Standard vs. Itemized Deduction

Forum|Forum|5 years ago
March 9, 2021
6 replies
20 views

1. There was no deduction to income after I finished the deduction section. Only a screen that recognized that and said something like "We'll be fixing that." But it's been 2 weeks and the only thing that's changed is that screen has disappeared.

2. In any case, I cannot understand why Turbo Tax calculates the Standard Deduction ($27,400) rather than my itemized deductions ($45,341) as best for me.

Please advise.

Mark Lore

LenaH

Employee Tax Expert

If your itemized deductions are greater than the Standard Deduction, TurboTax should automatically use the itemized deductions on your Schedule A. Some deductions are subject to limitations, so this could have changed what was the most beneficial deduction in your tax situation. However, if TurboTax is not choosing the greater of the two deductions, you can force the program to use your Itemized Deductions.

To force the use of Itemized Deductions, please follow the steps below:

Open your return.
Click on Tax Tools on the left hand side.
Click on Tools.
Click Topic Search.
Search "itemized deductions, choosing"
Click on Change my deduction.
Choose Itemized Deductions under Which deduction do you want to take this year?

**Say "Thanks" by clicking the thumb icon in a post. **Mark the post that answers your question by clicking on "Mark as Best Answer"

092238Author

Level 2

Thanks, I'll give it a try. Do you have any insight as to why the Federal Tax owed doesn't change after deductions are counted in?

DawnC

Level 15

They may already have been subtracted from your adjusted gross income. Not everything on the deductions and credits summary page is included on Schedule A. Itemized deductions can be limited amounts of each category. For example, only medical expenses in excess of 7.5% of your AGI are included in the medical expenses deduction. State and local taxes paid are limited to 10K and there are other limitations. What is the amount taken as a deduction of Line #12 of your Form 1040? Then take a look at your Schedule A, Line 17. Is the higher amount included and if not, have you manually changed the deduction?

Also, are you possibly affected by the Alternative Minimum Tax? The AMT is a parallel tax system that operates in the shadow of the regular tax, expanding the amount of income that is taxed by adding items that are tax-free and disallowing many deductions under the regular tax system.

**Say "Thanks" by clicking the thumb icon in a post. **Mark the post that answers your question by clicking on "Mark as Best Answer"