topic Missing Vehicle registration fees on federal tax summary page in Deductions & credits

Missing Vehicle registration fees on federal tax summary page

ferdi53 — Wed, 03 Mar 2021 22:41:53 GMT

I entered eligible vehicle taxes in the deduction page and when entry was completed, the amount was filled in correctly. When I look at the federal tax summary page, 2019 fees are displayed but not the ones I entered for 2021. Need to understand if this is a glitch or if fees have been taken into consideration when calculating my taxes paid. Thanks

Re: Missing Vehicle registration fees on federal tax summary page

ReneeM7122 — Wed, 03 Mar 2021 23:06:57 GMT

Annual car registration fees may be deductible on your federal income taxes, but only under certain circumstances.

The portion of the registration fee that is charged based on the vehicle's value - as opposed to its size, age or other characteristics - can generally be claimed as a deduction.
If part of your registration is indeed deductible, you must itemize your deductions to claim it, rather than using the standard deduction.

Value-based fees

Every state has its own way of calculating the registration fee on a vehicle, and those calculations typically take several factors into account. For example, say your annual car registration fee is based on a formula that charges:

$2 per 100 pounds of vehicle weight,
$1 per $1,000 of value,
a flat $10 for license plate tabs, and
$35 in other taxes and charges.

If you had a 4,200-pound vehicle with a value estimated by the state at $25,000, then your fee would be $154.

(4,200-pound vehicle weight ÷ 100) x $2 = $84
($25,000 vehicle value ÷ $1,000) x $1 = $25
$84 weight fee + $25 value fee + $10 license plate tabs + $35 taxes and charges = $154 total fee

Of that $154, only $25 would be an itemized deduction, because that's the only portion based on the actual value of the vehicle.

Annual fees

To be deductible, a value-based auto registration fee must also be assessed on an annual basis. What matters here is the frequency with which the tax is charged to you, not the frequency with which it's actually collected. A state could collect half of the fee every six months, for example, or allow you to pay two years' worth of fees at a time, but you can still take a deduction as long as the fees are assessed on a per-year basis.

TurboTax will help you determine how much of your registration fees are deductible, if any.

Here is a TurboTax article about state vehicle registration fees.

Re: Missing Vehicle registration fees on federal tax summary page

ferdi53 — Sun, 07 Mar 2021 19:30:12 GMT

I know what can be deducted. My question is that the entry shows within the tax return entry but does not show on the summary page. How can I be sure that it has been taken into consideration when calculating taxes due or refund?

Re: Missing Vehicle registration fees on federal tax summary page

DaveF1006 — Sun, 07 Mar 2021 22:23:03 GMT

it depends. If you are using the software product versus the online, it would show up in line 5C on Schedule A. If you are using online:

Go to federal>deductions and credits
You should be able to see a screen entitled your tax breaks.
Here you should see your card registration fee and a listing of all your tax breaks for this year.
Also within the software product you can go to federal taxes>deductions and credits>choose what a work on
Scroll down to car registration fees to see if there is an amount listed. You can view it here or 5C on Schedule A.