1099-MISC forcing to report as Business Income

[Rob_Dog]

My wife is a retired Delta flight attendant and we receive a 1099-MISC annually for flight benefits we receive as part of her Retirement Benefits. We have used TurboTax for many years and this item has always been shown on our 1040 under Schedule 1, Part 1, line Z.  

This year I am being forced to claim it as Business Income. It is not....

How do I get this amount to show as it always has before and NOT generate all of the business docs which I do not want and should not have???

Thanks in advance!

[DavidD66]

To enter in TurboTax Online, while logged in to your account and in your return:

• Type "Form 1099 Misc" in the search window and hit enter
• Click on "Jump to Form 1099 Misc" 
• Answer "Yes" to Did you get a 1099-MISC?
• Enter the information from your 1099-MISC
• Enter a description such as "Inherited Deferred Comp"
• Mark choice "none of these apply" for  "Does one of these uncommon situations apply?"
• Indicate "No, it didn't involve work like [your] main job.
• Check the box "I got it in 2023."  Do not check the other boxes, even if you received the benefit in prior years and expect to get it next year.
• Indicate "No, it didn't involve an intent to earn money."
• Continue with the interview, and your income will appear as ordinary income not subject to self-employment tax on Schedule 1 (1040) line 8z.

[Rob_Dog]

Thank you so much...  I am using the Desktop version and not sure how to do the Search you mention using that??

[Rob_Dog]

I have gone through those steps multiple times and it keeps doing the same thing with the answers like you suggest. I am thinking I might have to start the entire return over to get these schedules to drop out??

[MinhT1]

In TurboTax, enter your form 1099-MISC and follow the interview until you arrive at the page titled Did this involve an intent to earn money?. Answer that this didn't involve an intent to earn money. The amount will be reported as Miscellaneous income and won't be subject to Self-employment tax.

In TurboTax, there's a work-around. Although you may receive this income every year, say that you only receive the 1099-MISC only in 2023, not in previous years, and not in 2024, you will then have the screen where you can say that it didn't involve an intent to earn money.

[Rob_Dog]

I have done that multiple times and it still forces it into Business Income.  I have deleted the Business Income entry and then it goes right back next time.  I think I will delete the return and start over??

[AmyC · Accepted solution]

There may be an errant piece of information stuck in the business that causes the program to keep creating it since @MinhT1 has the correct advice. Follow these steps to get your program straightened out and then follow the steps listed above.

Desktop version: 

1. Delete the business and the 1099-MISC form
2. Save your return while closing the program.
3. Update the program
4. Open
5. Enter the information again.

Online version:

A full or corrupted cache can cause problems in TurboTax, so sometimes you need to clear your cache (that is, remove these temporary files).

For stuck information follow these steps:

1. Delete the 1099 MISC form, business entries,, any associated worksheets - see How to Delete  
2. Log out of your return and try one or more of the following:
   • Don't use Internet Explorer.
   • Clear cache and cookies,
   • Sign in using a different browser.
   • Sign in using a different device.
3. Log back into your return.
   • Enter the information again be sure to answer:

•  no intent to earn money 
• mark that the income is only for this tax year, 2023 . Otherwise the program will think it is recurring income and a business and you are back to where you started.

[Rob_Dog]

I think I got it done...

I had to delete the 1099-misc entry and the Business Income entry.  I then re-input the 1099-MISC using all of the notes you both provided and it appears to be correct now!

THANK YOU BOTH!!

[clarineted]

I have similar situation and your suggestions worked.  However, a Schedule C and its Worksheet is still in the Fed Tax forms albeit with no data.  The description of what the 1099 was for is the description I used when I first came across the issue with SCH C being generated.  I just now need to know how to delete it.  It must still be a cache issue?

Thanks for your help.

[LeticiaF1]

To get rid of this Schedule C and possibly an incorrect 1099-MISC, follow the steps below:

First to delete the Schedule C:

1. Sign in to TurboTax
2. Open your return by selecting Continue or Pick up where you left off.
3. In the left menu, select Tax Tools and then Tools.
4. In the pop-up window Tool Center, choose Delete a form.
5. Select Delete next to Schedule C

In case you have an additional 1099-MISC, to delete it:

1.  Search for 1099-MISC in the search bar 
2. Select the Jump to link in the search results to get to the summary screen
3. Select the trash can icon to delete it

@clarineted