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Level 1
posted Jan 30, 2021 5:19:55 PM

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

I don't understand what line 18 means or why I need to fill it out, since I did not defer any tax payments.

12 220 74322
24 Replies
Level 2
Jan 31, 2021 3:32:46 PM

I'm getting the same error as are a few others on the forums it appears. Really wish they had a "Report Bug" area.

Level 1
Feb 1, 2021 7:44:15 AM

I have the same thing and it's holding up my filing. I paid for easy. They usually ask a question and I answer it. Plain English. I don't expect to have to understand every line on the return. And I don't want to spend hours on the internet trying to figure the answer out. Ugh. Frustrating! The email I sent them bounced back of course. 

Level 1
Feb 1, 2021 12:28:03 PM

I'm getting the same error. I've always done taxes with TurboTax, never had the Schedule SE-T issue pop up before...and it wants me to put in what portion of pay was from March to Dec. 2020?? Crazy!

Expert Alumni
Feb 1, 2021 12:49:04 PM

The Coronavirus, Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) gives self-employed taxpayers the option to delay paying a portion of their Social Security taxes when they meet certain requirements.

The option to defer only applies to Social Security taxes for self-employment income you earned from March 27, 2020 through December 31, 2020. This income is typically reported on Schedule C (profit or loss from business) or Schedule H (for household employees) of your tax return.

 

If you do not qualify for this credit and want to remove the form so you can e-file, use the instructions below to delete the form.   @bengoiano    @HMVS  @TWDesigns

 

 It's OK to delete forms that you know don't apply to your return, or are duplicated or blank.  Here are the general procedures for deleting unwanted forms, schedules, and worksheets in TurboTax:

 

TurboTax Online

  1. Open your return in TurboTax. (To do this, sign in to TurboTax, and select the Take me to my return button.)
  2. In the left sidebar, select Tax ToolsTools.
  3. In the pop-up window Tool Center, choose to Delete a form.
  4. Select Delete next to the form/schedule/worksheet and follow the onscreen instructions.

 

Windows Instructions 

Switch to Forms mode.

  1. In the left pane, select the form you want to remove. (if you don't see it, click Open Form at the top).
  2. After the form is generated in the right pane, click the Delete Form button at the bottom of the window.
  3. Follow any on-screen instructions to remove the form or forms.

 

Mac Instructions

Switch to Forms mode.

  1. In the left pane, select the form you want to remove (if you don't see it, click Open Form at the top).
  2. From the Forms menu, select Remove [form name].
  3. Follow any on-screen instructions to remove the form or forms.

Level 1
Feb 1, 2021 1:50:54 PM

I looked it up on the IRS and they said you need to put in the proportion of your income from March27-December31 to estimate eligibility for deferral (but does not require you to defer). It's on the same form as the one required for self employment taxes, so you can't get rid of it entirely. After I deleted the forms, I went back, filled in the number in that line based on the approximate proportion suggested by the IRS, and it went through.

Level 1
Feb 1, 2021 7:19:15 PM

Problem with this Dawn, is that when you re-check with a Smart Scan, it pops up automatically again.

Level 1
Feb 2, 2021 6:44:13 AM

After I delete the form, it asks me for the information again and again it adds the deferral into my refund. I do not want the deferral. Even after I answer “no” the prompts asking if I’d like to defer, it is still giving it to me. How do I take it off and keep it off? Thank you 

Level 1
Feb 2, 2021 9:59:00 AM

I got this too - I asked the TurboTax live and shared my screen. They said it was related to 1099-NEC forms and they were making updates to the program, they should be done on Friday or Saturday. They suggested I go back in then to review and update. Super annoying. 

Level 3
Feb 2, 2021 10:06:24 AM

this has been happening to me too. I have been close to ripping my hair out trying to figure it out. I do not want to defer, and the only solution I've found is to put 0 on line 18, however I really don't want to put that because it makes me feel really uneasy to put something that isn't true to the government. I guess if they say it's a bug I will wait until they fix it... 

Level 2
Feb 2, 2021 10:17:10 AM

@dialfaceI'm glad you had luck with the support team. The individual I spoke to asked me the same question like 90 times. I tried to explain to them that all i wanted to do was report a possible bug since the review button sends you to the actual IRS form which defeats the purpose of people using TurboTax.

 

I ended up tagging TurboTax on twitter and asking them to make a "Report Bug" section so these things can be found faster and fixed.

 

Thanks for letting us know!

Level 1
Feb 2, 2021 10:31:00 AM

Just spent over an hour with TurboTax on the phone, and it took them that long to tell me to delete the Sch SE-S form, and when the form was just regenerated upon review (as a previous poster indicated would happen), I was told I likely had a problem with my account and was transferred to a “live tax advisor” which charged a fee (which I didn’t do). Anyone know if this issue will be addressed?

 

of note, my error was SE-S, not SE-T

 

”Sch SE-S: Max deferral line 18 must be entered.”

 

Level 1
Feb 2, 2021 10:48:53 AM

@TWDesigns  Yeah it took a bit to explain what was actually happening. Good idea to tag them on twitter! I hope they fix it ASAP, so annoying to be taken to the actual form like that! I hope they respond. 

Level 1
Feb 2, 2021 12:40:04 PM

This was helpful for me:

To illustrate, let's assume that Etan's net earnings from self-employment are $50,000 and he reasonably allocates 77%, or $38,500 to the deferral period. His maximum deferral amount is therefore $2,204 ($38,500 × 0.9235 × 0.062). Here, the 6.2% represents one-half of the social security portion (12.4%) of SE tax.

 

Found here https://www.thetaxinstitute.com/insights/tax-in-the-news/setax-deferral-cares-qotw/#:~:text=To%20illustrate%2C%20let's%20assume%20that,12.4%25)%20of%20SE%20tax.

Level 3
Feb 2, 2021 2:08:59 PM

yea, but the point is that none of us want to defer, we want to opt out. We'd rather pay now than have to come back to pay this next year

New Member
Feb 2, 2021 2:53:56 PM

Can we just put "0" in that box and defer nothing?

New Member
Feb 3, 2021 7:57:02 AM

After you follow the steps to delete the form, click continue at the bottom.  Then click file on the left panel.  That should take you from around it. 

New Member
Feb 3, 2021 11:01:28 AM

Even after you delete SCH SE Form and hit File, still asks you same question before finalizing everything. Frustrating. Hopefully this 'fix' to be done this weekend works. 

Level 2
Feb 3, 2021 12:18:28 PM

So, if we're not eligible for deferral do we put zero? This is where i'm at a loss. 

Level 2
Feb 3, 2021 4:17:04 PM

Okay after working on this for a couple of days no reading it over and over I got it . Line 3 has your income for the year. Line 18 is asking you how much of line 3 is income made by you between March 27, 2020 and Dec 2020 . I made my calculation by dividing it by 9 and remembering that 2 months of that I was closed due to COVID. I came up with dollar amount entered it and it didn’t change my refund at all. Hope this helps someone. I don’t think the answer is putting nothing nor deleting the schedule form because it will pop back up. 

New Member
Feb 3, 2021 6:23:04 PM

Line 18 on Schedule SE-T says to enter the portion of your income stated in Line 3 that was earned between March 27, 2020 and December 31, 2020.  For me, that was almost everything.  By putting that number in the field, though, it then populates Line 12e on Schedule 3 ("Deferral for certain Schedule H or SE filers") and forces me to take that deferral, lowering the 'Federal Tax Due' amount.  However, I don't want to defer, I want to pay everything I owe now.  But putting "0" in Line 18 is misleading, as that would be stating that I made all of my income before March 27 which was not the case.  Is deleting the form a legitimate way around it, though, as it's a "Self-Employment Tax" form and I don't want to file incorrectly?  Any luck from TurboTax anyone?  I guess I'll just have to wait to file my taxes until there's a definitive answer on how to handle this?  I'm not an accountant and would think it's TurboTax's responsibility to take care of this "behind the scenes" kind of stuff.

New Member
Feb 3, 2021 6:42:14 PM

Looking a little further and thinking about it a little more, it seems reasonable that I would be required to enter the amount on Line 18 of Schedule SE-T and that it would then get populated to Schedule 3 Line 12e...however, when I click the magnifying glass on Schedule 3 Line 12e, it opens the1040/1040SR Worksheet and in Schedule 3 Part II of this worksheet, Line 11 in the "Deferral for Certain Schedule H or SE Filers Smart Worksheet" box states how much I CHOOSE to defer.  It is this field that I think should be editable and I should be able to make it 0 (the number in the this field populates into Form 1040 Line 31 which is the actual form that gets sent to the IRS (I think the worksheet is just for making calculations)).

 

SO I think the bug lies in that I can't remove the deferral amount...TurboTax is forcing me to take the full deferral amount whereas I'd rather make it 0 and pay now.  I need to be able to edit Line 31 of the 1040 and/or Line 11 of Schedule 3 Part II of the1040/1040SR Worksheet.  I assume TurboTax needs to fix/update the software so hopefully they get word of this and do so!

New Member
Feb 3, 2021 6:50:56 PM

One more post, sorry to be annoying.  I somehow was now able to remove the auto-populated number from Line 11 of Schedule 3 Part II of the1040/1040SR Worksheet.  That then blanked out the number in Line 31 of my 1040 but kept the number I entered on Line 18 of the Schedule SE-T form and it added the money back to my 'Federal Tax Due'.  So I should be good to go now.

 

SO I think that's the solution...determine how much of your income was earned after March 27 (using "any reasonable method") and enter it into Line 18 .  Open the 1040/1040 SR Worksheet (by clicking View > Forms) and put a '0' in Line 11 Schedule 3 Part II.  It looks like the tax forms should then be correct and you'll pay the full amount now rather than deferring.

 

Good luck!

New Member
Feb 3, 2021 6:56:24 PM

Does this mean I should just enter 0 in?  This is so confusing to me, I want to pay everything I owe now and not later

Level 1
Feb 4, 2021 12:30:25 AM

I appreciate this idea that you could change the amount you CHOOSE to defer using the forms  (Line 11 of Schedule 3 Part II of the1040/1040SR Worksheet) but to do that I'd have to switch from the online version to the desktop version, and then I have to pay extra for state e-filing... sigh.