2018 tax planning should be done using the 2017 downloaded program in the FORMS mode using the What-If tool set on the 2018 setting ...
- Click Forms Icon (upper
right of screen) or Ctrl 2 (forms view)
- Click on the Open Form
Icon
- In the “Type a form name.” area
type What-If (with the dash), click on the name of the worksheet - click on
Open Form
- You will see the
worksheet on the right side of the screen; enter the information right into the
form
- To get back to interview
mode - click on the Step-by-Step Icon (upper right of screen) or Ctrl 1
These first releases of
the program are usually very buggy ( you are the beta testers even if you don't
know it) and will require MANY updates before it becomes fully functional which
usually will not happen until late January or sometime in February depending on
the forms you need. So patience will be needed as the IRS has not even
announced when the 2019 filing season will start accepting or processing
returns. And since many state’s piggy
back off the federal return many of them will also be delayed this year.
This past tax year,
not only did the IRS have to rewrite a ton of tax code due to the late changes
made in Dec of 2017 but the fools in Congress required they also toss out
all the old 1040 forms for the new "1040 Simplified" version (
which is anything but simplified since it adds 6 new schedules) and all
these changes have the IRS way behind the normal timeline so expect things to
not only run late but they will be VERY BUGGY so the smart money is on the
patient person who waits to file until most of the errors have been
corrected. Last time this happened many of the early filers had their
returns lost or delayed for months so don't be in a hurry to jump off that
cliff.
The tax programs this year have had
to be completely reworked by every tax software company due to the changes
above since it is not just as simple as " adding a form or worksheet
" since many of the forms interwork with each other ... lots of moving
parts to coordinate. And before they can get final approval they
need to be tested and approved by the IRS who themselves are not up to speed
yet ... this is an impossible situation that will require patience on all
fronts. Even my professional program has indicated that they will be
delayed in getting out the first version this year and I appreciate them
waiting until they have a working product when it is pushed out.
