Capital Loss Carryover

[AH459]

Hi,

I just realized that in my  2019  tax return TurboTax didnot pickup my $3000 capital loss carryover from the 2018 return. I checked the 2018 Carryover worksheet and it did not have any amount to be carried over to 2019 although I still have $75,000 left to claim. The 2019 Carryover worksheet shows zero amount in the  carryover loss columns. I had $3810 in capital gains in 2019 and the item 6 on 1040 has the total capital gains of $3810.

Why did Turbotax in 2019 not deduct the $3000 from my capital gains of $3810 in 2019? Now I am filing my 2020 tax return and don't see the carryover coming into the 2020 Carryover worksheet either. Should I just ignore the 2019 return and manually insert the amount in the Carryover worksheet for 2020? Please help!

[Mike9241]

you need to figure out what year the CLCO got dropped because the law would require you to reduce the CO to 2020 by any amount that would have been utilized in all previous years. the most likely reasons for the CLCO not transferring from one year to the next is you didn't do a transfer of data before starting the return, you switched from online to desktop, you're wrong about the C/O or Turbotax goofed. you can amend 2017 (by 10/15/2021 if it was extended) also 2018 and 2019 to use part of the CLCO. but in any case, the CLCO available to you in 2020 is only the amount that would not have been utilized in any prior year so, for example, if any would have been used in 2016 or prior year that part of the CLCO is permanently lost. 

[Critter-3]

Did you possibly use up the loss back in 2018 if there was nothing to carryforward?  Look at the Sch D carefully ... on line 16 is there a negative amount in excess of $3000? 

[rjs]

You don't just use $3,000 of the loss each year. If you had capital gains in 2018, the loss carryover from 2017 would have been used to offset the 2018 gains. If the 2018 Carryover Worksheet has no capital loss carryover to 2019, you probably used up all of the loss to offset 2018 gains.

You only have a capital loss carryover from 2018 to 2019 "if your 2018 Schedule D, line 21, is a loss and (a) that loss is a smaller loss than the loss on your 2018 Schedule D, line 16, or (b) if the amount on your 2018 Form 1040, line 10 (or your 2018 Form 1040-NR, line 41, if applicable) would be less than zero if you could enter a negative amount on that line. Otherwise, you don't have any carryovers."

See the Capital Loss Carryover Worksheet on page 12 of the 2019 IRS Instructions for Schedule D.

[AH459]

Thanks, I got it. I remember now that my 2017 data was not transfered because I got a new computer and 2017 data was on the old laptop. I will try to amend the previous returns.

[AH459]

Thanks for the help, I found the problem.