TurboTax says I have a penalty for underpayment of 2016 estimated taxes, but I did not pay estimated taxes at all. My 2016 1040 for that field is blank.

[Anita01]

That's exactly why you are showing  a penalty, because you did not pay estimated tax when it looks like you should have based on the information currently entered in the program.  To see if you can remove the penalty, go through the interview for Underpayment of Estimated Tax under Other Tax Situations in the Federal Program.  Information you enter there can eliminate the penalty.

[atgibson01]

How is it showing I should have paid estimated taxes?  I have never done that.  Can I clear that information, because my 2016 1040 does not show an entry for estimated taxes.  I do not know where it is coming from.

[Anita01]

That's why you go through the interview, to delete the penalty.  You need to fill in the info there that's missing in the program right now.

[atgibson01]

Perhaps I'm not being clear.  I did not sign up to pay estimated tax for 2017.  I do not know where it is getting that I did.  Since the IRS should acknowledge that I did not sign up to pay estimated tax, the IRS should not levy a penalty.  I'll just tell TurboTax I'll pay it separate.

[Anita01]

The program is not saying you signed up to pay estimated tax and then did not make the payments.  It is telling you that, based on the entries currently in your 2017 return, maybe you should have made estimated payments in order to avoid this penalty in 2017.  Going through that interview provides  a little extra information that could cause the penalty to reduce to zero.