Deferral for Certain Schedule H or SE Filers Smart Worksheet isnt allowing me to make any changes. I have already paid, can't clear out my return and can't submit as is

[ckruse]

When I go to "Review and File"  and error continue to pop up that the number listed on Line 11 of this Section is 'too large' but i have a -0- entered.  I am not even trying to take a deferral and I have already paid out the self employment tax.  Turbo Tax keeps saying because I am not taking it they will 'fix' the return, but when I get to the end, it has not been fixed and it will not allow me to file.  Worse yet, I cannot just clear and start over because Turbo Tax has already taken payment.

[KathrynG3]

Line 11 is adjusted gross income, and should have a value. But, the check this entry is signaling that the Self-Employment Tax deferral is not correct. 

The following directions are for self-employed persons. 

If you are filing Schedule H, try deleting Schedule H using the steps included for deleting Sch SE-T. Then, re-enter Schedule H.

What has likely happened is that the self-employment tax deferral section may have been visited and then declined, but since it was visited, it is presumed you did want to defer some of the tax. But, since it was later chosen not to defer any self-employment tax, which is allowable, the system needs to update.

To get the system to update, try these two trouble shooting steps:

First, revisit the section for the Self-employment tax deferral entry and accept it, change it, and then decline it by deferring 0:

1. Return to the Deductions & Credits section.
2. Scroll to Tax relief related to COVID-19 and Show More.
3. Select Self-employment tax deferral and select Revisit.
4. Answer Yes at the next screen to get back to Let's start by getting your eligible income.
   1. If you do not want to defer any self-employment income, at "Enter your eligible self-employment income", you have three options. Try them in the following order:
      1. Enter nothing--be sure the cell is completely blank
      2. Enter 0 (as in 0 is the portion of self-employment I will defer) or alternatively,
      3. Enter 280/366ths of your income to reflect the income from March 27-December 31, 2021.
   2. Select Continue.
   3. At Tell us how much you'd like to defer, 
      1. "Enter amount" should be blank if you entered blank above,
      2. Enter 0 if you entered 0 or 280/266ths of income above.
   4. Select Continue.
5. Scroll down and select Wrap up Tax Breaks and Continue.
6. I recommend running through the Federal Review again.

Secondly, if the error is still in the return, it is because Sch SE-T or Sch SE-S is not updating properly. To update the return automatically, it is best to close out completely and close the browser, as well. Re-open in Chrome on a PC.

1. Delete the Sch SE that applies--(Sch SE-T is for Taxpayer, Sch SE-S for Spouse)--by following these steps:
   1. From the left menu, select Tax Tools.
   2. Select Tools.
   3. Scroll to Delete a Form.
   4. Scroll to Sch SE-T and/or Sch SE-S and select Delete.
2. Return to the self-employment income & expenses interview in the Income & Expenses section and select Edit/Add.
   1. Select Edit for your business.
   2. Scroll down to Done so that the Sch SE is recalculated. 
   3. Finish any other questions in the self-employment interview and click Continue.
3. Review the return again.

[Fuchsteiner]

I am having the same error. I am not even self-employed but was forced to set up a business due to having a household nanny. Hence my self-employed income is zero.  None of the steps described by the answer below solved this issue for me.  When I try to follow the steps described it tells me I already have a refund and am not eligible to defer anything so I can't get to the prompts to enter the information the tax expert advises.  Turbo-tax will still not let me efile until this is fixed.

[JamesG1]

It would be helpful if you could generate a balance due by reducing an itemized deduction or reducing Federal withholding in your W-2 to $1.

In TurboTax Online Self-Employed, I was able to enter a self-employment tax deferral and pass Review.  Then I was able to remove self-employment tax deferral and pass Review.  Follow these steps. 

• Down the left side of the screen, click on Federal.
• Across the top of the screen, click on Deductions  & credits.
• Under Your tax breaks, scroll down to Self-employment tax deferral.
• Click on Edit/Add to the right of Self-employment tax deferral.
• At the screen Do you want more time to pay your self-employment tax?, click Yes.
• At the screen Let's start by getting your eligible income, I have left the dollar amount that was previously entered, others change this amount to $0.
• Click on Continue.
• At the screen Tell us how much you'd like to defer, change the dollar amount to $0.
• Click Continue.
• Click through Federal Review to make sure than the Review issue has been removed.
• At the screen Some of your self-employment taxes may be eligible, click Skip.

[Mcarroll12]

I am having the same issue.  I tried your "solution" but it doesn't work if the taxpayer is getting a refund in excess of the amount to be deferred. I clicked on "yes" I want more time to pay, and I am told that I am not eligible. I click "Continue" it brings me back to the 2020 Deductions and Credits summary page. I cannot submit my taxes because of it tells me the number on Line 11 on the 1040/1040SR Wks is too large. It is "0".

I have spent hours trying to sort out YOUR software problem. If I can't figure it out in the next few days I will be requesting a refund and purchasing another non-TurboTax package.  Would you please fix your software???

[JamesG1]

I am guessing that the option for the self-employment tax deferral was generated at a point when your tax return reflected:

• A balance due, and
• Self-employment tax due.

Subsequent entries changed:

• Your balance due status,
• Your self-employment tax due, or
• Both.

For this reason, it was suggested that you temporarily return your tax return to the status of:

• A balance due, and
• Self-employment tax due.

So that you could access the self-employment tax deferral questions and remove that benefit from your tax return because subsequent entries made that benefit no longer available.

Steps that I have found helpful are listed below.  

• Down the left side of the screen, click on Federal.
• Across the top of the screen, click on Deductions  & credits.
• Under Your tax breaks, scroll down to Self-employment tax deferral.
• Click on Edit/Add to the right of Self-employment tax deferral.
• At the screen Do you want more time to pay your self-employment tax?, click Yes.
• At the screen Let's start by getting your eligible income, I have left the dollar amount that was previously entered, others change this amount to $0.
• Click on Continue.
• At the screen Tell us how much you'd like to defer, change the dollar amount to $0.
• Click Continue.
• Click through Federal Review to make sure than the Review issue has been removed.
• At the screen Some of your self-employment taxes may be eligible, click Skip.

After completing these steps, you would reverse the entries that eliminated:

• Your balance due status,
• Your self-employment tax due, or
• Both.

Best wishes.

[Mcarroll12]

It still doesn't work.  I did notice that the questionable number on Line 11 of the Deferral for Certain Schedule H or SE Filers Smart Worksheet populates the box with a value from Schedule 3 Line 12e.  Schedule 3 is just above that section. There is no Line 12e on the TurboTax Schedule 3 form, HOWEVER the IRS form clearly has a Line 12e on Schedule 3 that reads.  "Deferral for certain Schedule H or SE filers." I think you are using the wrong Schedule 3.  Here is the IRS Form, Schedule 3:  https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040s3.pdf

[Soloratov]

This is incredibly frustrating as I am not sure how to get past this as well. Nothing it tells me to do works. I type in the number that MATH provides, and it tells me it's not in the accepted range. I type 0, that doesn't work either. Apparently this area is highly defective.

[ffoeg1986]

I received the same error last week when completing my tax return. Customer service advised me to remove any value from line 11. That cleared the error in the software, but NOT the issue with the return. My return was rejected and cannot be fixed. The email I received indicated that they fixed the issue, but apparently not.  I'll be calling back. I am not self employed, but do have a household employee. 

Update: Don't bother deleting the Schedule H form. This doesn't fix the issue. I tried to delete and re-enter but the issue still comes up in Review.  

[Fuchsteiner]

I finally got it to submit but it was rejected by the Fed. and State due to errors with Turbotax Software.  Turbotax ever helpful told me to update software and resubmit.  Still the same error remains.

[jcarp]

I am encountering the same error. TurboTax somehow let me e-file my return despite this but my return was rejected with the reason "US_Schedule_H - We've identified a potential issue in your Federal tax return due to an error in our software." When I opened TurboTax again the program declared that the error was fixed...seems like this is NOT the case. I tried the workaround described above, which did not work. Since I should be receiving a refund I just get a message saying  "you're not eligible to defer the social security portion of..."

[Fuchsteiner]

If someone gets an answer from turbotax can they please reply in here the estimated wait time of 45 minuted tonight isn't making me want to call in.

[Soloratov]

I have up and switched to H&R after reading multiple places that intuit won't be supporting this.

[Fuchsteiner]

I was on the phone with TurboTax for an hour last night.  They could not solve the issue.  Their best guess at a workaround was to redo my taxes and then try to print and mail them in. But as I tried to explain to them I would then get the same error in the error check.  Doesn’t seem like a good solution.

[jcarp]

I was able to get it to work last night using what's recommended in JamesG1's post above. I am not self-employed but use schedule H for nanny tax.

Steps:

-Change tax withholding on my W-2 to something low so there's something owed rather than a refund.

-Go into the self-employment tax deferral section. Enter 0 for eligible income, then 0 for amount to defer.

-Change tax withholding on W-2 back to the correct value.

-Go through the review process again.

I was able to e-File and my return was accepted within a couple of hours.