Why did TurboTax 2024 fail to apply estimated tax payments from 2023 return?

[teamely5]

As a result I massively overpaid taxes which P.O.d my partner.

[xmasbaby0]

Did you enter them?  

 Did you enter the payments you made into your tax return? 

Go to Federal>Deductions and Credits>Estimates and Other Taxes Paid>Other Income Taxes 

[VolvoGirl · Accepted solution]

Last year did Turbo Tax print out 4 estimated payment slips?  Those were optional to pay.  They were just a suggestion.  The IRS wasn't expecting them.  Turbo Tax will never know if or when you paid them.  So you need to manually enter the payments into your return.

To enter Federal or State Estimated Taxes Paid, including a state estimated payment made in January for the prior year, go to

Federal on left or at top (Personal for Home & Business)

Deductions and Credits

Then scroll way down to Estimates and Other Taxes Paid

Estimates - click the Start or Update button

You enter state estimated payments under the federal side (because they can be a federal itemized Deduction). THEN after you finish filling out the estimates under Federal you need to click on the State Tab at the top and start the state return over for it to update.

Some info.........

The 1040ES quarterly estimated tax payments DO NOT get sent to the IRS or state with your return. So they won't be expecting them. If you are receiving a refund or low tax due and Turbo Tax prepared the vouchers then your tax liability was probably reduced by credits. Turbo Tax is very conservative and doesn't want you to owe too much the next year. They might have printed out if you got a one time large income this year. Like if you took a IRA or 401K distribution or had a large capital gain. They are just a suggestion. You can ignore them.

[teamely5]

No. But I never have before either (been using TT for over 10 years and it always just tranferred the estimated amounts over to the current year's return). 

[teamely5]

Last year TT did print out four vouchers with estimated tax payment amounts. I've been using TT for over 10 years and always the amounts from the estimated tax payment vouchers were automatically transferred into the current return. I had come to rely on it. 

[VolvoGirl]

You must have remembered it wrong.  I have been paying estimates for over 10 years, maybe 20.  Turbo Tax has never transferred estimated payments to the next year.  As I said before the estimates that Turbo Tax prints out are optional to pay and Turbo Tax won't ever know if or when you paid them and how much.  They only will transfer over if you applied some of a refund to next year or made a payment with an extension to file.  

You can call in and confirm.  How to contact Turbo Tax
https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/using-turbotax/help/how-do-i-contact-turbotax/00/26991