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In general, to avoid an estimated tax penalty you would want to meet the Safe Harbor requirements (See: Underpayment of estimated tax by individuals penalty )   Pay at least 90% of your current year's tax liability: Estimate your total tax liability for the current year and ensure your payments (withholding and estimated payments combined) cover at least 90% of that amount. Pay 100% of your previous year's tax liability: You can avoid a penalty by paying 100% of the tax shown on your previous year's return (110% if your adjusted gross income was over $150,000, or $75,000 if married filing separately).  Based upon you receiving a CP-30 you did not meet the Safe Harbor requirements. The $1,000 threshold in estimated tax payments refers to the amount of tax you expect to owe for the current tax year, after subtracting your withholdings and refundable credits.   Your estimated tax payments that you made for all four quarters are not included in this calculation.   In short, since the refund was generated because of the estimated tax payments and not withholding and refundable credits this is the reason you have an estimated tax penalty.   The next two questions are intertwined.   While TurboTax automatically calculates and adds an underpayment penalty to your tax return if you didn't pay enough estimated taxes throughout the year, or if your withholding wasn't sufficient, it would appear your preparer did not do so.  I would say it is best to calculate the penalty, as Turbo Tax does, as well as annualize income if there was income that was received during the year that is not equal across the quarters.     Thank you for your question @Dan S9    Thank you for choosing TurboTax Live and have a great day!   All the best,   Marc T. TurboTax Live Tax Expert 28 Years of Experience Helping Clients

@HRP20 wrote: Yes both homes in California. We still see each other, but live separate as healthier for our relationship. If you are both permanent residents of California, you can file jointly if you prefer, and the state won't care that you live in separate homes.  The only issue might be that you will only have one address on your tax return, this is where you want tax-related mail to be sent.  It does not have to be the address where you live.  It can be either home, or a PO Box, or even a relative whom you trust.     If you did want to file separately (married filing separately) then you would file MFS for both the federal and state, and you would each use your own address on your own return.

If you owe the IRS 2 years in a row, the IRS can legally determine you needed to pay Quarterly Estimated Taxes for the balance.  The last quarterly payment is due Jan 15th of the year you will file.  So 1/15/2025 for the 2024 year tax return.  The penalty is based on when the actual payments were made, as the IRS has access to all the payroll tax payment amounts and dates paid.  Unless you provide all your paystubs to your tax expert, they cannot report these payments accurately to calculate the penalty.  Here at TurboTax Full Service we err on the other side.  We recommend paying the penalty so the IRS doesn't continue to accrue interest and penalties on you.  And sometimes part of the penalty is refunded once the return is processed.   Some ways to avoid an Estimated Tax Penalty for 2025 are  to pay Estimated Tax Payments to the IRS by 1/15/2026 or  increase your withholdings.   If you found this advice helpful, please let us know.   Best regards, Catherine TurboTax Expert   **To express thanks, click the thumb icon in a post. **To highlight helpful answers, click on "Mark as Best Answer."  

When you say you have no W-4, do you mean you have no income to report to NY State or NYC? The NY State return has 2 Education deductions that can potentially lower NY State income. There are no NY City Education credits or deductions and there are no NY State credits.NY State residents can potentially deduction contributions to a New York's 529 College Savings Program. Individuals can deduct up to $5,000, and married couples filing jointly can deduct up to $10,000 against their NY State income. Here's a more detailed breakdown: Tax Deduction: New York residents can deduct up to $5,000 of contributions to a 529 plan from their state income taxes each year.   Married Filers Jointly: Married couples filing jointly can deduct up to $10,000 of contributions.   Contribution Deadline: Contributions must be made by the end of the tax year (December 31st) to be eligible for the deduction.   Eligibility: To claim the deduction, you must live and work in New York.   NY State credits for a NY state 529 contribution: The form to claim the New York State 529 College Savings Program deduction is Form IT-201, Full-Year Resident Income Tax Return. You'll report your 529 contributions on Line 30 of Form IT-201.NY State Claim for College Tuition Credit or Itemized Deduction. To claim the New York State College Tuition Credit or Itemized Deduction, you need to use Form IT-272, Claim for College Tuition Credit or Itemized Deduction. This will report to IT-201 line 68 or be added to your NY State Itemized Deductions. Both can potentially lower your NY State Income. There is no additional NY State refund for either of these. **Say "Thanks" by clicking the thumb icon in a post **Mark the post that answers your question by clicking on "Mark as Best Answer"

@Pamela-M  Thank you for the fast response. He already contacted the Medicaid office. They said he already had a SNAP card. But his card actually has a $0 balance. And also he co-pays $200 for his health plan monthly. Thus we feel puzzled about this issue...

Your question is posting from online Live Deluxe.  If you really used the "Live" online software with help from a tax expert, then contact your expert for assistance.   No one in the user forum can see your tax return or change or fix anything for you.     https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/product-setup/connect-tax-expert-turbotax-live/L73wOZD5D_US_en_US?uid=m8zw1pbb  

From reading another persons post & answer, I am seeing that  : TurboTax will put $158 (the maximum contribution I could have made for 2023), on line 19 if you are allowed to make a Roth contribution for 2023.. that is what it did. That is  even though I didnt make any Roth contribution for 2023. from what I read that part is correct.   My 2024 line 22 was not  zero.... regardless  since I removed the excess  $700 in Nov. 2024  it looks like I need to amend 2024 to have the excess $700 carried forward to my 2024 Form 5329 line 18, and the distribution will then be on line 20 to be subtracted from the excess, with line 24 showing $0.  I really dont know what to do, .. leave it alone ? I paid $31 tax on line 25 (I know its not a-lot ) Even though I took the excess out. If I leave it alone , I'll just keep paying the tax...  

The Social Security Administration (SSA) typically updates self-employed earnings from Schedule C tax filings after the IRS processes your federal income tax return, but the exact time frame can vary.  Time Frame for SSA to Record Self-Employed Earnings   General Process: When you file your federal income tax return (Form 1040, Schedule C and Schedule SE), the IRS processes the return and shares the net earnings data with the SSA. The SSA then updates your earnings record to reflect the self-employment income. This process typically takes 6 to 12 months after you file your taxes, though it can occasionally take longer due to processing delays or discrepancies. Filing Deadline: For self-employed individuals, earnings must be reported by April 15 of the following year (or the next business day if it falls on a weekend or holiday). If you file on the three-year limit (within three years, three months, and 15 days from the end of the tax year), the SSA can still claim your earnings, provided the IRS accepts the return. Processing Variability: The SSA updates may not appear until the following year's Social Security statement, which is typically issued annually. For example, taxes filed in April 2025 for the 2024 tax year might not show up in your SSA earnings record until mid-2026 or later.  Why your Social Security Statement May Not Show Payments   IRS-SSA Data Transfer Delays: The SSA relies on the IRS to process and transmit your earnings data. If the IRS has backlogs or issues with your return (errors or audits), the data may not reach the SSA promptly. Late Filing Within the Time Limit: While you're filing within the three-year, three-month, and 15-day limit, late filings may take longer to process, especially if the IRS flags them for review. The SSA may not update records until the IRS fully processes the return. Missing or Incomplete SSA Records: In some cases, the SSA may fail to record earnings due to internal errors or system issues. This is more common with self-employed income than with W-2 wages, as self-employed filings require manual calculations (92.35% of net profit on Schedule SE).  

It depends.  Criteria must be met financially as well as non financial criteria.   Financial - MAGI (modified adjusted gross income) is used to determine eligibility.  This would depend upon the tax household, such as those with children.  Some may be exempt from the MAGI income rules, such as those with disabilities. Non-financial - To be eligible for Medicaid, beneficiaries generally must be residents of the state in which they would be receiving Medicaid.  They must be citizens of the United States or qualified non-citizens, such as a lawful permanent resident. I have included a link here with more information on qualifying for Medicaid. https://www.medicaid.gov/medicaid/eligibility-policy Thanks for the question.

Hi MythSaraLee: This is not specifically a tax question.  You may want to go directly to Medicaid and SNAP websites to explore resources: https://www.medicaid.gov/ https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program All the best!    

If your goal is to figure out how to minimize your taxes, or figure out what is the fair way to divide any tax responsibilities, you should talk to an accountant who can review all your facts and personally advise you. 

You file one tax return for the entire year.  Most people are on a calendar year (Jan 1 through Dec 31).  Changing to a different year is difficult and probably requires an accountant to help, and is not recommended for individuals (sometimes companies do this).    You can't file a return for half the year before the divorce and half the year after the divorce.  One return for the whole year, containing all the income, deductions and credits for that year.     If you are single on December 31, you file as single (or maybe as head of household) even if you were married for part of the year.  If you remarry to spouse #2 on or before December 31, then you file as though you were married to spouse #2 for the entire year, even though you were married to spouse #1 for part of the year and single for part of the year.