launch required updates again. Sent multiple messages to TTax to no avail…nothing worked.
    THIS WORKED PERFECTLY!
    I used RevoUninstaller to kill everything and then DELETED the TurboTax folder.
    Worked perfectly!
    THANK YOU… THANK YOU… MY PC Thanks you… my Nerves thank you!
    Finally, an intelligent solution.

  3. Dan Scchramm says

    April 3, 2022 at 1:16 pm

    The uninstall and reinstall worked. We were able to pick up where we left off. Thanks for the help.

  4. John Sajovec says

    March 30, 2022 at 8:16 am

    Uninstalling and reinstalling worked for me after none of the other approaches worked. Don’t be afraid to do it – I ended up right where I left off and did not have to reacquire the State return or anything.

  5. Sharon Raimann says

    March 22, 2022 at 1:02 pm

    TurboTax 2021 was working fine. Then received nasty 1603 error. Uninstalled, closed firewall, reinstalled TurboTax. Works great! Thanks, windows OS

  6. Paul says

    March 21, 2022 at 5:44 pm

    These solutions don’t work. I even did an entire re-install of my Windows 11 operating system. I called TT two weeks ago and the CSR I talked to had me delete the program and reinstall it which made me lose two tax returns that were complete pending the updates. So frustrating

  7. Jimmy Liu says

    March 20, 2022 at 2:21 pm

    Neither of your solutions work for me too

  8. Ben Dover says

    February 24, 2022 at 3:34 pm

    Neither of your solutions work. Just an FYI

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