TaxAct® will use the higher of your itemized deductions or the standard deduction for your filing status to maximize your tax benefit. To force the selection of a method on your TaxAct return:

1. From within your TaxAct return (Online or Desktop) click on the Federal tab. On smaller devices, click in the upper left-hand corner, then select Federal
2. Click Itemized or Standard Deductions to expand the category, then scroll down and click Use Itemized Deductions or Use Standard Deductions. Note that only one of these links will appear (the option resulting in a higher deduction will not appear, since it has already been automatically chosen).
3. Check the small box Check to use itemized deductions even though the standard deduction is larger or Check to use the standard deduction even though itemized deductions are larger