Why does ty21 start by owing money to the IRS directly after importing ty20?

[Quest4Life]

1. Install TT21
2. Import TY20 to initialize TY21.
3. I owe money to the IRS. 
   1. I expected to start with $0, like in previous years. 
4. Where can I look in TT21 to explain why I'm starting out owing money by default?
   1. Last years return (and refund) should have brought me back to zero, correct? 
   2. i.e. Before a user adds any information which will affect their return for the upcoming tax year, you would expect them to start from zero, correct? 
5. Is there something special about this tax year that would cause this?
   1. Some extraordinary tax consequence due to changes in the law or the pandemic or something?
   2. Again, is there some section of the program that I can look at to verify or explain this? 

Thanks in advance! 

[VolvoGirl · Accepted solution]

I think there's some things that transfer over that can do that.   But I can't find it in my notes.  Switch to Forms mode and look around at the 1040 etc.   

[GeorgeDenseff]

If you can't find it, call support and ask them to pull a diagnostic file.

[rjs · Accepted solution]

Start by looking at Form 1040, as VolvoGirl suggested. The amount you owe is on line 37 at the bottom of page 2. Look above that, on lines 16 through 23 to see where the amount is coming from. If it's coming from Schedule 2 or Schedule 3, look at that schedule. If it's tax on line 16, look at lines 1 through 8 on page 1 to see what income is entered.

[fanfare]

@Quest4Life 

if you divided your COVID related tax-deferred distribution by 3.0 last year, you owe tax on one-third of that.

It would be good if the tax software was smart enough to carry that forward. I don't know what TurboTax is going to do about that..

It would be a big distribution to be taxable after standard deduction with no other income yet entered.

[Critter-3]

@Quest4Life 

After you look at the 1040 please post back and let us know what it was since you are the first one to ask this question.  My money is on the 1/3 deferral of the 1099-R distribution.

[Quest4Life · Accepted solution]

Thanks everyone!!!!!!

Schedule 2, part 2, line 8 -- "Additional tax on IRAs or other tax-favored accounts. Attach form 5329 ..."

This is why I owe the IRS money immediately after importing TY20 into TY21. 

Looking at it from the forms view, as opposed to the walk-me-through view, guided me to the solution. 

This was the best advice.

Thanks again everyone! 

[fanfare]

@Quest4Life 

Did you owe a 6% penalty on excess contributions for 2020 but did not resolve the excess in 2021?

If so, you pay the 6% penalty again.

It's still possible to resolve that excess by allocating what you might otherwise contribute for 2021.