possible glitch in Teacher (Educator) Expenses section & Job Expenses for W-2 Income section

[varmsb]

I spent almost an hour on the phone with an advisor attempting to solve this issue with no success. 

In the deductions section I am trying to include an amount in the Teacher (Educator) Expenses section. 

After putting an amount in, I get an alert that I do not qualify for this credit for the following reason:   Earlier you told us you have $0 in teacher (educator) expenses, so there’s nothing to deduct. You can go back and enter a different amount or keep going.   Neither the tax advisor nor I could find anywhere in the program where I indicated I had no expenses.

What is curious is that after I put my amount in and continue, an additional section populates on the deduction page: Job Expenses for W-2 Income with the identical amount.  When I remove my 

Teacher (Educator) Expenses section, the Job Expenses for W-2 Income section with the identical amount ALSO disappears.

AS I stated, I worked with an advisor for an hour attempting to report this deduction with no success and no answers.

[JohnB5677]

I could not reproduce the conditions you stated.

• I stated NO to Did you spend your own money as a teacher in 2022?
  • When I returned and said yes, I was able to post the amount with no error message.
• I then entered zero "0" in the educator expense box.
  • The next screen stated, "It turns out you don't qualify for this deduction"., but there was no mention of a value.
  • I Exited and went back in and was able to make an adjustment.
• It does sound like you were able to go back and enter the correct amount, and have it record accurately.

Unfortunately, we are currently not able to identify what caused the issue.  If it can be reproduced, or if you have a similar issue in the future, please contact us, and with your permission we can do an analysis of the conditions in your software.

[varmsb]

Hello

Thank you for your response.  

I was never able to get the amount to record correctly. I filed knowing I wasn't getting the deduction.

I  tried multiple browsers with the same result. 

[Barnhart0517]

I've had the same issues. Called 3 times. Got hung up on once. I've been on the phone for over 3.5 hours total. Still no resolution. 

[TeresaM]

It would be helpful to have a TurboTax ".tax2022" data file for the return that is experiencing this issue. Please, also tell us any states included in the return. 

You can send us a “diagnostic” file that has your “numbers” but not your personal information.  If you would like to do this, here are the instructions for TurboTax Online: 

Go to the dark panel on the left side of your program and select Tax Tools. 

1. Then select Tools below Tax Tools. 
2. A window will pop up which says Tools Center.  
3. On this screen, select Share my file with Agent. 
4. You will see a message explaining what the diagnostic copy is.  Click okay through this screen and then you will get a Token number. 
5. Reply to this thread with your Token number. This will allow us to open a copy of your return without seeing any personal information.  

We will then be able to see exactly what you are seeing, so we can determine what exactly is going on in your return and provide you with a resolution. 

If you are using TurboTax Desktop, these are the instructions: 

1. Go to the top Menu Bar and select Online
2. Select Send tax file to Agent. 
3. You will see a message explaining what the diagnostic copy is.  Click okay through this screen and then you will get a Token number. 
4. Reply to this thread with your Token number. This will allow us to open a copy of your return without seeing any personal information.  

[Barnhart0517]

Token #: 1098596

I owould appreciate if this was expedited. I have wasted nearly 4 hours on the phones with reps and agents from Turbo Tax with no resolution. This was sent to investigations and I have not received a response. This should be a simple issue to fix, espeically since it is not isolated.

[DawnC]

Your spouse is not getting the deduction because of the nontaxable income from the 1099-Q.    See the Educator Expenses Worksheet, image below, to see this.   When I entered the deduction under the taxpayer, it transferred to Form 1040 and increased the refund.   However, when entered for the Spouse, the deduction was limited by the nontaxable qualified tuition program distributions that the spouse received.    Amounts on Line 9 are not deductible on Schedule A.    Without the 1099-Q, Line 8 would equal $300.   Or, if the 1099-Q was yours, your spouse would get the deduction.   See the IRS excerpt below.  

Topic 458 - IRS - Educator Expenses

Qualified expenses are deductible only to the extent the amount of such expenses exceed the following amounts for the tax year:

• The interest on series EE and I U.S. savings bonds that you exclude from income because you paid qualified higher education expenses,
• Any distribution from a qualified state tuition program that you exclude from income,
• Any tax-free withdrawals from your Coverdell education savings accounts,
• Any reimbursements you receive for expenses that aren't reported to you in box 1 of your Form W-2.   @Barnhart0517 

[paka_567]

This is happening to me with my 2023 return as well. Are there any updates to this glitch? I had about $400 in teacher expenses, but when I enter '$400' I get a message saying I don't qualify for the $300 deduction. I tried inputting $3,000 just to see what would happen, and I got a message saying that I qualified for the $300 deduction. I've used this deduction for 10 years with no problem until now. 

[DawnC]

Are you filing a joint return?   Did you maybe apply it to your spouse the first time?   When I put in $400, it said I get the $300 credit.   Any amount I entered over $300 applied the correct credit.   @paka_567 

[paka_567]

Nothing about my tax situation has changed and this is the first time I'm experiencing this glitch in 10 years. 

[PaulaM]

I get the credit when I enter educator expenses. The amount will flow to Schedule 1 as an adjustment (subtraction) to income and then onto line 10. 

You might have other adjustments to income that are added on Schedule 1. It will be a net amount that flows to line 10 on your 1040.