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02-11-2015, 03:43 PM
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#1
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Moderator
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Flyover country
Posts: 25,199
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Tax program inaccuracy
I've been working on the taxes, since I have almost all the paperwork now except for Fidelity, and I found a very strange problem with Turbotax.
I've used TT for years,and never had a problem with it importing the previous year and populating the appropriate fields. But I found a glaring error this time. Turbotax entered the wrong amount paid with last year's state tax return.
I looked at my pdf copy of last year's actual filed state return (done in Turbotax) and the amount is correct. I also opened up the TT file in last year's TT program and it was correct there as well. Just as a third check, I looked back in my checkbook register and found the reconciled payment in the same amount.
But Turbotax this year entered a different amount (somewhere between 15 and 20 dollars less than the actual amount). Completely mysterious.
I happened to find it because I'm simultaneously doing the taxes in TaxAct this year as a test (I really want to get away from Intuit). When I compared the two, I noticed the discrepancy.
Note: Totals are slightly different between Turbotax and TaxAct, simply because they use different rounding conventions. But the bottom line difference is only a buck or two, so it's not significant.
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02-11-2015, 04:40 PM
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#2
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: New Orleans
Posts: 47,473
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Good thing you found it. I always check the numbers that TT imports from the prior year's returns, and so far I haven't found any errors. I'm not sure why I do this, maybe due to being in "double-checking mode" or something. I'm always so wary that it might make a mistake.
Oh well, keeps us on our toes I guess.
__________________
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Happily retired since 2009, at age 61. Best years of my life by far!
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02-11-2015, 04:44 PM
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#3
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: May 2008
Posts: 597
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did you apply money to one of the checkoff charities on your state return?
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02-11-2015, 09:16 PM
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#4
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 2,509
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did you pay use tax last year? I believe this would have been paid, but not count as an income tax paid. It would not carry over as an income tax paid. This also effect taxable state tax refunds.
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02-11-2015, 09:40 PM
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#5
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Sarasota, FL & Vermont
Posts: 36,266
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Mine imported correctly - agrees to my PY pdf.
__________________
If something cannot endure laughter.... it cannot endure.
Patience is the art of concealing your impatience.
Slow and steady wins the race.
Retired Jan 2012 at age 56
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02-11-2015, 10:25 PM
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#6
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: NC
Posts: 21,204
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Quote:
Originally Posted by W2R
Good thing you found it. I always check the numbers that TT imports from the prior year's returns, and so far I haven't found any errors. I'm not sure why I do this, maybe due to being in "double-checking mode" or something. I'm always so wary that it might make a mistake.
Oh well, keeps us on our toes I guess.
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+1(?). I double/triple check my Fed and state returns against prior years as well, even though I have yet to find a mistake. Better safe than sorry...
__________________
No one agrees with other people's opinions; they merely agree with their own opinions -- expressed by somebody else. Sydney Tremayne
Retired Jun 2011 at age 57
Target AA: 50% equity funds / 45% bonds / 5% cash
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02-11-2015, 11:20 PM
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#7
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 586
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+1. That is what happened to me.
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02-12-2015, 05:32 AM
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#8
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Moderator
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Flyover country
Posts: 25,199
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bingybear
did you pay use tax last year?
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lemming
did you apply money to one of the checkoff charities on your state return?
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No to both of those.
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02-12-2015, 05:51 AM
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#9
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Administrator
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Chicagoland
Posts: 40,586
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I'm not surprised at this glitch, I recall something not too different happening but it's been a while and the details escape me. What I do clearly remember is TT stonewalling - full denial, not one acknowledgement and no effort to even discuss it at the online support site.
Braumeister, is your TT up to date, and are there more updates expected? You might try to delete the return, uninstall the program, reinstall, then try again.
As an aside, once you're done would you mind giving us a comparison of the two programs. I'm doing the same with TT and H&R Block.
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02-12-2015, 06:45 AM
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#10
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Moderator
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Flyover country
Posts: 25,199
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Yes, it's up to date, and I'm expecting a future update to find and fix it (fingers crossed). Still at least another week or so before filing, so it's not critical.
So far, my experience with TaxAct has been good. The only slight annoyance is that I have to fire up Windows on my Mac to run it. I'm using Windows 8.1 with Parallels 10 and honestly, it's pretty painless and fast. Such a huge improvement over past virtual machines.
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02-12-2015, 09:34 AM
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#11
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 119
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I am also using TT and found a discrepancy. TT imported a lower number for my NY state tax refund. The program seems to have reduced by refund by the NYC school tax credit that I received. I did a quick check, but could not find any reason for this. I overwrote the amount. Should I get ambitious ( ), I will go back and see if I can find a justification.
All other items from the prior year imported correctly.
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02-16-2015, 11:39 AM
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#12
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 4,366
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I just had the same problem, state refund in TurboTax after transferring 2013 return was $21 off compared to my state 1099G refund amount. Looking at my 2013 return, TT imported the state taxes owed number, but did not include the late payment penalty of $21. The 1099G seems like the last word on this, so I corrected the TT number.
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02-16-2015, 12:12 PM
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#13
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Administrator
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Chicagoland
Posts: 40,586
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Animorph
I just had the same problem, state refund in TurboTax after transferring 2013 return was $21 off compared to my state 1099G refund amount. Looking at my 2013 return, TT imported the state taxes owed number, but did not include the late payment penalty of $21. The 1099G seems like the last word on this, so I corrected the TT number.
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So you're deducting the penalty amount? I didn't know it was an eligible deduction.
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02-16-2015, 01:57 PM
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#14
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 2,509
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MichaelB
So you're deducting the penalty amount? I didn't know it was an eligible deduction.
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creative accounting
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02-16-2015, 02:19 PM
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#15
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 4,366
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MichaelB
So you're deducting the penalty amount? I didn't know it was an eligible deduction.
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I have no idea, and didn't see anything from a Google search. Didn't review the full IRS instructions. But I'm reporting straight taxes withheld minus refund reported on 1099G, which seemed to be the bottom line. Otherwise I have to tell TT why my 1099G is incorrect somehow.
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02-16-2015, 02:46 PM
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#16
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 2,509
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Animorph
I have no idea, and didn't see anything from a Google search. Didn't review the full IRS instructions. But I'm reporting straight taxes withheld minus refund reported on 1099G, which seemed to be the bottom line. Otherwise I have to tell TT why my 1099G is incorrect somehow.
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I had the same issue with TaxAct, so I asked them why they were different. They told me is was because of the USE tax (--mine was a different reason). I believe if you efile or do it online, they have the info to figure it out
If you change a value that TT populates or calculates, this may invalidate e-filing.
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02-16-2015, 03:18 PM
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#17
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 119
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bingybear
...
If you change a value that TT populates or calculates, this may invalidate e-filing.
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I changed the amount of the prior year's tax refund and successfully e-filed.
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02-16-2015, 03:57 PM
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#18
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 2,509
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Likes_to_Lurk
I changed the amount of the prior year's tax refund and successfully e-filed.
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That is probably right. Tax refund is one of the things that you can change without causing efiling problems. The full refund is not always taxable.
Was the original TT # larger or smaller than your 1099G?
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02-16-2015, 05:51 PM
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#19
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 119
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Bingybear,
NY state does not mail 1099 G's. The amount that was on my 2013 return as an overpayment was higher than what TT imported.
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02-16-2015, 07:13 PM
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#20
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 17,203
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This is just my thought.... but I doubt that any update would fix this problem... I believe they only import last years numbers once and do not go back again to make sure they stay the same....
You could have manually changed it and if they overwrote what you put down you would be ticked off....
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