Graduate Student Fellowship with no income reported on W-2, and no 1099-MISC - how to report?

[KathrynG3]

For Form W-2, enter it in the regular wage section exactly as received. It is okay that you are reporting a zero for income.  This will allow TurboTax to properly report that income taxes were withheld.

If you are not sure how to get to this area of your tax return, enter W-2 in the search box and select the Jump to link. Select Enter my W-2 now and Continue.

Yes, you are correct that the stipend details should be reported in the education section. 

For the most recent details regarding graduate student income, see: Are my scholarships, fellowships, or grants taxable?

@aiturra

[aiturra]

Thanks for this, however if I leave it 0 in the w-2 part of turbo tax it won't let me efile 

[KathrynG3]

When I tested the W-2 with a -0-, and numbers in federal and state withholding, I did not get review errors. 

Please be sure to completely log out of your program and close the browser. Re-open the program in Chrome before proceeding to make sure the program has fully updated. Since Form W-2 will also be sent to the IRS, ironically enough, the -0- W-2 not included in your return could possibly generate a discrepancy for them. 

If you would rather, the withholding you paid could instead be reported in Deductions and Credits under Estimates and Other Taxes Paid.

Once you have navigated to this location, select Income Taxes Paid and Withholding not already entered on a W-2 or 1099. This will handle both the Federal and State Withholding on the next screen, Tell us about any tax withholding that you haven't entered yet.

@aiturra

[aiturra]

Opening a new browser worked with keeping 0 in the w-2! Maybe there was an update as you said. Thanks for all your help! 

[aiturra]

Hi I tried to file today but I got the review error that I am not allowed to file with a 0 in the w-2 box. I tired signing out and opening it again but still says I can't file. what should I do? thanks for your help! 

[KathrynG3]

Ok. The alternative of just reporting the withholding you paid is still an option.

To do this in TurboTax, follow these steps:

First, delete the W-2:

• From the left menu, select Federal which will open the first tab, Wages & Income
• Go to Wages and Salaries and select Start 
• At Your W-2 info so far, click the trash can icon next to the W-2 with 0 income.
• Are you sure you want to delete this? answer Yes
• Continue through the rest of the prompts and select Wrap up Income.
  • To verify that it was deleted, go to the left menu and select Tax Tools
  • Select Tools
  • To see the forms, select Delete a Form
  • Scroll to check that there is nothing listed for Form W-2
  • To resume the filing, click Federal on the left menu and continue with the next step below.

Next, report the withholdings you paid:

• Go to the second tab from the left, Deductions and Credits and scroll down to Estimates and Other Taxes Paid and Show More.
• Select Income Taxes Paid.
• Select Other Income Taxes Paid in 2020.
• Select Withholding not already entered on a W-2 or 1099.
• On the next screen, Tell us about any tax withholding that you haven't entered yet, enter Federal Withholdings and State Withholdings in their designated sections. 
• Select Done.

After running the reviews again, this should allow you to file your return.

@aiturra