End-to-end encrypted · zero-knowledge by design
Snap a photo of your W-2. Our AI fills your 1040 in seconds. Everything is encrypted in your browser before it leaves your device. We generate an IRS-ready PDF — you sign and file with TurboTax, your CPA, or paper-mail it.
Six things no major tax service offers
Every other consumer tax service can read your W-2, your SSN, your bank account. We architecturally cannot. The math is the marketing.
Your W-2, your 1099s, your Schedule C — encrypted in your browser with libsodium and a key derived from your password via Argon2id. The server never sees plaintext. A breach exposes ciphertext, not your tax data.
XChaCha20-Poly1305 · Argon2id · libsodium-wrappers · open-source layer (planned MIT publish)
Snap a photo of your W-2, 1099-NEC, 1099-DIV, 1098, brokerage statement. Claude vision extracts every box with confidence scores you can verify. No manual entry, no template OCR — real LLM-grade reasoning across messy documents.
TurboTax's "Snap a photo" uses template OCR. Ours uses Claude — it reasons across the page.
We populate Form 1040 + Schedule C + Schedule SE + state forms (TX/FL/WA/NV first; CA/NY next). Download the PDF, review every line, file with TurboTax, your CPA, or paper-mail it. We do not file for you. Path A by design.
No IRS authorization gate. No e-file partner risk. Your return, your signature, your file.
For users who want absolute privacy — journalists, security researchers, founders with NDAs — the Privacy Plus tier runs the extraction model in your browser via WebGPU. The server never even sees ciphertext routed through an LLM provider.
+$10 add-on · WebGPU + Llama 3.2 3B / Qwen 2.5 3B local
Prepare your return on SealedReturn AND on TurboTax/H&R Block/FreeTaxUSA within 30 days. If their federal refund is more than $25 larger, we pay you the difference up to $500. Backed by tech E&O insurance.
Removes the "what if AI got it wrong?" objection entirely. See full terms.
Your encryption key never leaves your browser. We cannot recover it for you (clearly disclosed at signup). Forget the password = data is gone forever, exactly as it should be in a true zero-knowledge system. We do not hold backdoors.
No "we may share with affiliates." No "court order can decrypt." We literally cannot.
How it works
Upload W-2, 1099-NEC, 1099-DIV, 1098, brokerage statements. Photo or PDF.
libsodium encrypts before transmission. Argon2id derives key from your password.
Claude vision reads each box with confidence scores. You verify.
Form 1040 + Schedule C + Schedule SE + state. Take to TurboTax, your CPA, or paper-mail.
Honest comparison
| Service | All-in price (self-employed) | Encryption | AI vision | Upsell at checkout |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SealedReturn | from $39 | ✓ Client-side | ✓ Claude Vision | None |
| TurboTax Premium | $139 + $64 state | ✗ TLS only | Template OCR | Live Assist auto-suggested |
| H&R Block Self-Employed | $80 + $37 state | ✗ TLS only | Template OCR | Tax Pro Review |
| FreeTaxUSA | $0 + $15.99 state | ✗ TLS only | Manual entry | Deluxe support |
| Cash App Taxes | $0 | ✗ Block reads it all | No photo upload | Cross-product data graph |
Source: published competitor pricing, Reddit r/tax, BiggerPockets, BBB complaints. See SealedReturn pricing →
The math is the story
What we are, what we aren't
SealedReturn is an AI-assisted document-preparation tool. We do not provide legal, tax, accounting, or financial advice. We strongly recommend a qualified tax professional review your return before you file.
SealedReturn is not an IRS Authorized e-file Provider. We generate IRS-ready PDFs that you sign and file yourself — with TurboTax, H&R Block, your CPA, or by paper mail. You remain responsible for accuracy and filing.
If a competing service computes a federal refund more than $25 larger than ours within 30 days, we pay you the difference up to $500. Full terms →
Your data is encrypted in your browser with libsodium and a key derived from your password via Argon2id. We store ciphertext only. If you forget your password, we cannot recover your data — that is by design.
Try the live demo. No signup. We encrypt a sample W-2 in your browser, run real AI extraction, and generate a Form 1040 PDF — so you can see the moat with your own eyes.