I paid less than a dollar in foreign taxes on 1099-DIV. I am given the option to skip the credit, but it is still showing as a $1.00 credit requiring me to file a 1040.

[ibanez33]

For 2017, I had a small brokerage account with Vanguard - and paid less than a dollar in foreign tax, reported in box 6. I see the option to skip the credit when in the tutor, but it's forcing a credit of $1.00 regardless requiring me to file a form 1040 - this is not necessarily how I wanted to go about this. Am I required to report this tax EXACTLY as it appears on my 1099-DIV, I have seen answers here that allude to using 0 in box 6 in cases like mine but I don't feel comfortable with that. I'd rather forgo the tax credit, as the amount is almost negligible in my case and file simply with a 1040EZ.

Is this an issue/bug, or am I absolutely required to claim a credit, no matter the amount? I realize a form 1116 is not applicable in my case, as I am single and under the $300 limit.

[ToddL · Accepted solution]

Your best option is to delete the Form 1099-DIV and re-enter it leaving Box 6 blank. There is no requirement to report payment of foreign taxes; the IRS only requires you to report income, not payments, expenses, deductions or credits.

See: How do I delete forms in TurboTax Online?

After deleting the 1099-DIV, log out of the program. When you log back in, use the Delete a Form tool (List of Forms in My Return) to confirm it was removed from your return. Then, re-enter it in the 1099-DIV interview.

This isn't a problem with the program - TurboTax guarantees you will get the largest refund (or smallest tax due) you qualify to get. That forces you to include any information that might increase your refund (or decrease your tax due) and pay for the version of TurboTax that includes the forms and interview questions pertinent to your tax information (in this case, a foreign tax credit). You can save the cost of an upgrade, however, by "skipping" a $1 foreign tax credit.

[ibanez33]

Excellent, this is exactly the answer I was looking for, thanks Todd. Thank you guys for being up front even to customers who aren't quite yet to the stage of needing more advanced filing solutions.