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Well, let me wrap up this poop-show for y'all. Try not to laugh. While I am having my "come to Jesus" with my clients, and they are giving me grace and love, we are discussing 2 years of returns and withholding on W2's that are whacked, and my computer freezes. They are talking and I'm trying to talk to them and I realize it's my mouse. I change batteries and still nothing. I grab another mouse and it works. Now, my keyboard isn't working. I change batteries (we are still talking and they don't have a clue what I'm going through) when I spy battery "ash" in the keyboard battery holder. This pack of batteries is old. Ancient, in fact. I toss them all and replace with fresh. My world is right again. It felt like a very bad "I Love Lucy" episode! by the way, I use the wireless keyboard and mouse because I have a kangaroo desktop that rises, so they can't be wired. I do keep tons of batteries, I just need to stock them FIFO! So, today I am amending and writing a fat check. They'll pay me back eventually. Thanks for all your kind comments.

I hate ALL the new schedules. It's just a a waste of more paper!

But did you stuff the chocolates in your mouth and shirt?! Hopefully, NOT the batteries.

Complaining to your congresscritter is probably a waste of time unless you bring along a trunk full of campaign contribution money anyhow...

I found the answer under Pub 449. Now if I can just put the link in this reply. https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p4449.pdf Good grief it worked.

Also, when on the 1040 you can click on "pages and worksheets," then line 66. 5 spaces down on the same list is the state estimated payments.

Sch 5, line 66. Flows to 1040 line 17 and there's a blank line in the 2nd line of the text of line 17 where that amount should appear, almost like a memo item. I really dislike that.

It was THAT BAD! LOL

She was so mad I had to do something, anything, to lighten the mood. I wasn't sure how she'd take it, but the Lord was with me.

This line: "but by the end of the conversation she was laughing " after a few minutes with you, I would presume we would all be laughing.... Rich

I have done that. The last time, I didn't realize until the wife was buying real estate and the schedule C went to her husband so the SSA didn't have any income for her. Luckily for me, they made about 60K together and they didn't owe any extra when I amended.

Gee, here I thought I was the only one to occasionally attribute something to the wrong spouse, or leave something out! (not) I even build in a three-day window between completing a return and reviewing it before printing; I've found that if I review too soon, I see what I *expect* to see, not what's there. Still I occasionally miss something. One year, forgot the clients' mortgage interest (or was it real estate taxes... either way, they paid the two separately and I forgot one of them). Of course, those amounts were not IN the papers the clients sent me, but it was still my fault. Yes, it was - because I *allowed* them to rush me (they wanted to leave for vacation and file before leaving) so I missed it totally. The difference, months later when we amended? $74 refund, federal only. And they were so ticked I lost them as clients. Considering how ticked (and nasty) they were and how hard they had pushed me to rush to finish, they left about a millisecond before I would have fired their behinds. Go easy on yourself, Possi!

At the risk of stoking the political fires, let me just say that congresscritters in my neck of the woods must be quite different animals than in other places. I mean, they DO hold public forums, and they DO listen to what their constituents say, and they DO profess compassion for the issues raised. They act the right way, and they say the right things, but when they get back to the seat of power their actions are motivated by a whole different set of priorities... Or, as someone so eloquently said one time: "We invited a politician to our home for dinner. The louder he proclaimed his honesty, the more diligently we counted our silverware."

I had a client call me about receiving an IRS letter for $0 owed. He was my first this year. But, not my first ever! He's a banker and figured out that it must have to do with rounding or such.

You are correct, he does not qualify for Earned Income Credit, because the child did not live with him.

Had other business to take care of along the way so that part would not be wasted. Congressman needs to hear how TJCA impacts his voters (and my clients) negatively, public forum is perfect setting.

Passing this along as an FYI. This chart provides a listing of States that still require a separate signature form besides just the Federal 8879. https://support.cch.com/kb/solution.aspx/sw37113

Anyone from VT having the same issues I am

I think you are SOLO... that's how I feel about DC.

There are three problems with DC calculations. 1.- DC Software truncates but I have been ignoring cents when entering withholdings for DC, so that my clients don't receive those letters. 2.- The paper table reads: If taxable income is $17000 - $17050, then tax is 580. ATX does exactly that but if the taxable income is $17004, then DC computer says the tax is 578. If the taxable income is $17,015, then DC computer says tax is $579. I have not seen where DC says, you owe $581 or $582, which will be against the tax payer. 3.- DC sends a "Correction Letter", stating... You requested 110 refund but your refund will be 111. When you enter $10.99 as eleven dollars for withholding, then the client gets a "Correction Letter" stating that the tax payer is getting 1 dollar less. I told ATX that maybe DC expects that software companies be granular and NOT follow the paper instructions but rather calculate tax liabilities in increments of $1, versus $3 dollars increments. Error number three is the worst I have seen. People rather receiving one dollar less vs receiving that letter. The first thing that comes to mind for them is that PACUN doesn't know how to prepare taxes.

Agree. The abolishment of 2106 for schedule A kills off their big refunds for meals, motels, supplies by claiming almost all year on the road, Previously, many furnished required logs but some small truckers just guesstimated beaucoup days out. Only upside now is taxes were withheld so they won't be absolutely killed by loss of the deductions, although reduced withholdings will likely result in much smaller refunds or maybe even (heaven forbid) owe. Either way it goes, you're going to have unhappy campers - glad I've only got a few. Re: accountable plans - big companies will probably do that, but I don't think small ones will go to the trouble.

Oh my, the things people will do! Actually, these folks thought it would all work out if he just called the number on the letter and had an honest 1.5 hour interview with the TCO. What could go wrong? Husband (engineer) told her that wife's little business was really more of hobby, she didn't really track inventory, and oh yes, we forgot about some merchandise in our attic. He sent TCO 110 PDF files on a thumb drive. TCO was livid the first few minutes she and I spoke, but by the end of the conversation she was laughing and said, "He's confident - I'll give him that."

I hear you, my friend just shared this article: https://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2019/02/07/trying-to-trick-irs-during-audit-can-mean-criminal-tax-charges/

Illmas, I represented a couple in a audit September 2018. The Tax Compliance Officer said the industry average for COGS for her retail store was 49.83% of gross sales. The taxpayer sells new clothing, jewelry, shoes. They had made such a mess trying to handle the audit themselves, nobody argued with me when I told them it was in their best interest to believe her and stop talking.

Documentation requirement is what crosses the line and makes us auditors rather than just due diligent preparers. Indeed if the IRS comes calling, they only need to ask for documentation and this serves as audit papers for the taxpayer. In all honesty, they couldn''t care less about tracking down a taxpayer - if they are in your office asking for documentation they are interested in a preparer penalty. Going across the tracks to find someone whose car is up on concrete blocks with broken glass in the street and screen windows torn is NOT why they came to your office.

I have SO much sympathy for the poor programmers! Not only do they need to understand how this is SUPPOSED to work (with all the special situations, phase-outs, cut-offs, and more), but they then have to CODE that for the feds - and THEN wait for the states to figure out what they want to do, so they can code the state portions. All the while, we are agitating for them to finish so we can file our returns! I would offer to share my whiskey, but I think they'd drink my supply dry in a nanosecond.

We are used to blaming the US congress when they change the tax law in late December and IRS and the software programmers have to revamp everything. This time blame the state legislatures. They have been trying to assess how the new code will impact their revenues (an impossible task that those of us trying to assess how it will impact our own clients can't even get a handle on, and we're dealing with individuals, not a whole state population). Some states are decoupling with this or that provision, some are still hemming and hawing (see another thread about VA still figuring it out). Once each state passes their own law the programmers have to try to make the software follow it, and bear in mind that there are over 40 states they have to re-program. This time I wouldn't be so quick to blame the software companies. Tell your clients to call their state reps. The federal law was passed in Dec 2017 and they took this long to decide what to do.

"Employer" and "1099" do not mix. Whatever amount is legit, go through the process of getting a corrected W2, which puts the "trouble" back where it belongs, incorrect classification by the employer. For your client, I "think" (it has been more than a decade since I did one like that, and I no longer do tax returns other than my own) you can file with the information as is, adjusting wages as needed (and telling the IRS why the 1099 is wrong, and what the correct wages should be) hopefully without waiting for contact from the former employer. The employer will eventually get a nasty gram to fix/dispute their incorrect reporting, and the resulting penalties, interest, and make up taxes on the amount not properly reported as wages. Apologies if I have the steps wrong, but I hope I expressed my thought well enough to trigger whatever the current procedure is. It is a personal pet peeve when employers cheat their de facto employees, and I have no issue with "sticking" them with the unpaid taxes, or even if they somehow win a dispute, the cost of defense.

This is why I like to always view the Detail tab for W2s and 1099Rs. It's easy to see if one was missed. For interest, dividends and capital gains, I only input on the Detail tab. It's like working in a spreadsheet. I'll sometimes enter W2s and 1099s in the Detail tab too. I find it easier to hit the right arrow than to click next. It's also easier to copy/paste names and EINs. It's also easier to check all the EINs if they have several from the same payer. Tip: Turn off calculations in Detail tab. Setting is in Preferences.

On a return last year for long-term clients, I missed the fact that they did not give me his W2. She had changed jobs, and the income was less, (yes, I used the comparison, so don't even go there) but I knew she was unemployed for a period of time, and he had failed to print the document (which wasn't mailed, supposedly), and I gave them the return, they signed, I filed --- fast forward to November and IRS and State want $$$ and not an insignificant amount because it messed with credits, bracket, phaseouts, etc. Of COURSE I knew that he had a job. I amended, got checks from them for the tax, mailed separate checks from my account for interest/penalties, told them I was sorry, and moved on. Most clients will give you grace when you admit the error readily and acknowledge being human. It is no additional cost to them than it would have been originally without the mistake if you pay the penalty/interest, so they actually got to keep their money a little longer! Love ya, Possi! You 'da bomb!

Okay, I am in this group, too. In comparing last year's personal return for married partners, checking basis, I noticed that I correctly entered the "-" for the loss on one K-1 entry but not on the second. So, my error, amendment free. The only good thing is that they will be getting a substantial refund as the number was a good size so now doubled in their favor. Unfortunately they had to fork over bucks last year. Nope, not perfect either, so you have much company, Possi!

OMG! You are not perfect? My world just shattered. Take a look at my thread last year where I missed a quarter million dollar sale of stock on a client's return. When you get to my level of screw ups, I will buy you a drink and we can commiserate together. And I think you have 3 times the number of clients that I do. If we are keeping stats....your success rate puts you in the Hall of Fame. Fix it and move on. $h1t happens. Tom Modesto, CA

You want to match the FICA/Medicare to the right spouse, too. But yes, we all make mistakes under this kind of deadline pressure. There was only one perfect person, and we crucified him! I wake up in a panic trying to remember if I did this or checked that, and get up and turn on my computer. But in my sleepy state, I probably don't do any better than I would waiting until the morning. Except that I wouldn't fall back asleep and would lay there with a knot in my stomach. (I guess a home office does save me time.) And then, I'm even more sleepy due to that middle-of-the-night working or due to that middle-of-the-night worrying, either way. It's only February, and I'm already sleep deprived. Hang in there. You're doing fine.

This is the kind of thing that keeps me up at night, and the reason I like to check and question every line on a return. Yet, I've still done the exact same thing and even had Sch C going to the wrong spouse. Clients usually appreciate when we admit a mistake and take responsibility for it, and get it fixed for them.

I do use the comparison, and I'm sure I looked at it. They had 3 W2's and I thought it was his. I really did check it, and thought it was his. I always compare year to year. Oh well, clean it up, and move on. Like you said, it's an easy mistake to make. When you are doing the volume I do, there will be an error or two. But no error is ok with me. None. I need to pull myself out of this funk. I can't let this defeat me today. Thanks for the input. I appreciate it.

Yeah, I read the section and am leaning in your direction too. I've also been thinking that since SSTB status is such an iffy area and millions of these returns will be questionable; and given that these returns are not being processed by mental giants, almost anything not blatantly wrong will be accepted and never heard from again.