What does it mean to say "Sch SE-T Max deferral line 18 must be entered"?

[AdamB2]

I found this elsewhere (https://proconnect.intuit.com/community/proseries-tax-discussions/discussion/deferral-of-se-tax/00/1...) and it seemed to work for me:

"OK, I see how to get rid of the deferral I think.  Putting 0 on Line 18 of that form isnt correct.

Go to the 1040/1040SR worksheet and scroll down to the Deferral for Certain Sch H and SE Filers smart worksheet looking box, Line 11 put a zero and nothing will flow to Sch 3 Line 12e.

If you do choose to defer, Im not seeing a spot on the Carryover worksheet for the deferred portion to carryover to 2021, so I dont think this part of the program is completely updated yet."

[Martin97003]

I had the same issue.  Called TT and the agent saw the same issue.  This was weeks ago.  Wasn't able to get it fixed and filed the way it was....  Now I have money deferred and I have no idea how to pay it.......   This is terrible, it is a bug and they have NO way to report bugs.  [This was for my son]  On my return I had ESPP shares that I sold.  It would not accept the data, kept swapping information from one sale into another.  It was a major bug.  Again, NO WAY to report.  So I had to manually enter forms and enter all the data manually.  I could have done it faster with paper forms.

I am really disappointed and now have potential tax impacts on my return and my son's.  And I got the benefit of paying someone to get me the errors and impacts.

[Anonymous]

THANK GOODNESS FOR YOUR REPLY! Thank you. I was ripping out my hair. It also keeps asking me to enter my spouse's information on a tax return even after it confirms I am single. TurboTax 2020 has a lot of bugs to iron out. :(

[zzani99]

I just checked my transcript and my refund is issued! Deposit date 2-24-2021! So I guess in the end putting 0 in line 18 worked for me. Hope all of your returns go well. Good luck!

[sosimpson1959]

FYI - I fixed mine and was able to e-file by putting a " " [space] on line 11.

[Chattydal]

Great advice and easy to follow. Now I can pay all the SE tax and not be burdened with paying the remainder this December and next December. For me, the small amount that would be deferred is not worth setting up a deferred hassle as well.

[PDSnickles]

Thanks for the update. At least we know some people who had this problem got their return.

But I didn't put a 0 on line 18, I filled it out, with a different amount of income then deleted that income.
All I know is I checked it 3 times and TT said "Ready to File", so if I get into any hassle I'm definitely laying the blame on TT!

[Mo301]

Alert--Speaking of bugs in the software, I believe there is another bug in the form 2210. 

I have the figure 17,874  on line 14 of the form titled TOTAL UNDERPAYMENT FOR YEAR.  Next line, line 15, it asks to multiply this figure by 0.01744. The result of this multiplication operation on Line 15 i shows 607.

That is INCORRECT!! 17,874 x 0.01744 = 311.72. 

This platform, unfortunately, does not allow to post screen shots, otherwise I would post one.

They need to look into this and provide further explanation. It seems serious to me!

[ivand9489]

this right here works! just click the space bar and click continue, thank you! was annoyed by these system bugs they're having

[vontae25]

Didn't not work....next screen says "It looks like you're not eligible for this deferral"

[opeyemi1996]

Re: What does it mean to say "Sch SE-T Max deferral line 18 must be entered"?

[1sylwia1]

I am stuck at this form line 18

[Chattydal]

I assume the line 18 is required because you must guess at the breakdown of  SE activity $ for the COVID period (after March 27) in order for Turbo Tax to figure the max deferral.  The max deferral must be figured anyway, and then it is YOUR choice to enter (some, all, or $0) amount you wish to defer. Enter it on Line 11 schedule 3 Part II, and Turbo Tax will take it from there, when you close that form, as the changes will cascade into appropriate related areas.  For more info, I defer to user adamclerman.

[KathrynG3]

To resolve this error, follow these steps to update your system. Sch SE-T and Line 18 have to do with declining to defer some of the self-employment tax. Initially, you were eligible, perhaps. But, as more details were entered into the return and you were going to get a refund, the SE tax deferral option was no longer available.

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.
5. 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 
   3. Enter 280/366ths of your income to reflect the income from March 27-December 31, 2021.
6. Select Continue.
7. 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.
   3. Select Continue.
8. Scroll down and select Wrap up Tax Breaks and Continue.
9. 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.

@opeyemi1996

@1sylwia1

@Chattydal

[twchall]

How do I get to that form to edit it?  Do I have to use a more expensive version?