Reported gambling losses in excess of gambling wins. No change to refund. Shouldn't the losses completely offset the win?

[shanna364]

Refund was $1700. Then added 1099 MISC for say $600. Refund went down to $1500. Showed losses of $600 to offset win. Shouldn't the refund go back to $1700? It didn't have any affect. Refund stayed at $1500. Bug in the software?

[Anita01 · Accepted solution]

No, unfortunately it does not work that way.  The income is counted in your Adjusted Gross Income and because it is part of AGI it is taxable and can cause changes in other parts of your return.  The loss, however, is deducted as an itemized expense on schedule A and will not count until your TOTAL itemized expenses exceed your standard deduction.