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Thank you,  BillM223.  What does it mean to document something with a note to your tax archive?  I have not been able to find what this means or how to do it with TurboTax or otherwise.  Greatly appreciate your help!

Q. My grandparents saved money in a 529 plan that pays my tuition and room/board, so my parents are not paying for my college. Does this mean I can say that NO ONE can claim me as a dependent? A. No. Under the Qualifying child dependent rules, your parents do not have to support you.  The rule is that your are not supporting yourself.  And, that is the case, here. See full dependent rules at: https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/tax-tips/Family/Rules-for-Claiming-a-Dependent-on-Your-Tax-Return/INF12139.html   Q. Why am I paying at my parents' tax rate? A. Student-dependents, under 24, are required to pay higher rate tax on their unearned income. The taxable portion of a 529 distribution is classified as unearned ("investment") income.  This is notoriously known as the "kiddie tax".   Q.  Is there a way around this? A. Probably.  Manually calculate the taxable portion of the 1099-Q, to be sure TurboTax (TT) is doing it right. 1099-Qs are not usually taxable.    Q. I checked the box that someone CAN claim me but will not claim me on their tax return because I am 21 and in college and I do not have earned income.  A.  That is NOT a good reason for your parents not to claim you. They, most likely, should be claiming you. With the tax law change, effective 2018, most students will get the same refund (or pay the same tax) whether they claim themselves or not. The personal exemption has been eliminated and the standard deduction increased.    Provide the following info for more specific help: Box 1 of the 1098-T box 5 of the 1098-T Any other scholarships not shown in box 5 Does box 5 include any of the 529/ESA plan payments (it should not) Is any of the Scholarship restricted; i.e. it must be used for tuition Box 1 of the 1099-Q Box 2 of the 1099-Q Who’s name and SS# are on the 1099-Q, parent, grandparent or student (who’s the “recipient”)? Room & board paid. If student lives off campus, what is school's R&B on campus charge. If he lives at home, the school’s R&B “allowance for cost of attendance” for student living with parents. Other qualified expenses not included in box 1 of the 1098-T, e.g. books & computers How much taxable income does the student have, from what sources Are your parents trying to claim the tuition credit (are they eligible: income under $90K, $180K married)? Is the student an undergrad or grad student? Is the student a degree candidate attending school half time or more? ______________________________________________________________________________________ Qualified Tuition Plans  (QTP 529 Plans) Distributions General Discussion It’s complicated. For 529 plans, there is an “owner” (usually the parent, but grandparent, in this case), and a “beneficiary” (usually the student dependent). The "recipient" of the distribution can be either the owner or the beneficiary depending on who the money was sent to. When the money goes directly from the Qualified Tuition Plan (QTP) to the school, the student is the "recipient". The distribution will be reported on IRS form 1099-Q.  The 1099-Q gets reported on the recipient's return.** The recipient's name & SS# will be on the 1099-Q. Even though the 1099-Q is going on the student's return, the 1098-T should go on the parent's return, so you can claim the education credit. You can do this because he is your dependent. You can and should claim the tuition credit before claiming the 529 plan earnings exclusion. The American Opportunity Credit (AOC or AOTC) is 100% of the first $2000 of tuition and 25% of the next $2000 ($2500 maximum credit). The educational expenses he claims for the 1099-Q should be reduced by the amount of educational expenses you claim for the credit. But be aware, you can not double dip. You cannot count the same tuition money, for the tuition credit,  that gets him an exclusion from the taxability of the earnings (interest) on the 529 plan. Since the credit is more generous; use as much of the tuition as is needed for the credit and the rest for the interest exclusion. Another special rule allows you to claim the tuition credit regardless of whose money was used to pay the tuition. In addition, there is another rule that says the 10% penalty is waived if he was unable to cover the 529 plan withdrawal with educational expenses either because he got scholarships or the expenses were used (by him or the parents) to claim the credits. He'll have to pay tax on the earnings, at his lower tax rate (subject to the “kiddie tax”), but not the penalty.   Total qualified expenses (including room & board) less amounts paid by scholarship less amounts used to claim the Tuition credit equals the amount you can use to claim the earnings exclusion on the 1099-Q.  Example:   $10,000 in educational expenses(including room & board which is only qualified for the 1099-Q)    -$3000 paid by tax free scholarship***    -$4000 used to claim the American Opportunity credit  =$3000 Can be used against the 1099-Q (on the recipient’s return)   Box 1 of the 1099-Q is $5000 Box 2 is $2800 3000/5000=60% of the earnings are tax free; 40% are taxable 40% x 2800= $1120 There is  $1120 of taxable income (on the recipient’s return)   **Alternatively; you can just not report the 1099-Q, at all, if your student-beneficiary has sufficient educational expenses, including room & board (even if he lives at home) to cover the distribution. You would still have to do the math to see if there were enough expenses left over for you to claim the tuition credit. Again, you cannot double dip!  When the box 1 amount on form 1099-Q is fully covered by expenses, TurboTax will enter nothing about the 1099-Q on the actual tax forms. But, it will prepare a 1099-Q worksheet for your records, in case of an IRS inquiry. On form 1099-Q, instructions to the recipient reads: "Nontaxable distributions from CESAs and QTPs are not required to be reported on your income tax return. You must determine the taxability of any distribution."  ***Another alternative is have the student report some of his scholarship as taxable income, to free up some expenses for the 1099-Q and/or tuition credit. Most people come out better having the scholarship taxable before the 529 earnings. A student, with no other income, can have up to $14,600 of taxable scholarship (in 2024) and still pay no income tax.       

No.  TurboTax doe not mail tax returns to you.  You can print the returns out yourself. https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/import-export-data-files/save-2021-turbotax-online-return-pdf/L8dHfRkpT_US_en_US?uid=m7e64td0  

For your federal extension, you should pay $500.  Your California overpayment cannot be used to decrease the balance on your federal extension.  You'll receive the refund when you file your California return.

TurboTax does not pay your tax due.   That it up to you.   You need to either mail a check or money order to the state or make payments on the state's website.   If you owe tax due, you have to pay it yourself by the filing deadline on April 15, 2025.      If you have federal tax due you can pay by mailing your payment with the 1040V voucher, (which has the address printed on it, having the payment taken out of a designated bank account, or you can pay directly on the IRS website.    https://www.irs.gov/payments     https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/tax-payments/help/how-can-i-pay-my-federal-taxes/00/26212     https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/tax-payments/help/how-do-i-pay-my-irs-tax-due-with-a-check-or-money-order/00/26403      To apply for a payment plan with the IRS   Apply Online for a Payment Plan     You must pay your state tax due using the state’s preferred method of receiving payment.  For most states that will be by making a payment to the state’s own tax website, or by mailing a check or money order.     https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/state-taxes/contact-state-department-revenue/L9qVToi02_US_en_US?uid=m6e06um0  

In general, no, there is not a place for that.     If you incur dry cleaning expenses while traveling away from your tax home doing business, then the dry cleaning expense is claimed as a travel expense.   But, if you are talking about purchasing suits to wear while conducting business and the expense of dry cleaning those suits routinely, that is not considered a business expense, but a personal one.  The suits can be used for other purposes unrelated to business.     To be able to claim an expense for clothing related to your business, it must be a uniform, safety gear, or other type of specialty clothing that would not reasonably be able to be worn for personal or non-business purposes.  If you did have expenses for this type of specialty clothing and the cleaning of that clothing, then the expense could be entered as a Miscellaneous business expense where you can enter a description and expense.

Please try the guidance in How do I get started with TurboTax Desktop?   For installation and software issues you can contact the TurboTax Support Phone Number   Edited 04/08/2025 | 07:43 AM PST @madscrappers

  https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc152     Federal and state refunds come from completely separate entities.  There is no rule as to which one will come in first or how long it will be between their arrival in your account.   TurboTax gives you an estimated date for receiving your refund based on a 21 day average from your date of acceptance, but it can take longer.  “21 days”  is not a promise from TurboTax or the IRS.      First, check your e-file status to see if your return was accepted:  https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/efile-status-lookup/   Once your federal return has been accepted by the IRS, only the IRS has any control.  TurboTax does not receive any updates from the IRS. Your ONLY source of information about your refund now is the IRS.   You need your filing status, your Social Security number and the exact amount  (line 35a of your 2024 Form 1040) of your federal refund to track your Federal refund:    https://www.irs.gov/refunds   To track your state refund:     https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-refund/track-state-refund/L3jgO8PGs_US_en_US?uid=lt447ebr   If you chose to have your TurboTax fees deducted from your federal refund, that will take some extra time, while the third party bank handles the refund processing     https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-refund/refunds-take-longer-others/L14YlqFrH_US_en_US?uid=lexdr7zh . https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-refund/irs-refund-taking-longer-21-days/L2vRAJbdU_US_en_US?uid=lexe7lst

Standard Deduction for tax year 2024 is  Single     14,600 Married Filing Jointly     29,200 Married Filing Separately     21,900   Are your Itemized Deductions more than the Standard Deduction? Is your state tax paid being limited to 10,000?   Are you filing as a Dependent?       

TurboTax does not have a copy of your W-2. Your best bet is to ask your employer or payroll department for another copy of your W-2.   Here are some more options: Order a copy from the Social Security Administration. It's free if you need it for Social Security-related reasons, otherwise, it's $62 per request. Order a full copy of your return from the IRS for $30, which will also include your W-2. Wage and income transcripts are available from the IRS free of charge. They're not exact copies, but they contain everything on your W-2, except the state and local information.

We can help you file by mail, but did you correct the error that caused the rejection?   Go back into the FILE process. As you go through the interview it will offer the Mail your return option. This will offer a cover sheet and all the forms required to file the return.   Your Federal tax return goes to a different location depending on the state that you live in.  See this list to determine the location for you. Where to File Paper Tax Returns (irs.gov)  

If she earned $70,000, how old is she, was she a student for 5 months of the year?  Did she provide over half of her own support for the year?    It is unlikely having earned that much that she qualifies as a dependent on her parents return.   The person who earns the income is always the person who pays the taxes on that income.   Yes, you can file jointly, however, if you do, and her family already claimed her then you will need to print and mail your return or request an IP PIN to e-file.