I received a letter from IRS saying I owe $2327 plus interest for 2020. I filed therough Turbo Tax but they didn't include my SS income on my 1040.

[maquette]

Why didn't Turbo Tax enter my SS income as well as the taxable amount?

[xmasbaby0 · Accepted solution]

Did YOU enter your SSA1099 into the software when you completed your Form 1040?   It was your responsibility to include your SS benefits.   In January the Social Security Administration mails out SSA1099's to folks who receive Social Security benefits and you are supposed to enter it on your tax return.   Based upon your other income, the SS might be taxable.  The amounts of your Social Security are shown on lines 6a and 6b.  The taxable amount is shown on 6b.   

Better check your 2021 tax return to see if you entered your SS for that tax year, or you will have the same problem for your 2021 return.

[xmasbaby0]

Do not try to enter your SSA1099  or RR1099RB as a W-2.  Go to Federal> Wages & Income>>Retirement Plans and Social Security  (SSA1099 and 1099RRB) to enter your SSA1099.

[fanfare]

Always print a copy of your completed tax return for your records, and review it carefully before e-Filing.
You will need it if you are audited by the IRS, or to amend if a TurboTax update changes your return or for any other reason,

AND, to find your AGI next year.

@maquette 

[maquette]

Thanks for your reply. I always print the 1040, but I assumed, (dangerous) that I was paying Turbo Tax to enter the info from my 1099's. I would think they would at least enter the amount off the 1099 even if they don't show the taxable amount on line 6b. Looks like I won't be using Turbo Tax in the future if I need to know the tax laws and what percentage of a portion of my income is taxable. I will make sure that that information is included in the future.

Again, thank you.

[Critter-3]

@maquette 

TT is a DIY program and cannot know if you fail to enter some of your income correctly.   On the IRS notice did they possibly change something else which then made some or more of your SS benefits taxable ?  

[SteamTrain]

Well, You just enter your SSA-1099 into TTX in the correct spot.  Then TTX will calculate the taxable portion and put it on line 6b for you...but YOU have to make sure you enter all your various 1099 forms in teh corrct spot of the income menu .  I'm not sure why you thought TTX would enter them for you.  (unless you actually did buy the upgraded service to have an agent help you prepare your forms)

__________________

Yes, some 1099-R form types can be imported directly into the TTX software, and data auto-entered if you "initiate" the import, but that depends on who is providing that form.  Not all of those forms can be imported, and depends on the supplier of that form creating the specially-formatted data.....and many suppliers don't and you then have to enter the data manually.  The SSA-1099 from Social Security has never been provided by the SS admin as a tax file import...they might in the future, but they haven't yet done so.

_______________________

Another thing you should check, is the other lines on your form 1040 for 2020.   You might have mis-entered your SSA-1099 in the wrong spot.  So look at the totals on lines 4a,4b (IRA 1099-R forms) or lines 5a,5b (other pension 1099-R forms) to see if they match what other 1099-R forms you entered....you might have mis-entered your SSA-1099 in one of those lines....and if you did, then you were actually over-taxed and the IRS may actually owe you some extra refund once you correct the mis-entry of the SSA-1099.

[xmasbaby0]

@maquette How did you expect TurboTax to know about or enter your SSA1099?   It is the responsibility of the user to provide all of the information for your income.   TurboTax does not seek it out for you.   A SSA1099 can only be entered manually by the user; it cannot be imported from a website.   

No matter what software you use or what local paid tax preparer you pay, you still have to give them all of the information regarding your income.

[NCperson]

@maquette  - How would TT know what to enter, unless you tell them?????? if you change to any other software - HR Block, Taxact, etc. , it'll be the same thing.  

None of these companies have access to your income information unless you tell them.  

[Mike9241]

@maquette  this is the same for all DIY tax apps and even for pro preparation.  if you don't tell them about income/deductions they won't get entered.  Turbotax in the interview process (step by step mode) would ask if you received SS benefits. all that was required was to enter the amount requested. all tax programs would then use the gross and other info entered to automatically figure the taxable portion. There's even a worksheet that shows the calculation (for your use - not submitted as part of thee-file) 

[maquette]

I followed your advice and see I did the same thing for 2021. Guess I'll have to address that issue next. This getting old sucks! 😀

Thank you,

Tom