Turbo Tax Estimated Tax Payments Double Counted

[dshiller-century]

Turbo Tax seems to double count estimated tax payments made in 2022.  I paid $8K in estimated taxes, and I entered it in the estimated Fed Tax Estimated Payments section of Turbo Tax Deductions and Credits.  Turbo Tax correctly reflects it on line 26 of the Form 1040 BUT ALSO adds it to line 10 of Schedule 3 (even though I am not filing for an extension).  As a result, Turbo Tax reflects it twice - $16K in estimated payments.  Am I doing something wrong or is this a system glitch? Thanks

[SteamTrain]

@dshiller-century 

No...that didn't happen to me when I entered Federal  Quarterly estimates in a test file.

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You didn't say which platform you are using...but if you are using the Desktop software?

Switch to forms mode.  Open the "Tax Payments" Worksheet.

Check your values in lines 1,2,3,4.

Then check lines 6 & 9 too to see if you entered the extra 8k anywhere in those two lines  (those two lines can be deleted there too).

Those values come from the interview...but it's easier to see where the extra $$ are posted on that worksheet.

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IF using the "Online" software, you'd have to check your exact entries again.

IF the Quarterly estimated taxes paid are ok.

Go  to, and expand the "Estimates and Other Taxes Paid" and check what's in the Income Taxes Paid section ...in the 2022 Federal extension area.

[LY]

This did happen to me on Desktop.  Sorry this is long but difficult to explain when you have to write it. 

I did just update my 2022 software today, 7/16/23, since I am just now finalizing a tax return.  Can you please route this to the devs for TT 2023.   The following is for my 2022 return.  I did (duplicate) enter my 2021 extension pmt for State that I paid in 2022, under both of the sections in #1 below, but I was able to find it and fix it.   But it's confusing and misleading based on the "Learn More" instructions AND the way the totals are shown in the list of "Your 2022 Deductions and Credits" (when I choose what to work on), because a form is not interacting with that screen and and the interview is also not interacting with it correctly.  I hope TurboTax can fix it for 2023. Here is what is happening:

1) "Learn More":  in "Deductions" under "Estimates and Other Taxes Paid", there are two "Learn Mores" - one under Estimates, and one under Other Taxes Paid.  BOTH of them say this is where you enter estimates and in fact there is space in the interview to enter them.  So that is confusing.  Under Estimates in the interview it says "2021 state estimated taxes paid in 2022" and under Other Taxes Paid in the interview it says "Payments with your State 2021 extension".  They are both technically estimates, but TT should please add a note in the interview for Estimates, to NOT enter extension pmts there but instead say to enter them in Other Taxes Paid (or TT can move them there automatically).  Please read #2 for why this is very important to fix.

2) In the same screen - that is, in my tax numbers shown in blue in Your 2022 Dedn's & Credits, next to Estimates, and next to Other Taxes Paid, they added up exactly to the total of what I paid WITHOUT double-counting, even though I did enter my 2021 extension pmt made in 2022 in both places.  So that is misleading and confusing  Let's say for 2022 estimated taxes I paid $2K to Fed and $1K to State, both pd in 2022, and I paid $500 to State in 2022 with my 2021 extension.   Under Estimates it showed $3K in blue, and under Other Taxes paid it showed $500 in blue.  So looking at that, I thought I was good!  I only discovered my duplication because I was reviewing my Sch A, but it took me a while to figure out where the duplication was and where to fix it.  When I clicked through the Sch A form drilling down, it took me finally to the Fed Carryover Wksht and that made it look like I had not duplicated because (d) Total Withheld Payments was NOT double the amount.  I believe that was the only place in Forms I could zero out one of the duplicates so I tried that - but (d) didn't change when I zeroed out either of the numbers in blue on the Fed Carryover sheet.  So I think this is also a problem. 

2a) Further,  when I zeroed the Extension payment by entering 0 in the Fed Carryover, the Other Taxes Paid in blue on the Deductions summary (walk thru) changed as it should, but when I zeroed out the Estimate in Fed Carryover, the Estimates in blue in Deductions summary DID NOT CHANGE but should have.  (But the interview amount I had entered did properly change to zero.)

Anyway I almost didn't catch my mistake and had a hard time figuring out how to fix it.  It was not until I took a look over the 1040 and the Sch A forms to be sure everything was correct, that I found it.    So I think it should be clarified as to where exactly you enter the payment with extension.  It may seem obvious but #2 and #2a especially made it confusing and those issues should be fixed.  Thanks!!!

[Critter-3]

If information was transferred in from the prior year tax file then this error usually happens when the filed archived prior year return was changed in some manner  after the  filing was accepted.    Thus incorrect information is carried forward requiring the user to make the needed corrections in the estimated payment section. 

[SteamTrain]

a)  Yes, I agree that those main menu "Summary" amounts in blue, need to update to include the extra entry you made (or removed when deleted) for any 2021 state "quarterly" estimated tax payment made in the "Estimates" area.

b) I don't necessarily agree that there is any easy way to get it drilled into the taxpayer's heads, that the "Extension" payment is entirely different from what is termed an "Estimated" payment.  TTX uses the Estimated term to refer to the (usually) regular Quarterly Estimates payments.

Perhaps in the "Estimates" area, TTX could prefix every menu item in there with "quarterly". 

As an example: "2021 state quarterly estimated taxes paid in 2022".  That might get people to stop a moment to think about that, an discern it is not for extension payments.  Other than sticking in a header "Do Not Put any Extension Payments on This Page"  (which they are unlikely to do...but who knows)

c)  As to the extension payments in the "Other Income Taxes" section. Not sure whether anything else can be done there.....a payment with an extension is an extension payment, and that's where they go.