I have $0 in taxable income, but Turbotax is saying I owe $146 in federal tax. Why is that?

After you reduce your income to zero there is no more refund to get back but you still may owe for other things like self employment tax or the 10% early withdrawal penalty from 401k or IRA accounts.  What lines on the 1040 has the $146 besides line 37?  

Some common explanations for why you would owe tax with zero taxable income include:

 

•  you had self-employment income of $400 or more, so you are subject to self-employment tax (rather than income tax) 
•  you received Advance Premium Tax Credit in excess of your Premium Tax Credit and are required to pay back the difference

 

I see that @VolvoGirl has also just mentioned the excise tax on early withdrawals from retirement accounts.

 

You can view your entire return or just your 1040 form before you e-file to see how your taxes were calculated and to preview the forms that TurboTax has prepared from your entries:

 

1. Sign in to your TurboTax account
2. Open or continue your return
3. Select Tax Tools from the menu (if you don't see this, select the menu icon in the upper-left corner)
4. With the Tax Tools menu open, you can then:
   • Preview your entire return: Select Print Center and then Print, save or preview this year's return (you may be asked to register or pay first if you choose this option)
   • View only your 1040 form: Select Tools. Next, select View Tax Summary in the pop-up, then Preview my 1040 in the left menu

Look for tax amounts in lines 16 through 24 of your return.

 

@willajayne