Can I remove 401k from my W-2?

[panda_lover713]

I have a 401k through my employer. I have tried Turbo Tax and H&R Block and the 401k causes me to have something called "Savers Credit" and it says I have to upgrade to a deluxe edition (on both sites) and file a Form 8880 in order to claim the Savers Credit or else I can't e-file. My question is, if I manually put in my W-2 information, can I leave out the 401k and bypass the Savers Credit? I've never heard of it until this year and I don't really want anything to do with whatever it is. It's causing me a lot of distress. 

[DavidD66]

I don't recommend omitting any of the information on your W-2.  It's there for a reason.

Depending on your adjusted gross income, the amount of the savers credit will be 50%, 20% or 10% of your 401(k) contributions.  This will either increase your refund or reduce the amount you owe.  For more information on the credit, go to:

Retirement Savings Contributions Credit (Saver’s Credit)

[Opus 17]

If the amount of the credit is less than the upcharge, you can remove the credit by indicating that you are a full time student in your personal information page.  This should not change anything else on your tax return.  (Students are not eligible for the credit.)

If your total income is less than $36,000, you can use the IRS Freefile version of Turbotax without being charged an up-charge for this situation.  However, since FreeFile is a separate program, you will have to make a new account and start over from scratch.

https://freefile.intuit.com

You might also be able to install Turbotax on your own computer.  The "desktop" version of Turbotax Deluxe costs less than $50, if bought from a discount retailer like Amazon or Costco, plus it will charge you an extra $25 to e-file your state tax return. (You can print and mail your state return for free.). The fee for the Desktop version might be less than what Turbotax Online wants to charge you.   Be sure to buy the version marked "Federal plus one free State."

[macuser_22]

Why do you want to take it off?

Unless the credit is less than the upgrade?

Two options:

1) You might be able to use the Free File Edition for incomes under $36,000 and supports all states and most forms.

And get the credit.

The Free File Edition is part of the IRS Free File alliance and is totally separate from TurboTax website. The IRS Free File should not be confused with the TurboTax Free Edition that only supports simple tax returns.

https://freefile.intuit.com/

How do I switch to TurboTax Free File?
https://ttlc.intuit.com/replies/3491786


2) In the "savers credit" interview answer "yes" you are a student. The answer does not go on the tax return or affect anything else, it simply "fools" TurboTax to remove the credit.