I had the state apply my full $2400 refund for 2022 to cover 2023 Estimated Taxes. But when I logged into my online account to pay my fourth and final installment today, I noticed they took only half of that $2,400, which was deducted at the time the first payment was due in April.
I initially thought that the state tax authority made some sort of mistake. But in researching this issue this afternoon, I discovered the apparent cause. On Form IT-2105.1 -- Reconciliation of Estimated Tax Account for Individuals -- there's a notation under Line Instructions - Line 1, that applies to married taxpayers who filed jointly:
"Line 1 – Married taxpayers: If you had an overpayment from the previous year applied to estimated tax...we established a separate estimated tax account for each spouse. To reconcile the amounts on Form IT-2105.1, be sure to check both estimated tax accounts. If you file a joint New York State income tax return, we will credit the balances of both accounts to your joint income tax return."
In other words, half of the 2022 state tax refund earmarked to pay 2023 Estimated Taxes was listed in my online account with the state; the other half was in my wife's account. Frankly, since we file under my SS#, she didn't even have an account...until today.
This is something many people in a similar situation to me might not realize. And I hope it saves you some of the aggravation I went through to figure this out.
