You've been importing your Merrill Edge 1099-B into TurboTax for years without issue. This season you open the broker import dropdown and Merrill Edge is just... gone. Or it's there, but the login fails. Or the import succeeds and returns zero transactions.
Merrill Edge has had an unstable relationship with TurboTax's import integration — the broker has appeared and disappeared from the dropdown across multiple tax years, usually around contract renewal windows or integration changes between Bank of America and Intuit. If you're caught in a year where Merrill isn't supported (or isn't working reliably), here's how to get your 1099-B into TurboTax anyway.
Why Merrill Dropped from the TurboTax Dropdown
TurboTax maintains its broker import list through individual data-sharing contracts with each brokerage. When a contract lapses, expires, or isn't renewed, the broker disappears from the list — regardless of how many customers rely on the integration.
Merrill Edge's inclusion has been inconsistent over the past several tax years for a few reasons:
The Bank of America / Merrill contract complexity. Merrill Edge operates under Bank of America's umbrella. The TurboTax integration has at times been through Merrill directly, at times through BofA's broader data-share arrangement, and at times through a third-party aggregator. When these arrangements shift, the dropdown entry can vanish.
Integration cost vs user count. Merrill Edge has fewer retail customers than Schwab, Fidelity, or Vanguard. When integration costs rise or technical issues arise, less-used connectors sometimes get quietly deprioritized.
Post-Merrill-Lynch system changes. Bank of America merged some Merrill Lynch legacy systems into Merrill Edge infrastructure, and the tax data flow changed as a result. Older integrations that worked with the original Merrill Lynch format broke and haven't always been rebuilt.
The bottom line: if Merrill isn't in your TurboTax dropdown this year, the fix isn't waiting for Intuit to add it. You work around it.
Downloading the PDF from the BofA Portal
Your Merrill Edge 1099-B is always available as a PDF, regardless of whether the integration works:
- Log into bankofamerica.com with your main banking credentials
- Go to Merrill Edge from the main menu
- Inside the Merrill Edge portal, click your account and go to Tax Statements
- Find the 1099 Consolidated document for the tax year
- Download the PDF — save it somewhere you can find later
If you have multiple Merrill Edge accounts (taxable, IRA, joint), each gets its own tax document. Download all of them. Note that the PDF name and format match the official 1099 and are suitable for use with any PDF-to-CSV or PDF-to-TXF tool.
Which Merrill Entity to Pick (When the Dropdown Includes Multiple)
When Merrill does appear in TurboTax's dropdown, it's sometimes listed as multiple entries that look similar. Pick based on how your account is held:
| If you log in at... | Pick... |
|---|---|
| bankofamerica.com → Merrill Edge section | Merrill Edge |
| ml.com (traditional Merrill Lynch Wealth Management) | Merrill Lynch |
| benefits.ml.com (employer stock plan) | Merrill Lynch Benefits Online |
If none of those appear in the dropdown, skip to the manual entry or PDF-conversion path below.
Manual Entry vs Summary Totals vs TXF Import
Three ways to get your Merrill data into TurboTax when direct import isn't available:
Option 1: Manual entry (for small transaction counts)
For under 30 transactions, typing them in manually from the PDF is the fastest path. TurboTax's "I'll type it in myself" flow walks through each transaction one at a time.
Option 2: Summary totals (for large covered-basis transactions)
If your Merrill 1099-B has a lot of transactions, all covered-basis (Box A or Box D), and no wash sales, you can enter summary totals for each category instead of individual rows. See our summary totals guide for the exact steps and mailing rules.
Option 3: TXF import (for everything else)
Best for medium-to-large transaction counts with adjustments, RSU shares, or noncovered securities. Convert the PDF to TXF and import. This is the cleanest path when summary entry won't work because you have wash sales or other complications.
The Converter Fallback
Step-by-step for the PDF-to-TXF approach:
- Download your Merrill Edge 1099-B PDF from the BofA portal (above)
- Upload the PDF to a 1099-B converter
- Review the extracted transactions — verify the totals match your 1099-B summary page
- Download the TXF file (for TurboTax Desktop) or CSV file (for TurboTax Online summary entry or TaxAct)
- In TurboTax Desktop: File → Import → From Accounting Software → TXF File, select your downloaded file
The entire process takes about 5 minutes and works regardless of whether Merrill Edge is in the TurboTax dropdown that year.
For the full TurboTax TXF import walkthrough, see our TurboTax TXF import guide.
FAQ
Will Merrill Edge come back to the TurboTax dropdown?
Possibly — it has in past years. Intuit's broker list changes each tax year based on partnerships. Don't count on it being there next year either; the PDF conversion path is the reliable option regardless.
Can I use BofA's online tax data export?
Bank of America does offer some data export functionality through the Merrill Edge portal, but the formats are rarely compatible with TurboTax's CSV import rules. Easier to use the official 1099 PDF and convert it.
What about Merrill Lynch (the wealth management arm, not Merrill Edge)?
Merrill Lynch traditional wealth management accounts have been more consistently supported in the TurboTax dropdown. If you have an ML account in addition to Merrill Edge, check for "Merrill Lynch" as a separate entry.
Does the 1099-B data from Merrill Edge differ from Merrill Lynch?
The format is similar but not identical. Both use Bank of America's underlying tax data infrastructure, but Merrill Edge formats differ slightly in how they present equity awards (stock plan shares) and certain bond transactions. The PDF-to-TXF converter handles both correctly.
Does H&R Block or TaxAct have Merrill Edge in their dropdown?
Inconsistently. H&R Block has historically been hit-or-miss with Merrill Edge. TaxAct has limited Merrill support. The PDF conversion path works for all three tax programs equivalently.
What about Merrill Edge's crypto offerings?
Merrill Edge does not currently offer direct crypto trading. If you hold crypto ETFs (like GBTC or IBIT) in your Merrill Edge account, those are reported on the standard 1099-B as securities, not crypto.
Bottom Line
Merrill Edge's appearance in TurboTax's import dropdown has been inconsistent year to year. When it's missing, you have three reliable paths: manual entry for small transaction counts, summary totals for large covered-basis years without adjustments, or PDF-to-TXF conversion for everything else. All three work regardless of the dropdown situation.
Download the 1099-B PDF from the BofA Merrill Edge portal, pick the method that fits your transaction count and complexity, and move on. Don't wait for the integration to come back — there's no ETA.
Merrill Edge missing from your TurboTax dropdown? Convert your Merrill Edge 1099-B PDF free — download a TXF or CSV file you can import into TurboTax Desktop, TaxAct, or H&R Block. Handles multiple accounts, wash sales, and noncovered lots cleanly.