Now that sites are beginning to prepare amended returns, we just wanted to post a reminder that through TaxSlayer Pro Online and TaxSlayer FSA, only Federal Amended Returns can be electronically filed. State amended returns must be paper filed at this time. We did mention in the Enhancement webinar presented in December 2023 that we expect to support State Amended E-file experience in the 2023 program. We do not have an ETA at this time but we will post to the blog once the State Amended E-file experience is in production.

5:13pm ET:

We have completed the deploy to correct CA Reject R0000-065.

Action Required: You can now re-submit your rejected CA returns.

Scenario: CA returns filed today are receiving CA Reject R0000-065. The calculation of the return is correct, but there is an extra document count going in the e-file causing the reject.

Solution: We are going to do an emergency deploy to resolve this.

What you may see: You may see a momentary blip  on the site or kicked out of a return.

We just wanted to share a quick reminder about state PDF’s when they display the “Do Not Mail” watermark (shown below) and what that means.

Why does a form in my State PDF say “Do Not Mail”?

When a PDF has the “Do Not Mail” watermark, this means we have not received “Form Approval” or “Print Approval” as of yet. This means that the PDF can not be mailed to the state as a paper filed return. However, it is perfectly fine to provide to a taxpayer for their records. As “Form Approvals” are received, the “Do Not Mail” watermarks will be removed.

Can I e-file a state return when a PDF says “Do Not Mail”?

Yes, e-file approval is a separate review process and all state returns (and forms) are e-file approved. All state returns (and forms) can be electronically filed.

Software vendors received the below messaging from Colorado, Georgia and New Mexico about initial filing delays. To sum it up, once e-filing is opened for VITA/TCE, acknowledgements for these states will be delayed.

• GEORGIA – Will open on February 2. Any returns that are being transmitted to them during the Controlled Launch and the period January 29 – February 1 will not receive an acknowledgement until after they open the filing season on February 2.
• COLORADO – Colorado has stated that they estimate that they will not be opening for e-file until February 12.
• NEW MEXICO – NM mentioned they will be slow to return acknowledgements over the 1^st couple weeks of e-file because they are throttling back processing to ensure everything is on their end is working as expected.

“2023 CA Individual (Web Only) Reject Code F540-570 – Not eligible for renter credit because AGI too high.”

Workaround: If you have a return(s) receiving the above reject code for California, to correct, log back into the return, go into the California return > Credits > Renters Credit. Answer the question “Do you qualify for the Renters Credit?” as NO. You can now go through e-file to resubmit the CA return.

The update to correct this will go out either Monday or Wednesday of next week. Watch for Release Notes.

Software vendors received the below message from AL DOR. AL returns can still be transmitted as normal, just note there will be a delay in receiving an acknowledgement.

“Alabama has not started sending out acknowledgments. We plan to start sending them out by the end of the week.“

The below messaging was recently shared by MN DOR.

NOTE: The described issue has been resolved and with the fix being deployed to production on Friday, January 26th at 7am ET. This information was shared via Release Notes and all stakeholders added to the issue received an automatic notification once the issue was verified as resolved.

The Minnesota Department of Revenue is aware of an issue with TaxSlayer software not calculating the Minnesota Child Tax Credit (CTC).

What is the issue?

TaxSlayer software is not calculating the CTC when there is no earned income on the Minnesota income tax return. Your clients may still qualify for this credit even if they do not have earned income. Do not turn away clients if they do not immediately appear to be eligible for a refund.

We are working with TaxSlayer to resolve this issue. They will send automatic updates to resolve this issue by Monday, January 29.

What do I need to do?

If you prepare tax returns in TaxSlayer before this issue is resolved, save client returns as incomplete. Once the issue is resolved, reopen the returns and ensure the software calculates the CTC accurately before sending.

To stay informed on the software fix, visit the TaxSlayer blog and sign up for updates.

1/2/2024 – Roughly fifteen (15) State Returns are now live! Please note the information posted below when reviewing the initial state application release. The remaining states will be released for preparation over the next couple of weeks as the various approvals are received by state departments.

Note: Initial load times may be slower than normal, but this will subside as additional state returns are created, etc.

It is important to keep in mind when accessing 2023 state returns as they become available, some states may have been delayed in releasing final 2023 forms/instructions. As you prepare 2023 state returns in the Practice Lab, you may still see 2022 calculations and/or PDF forms. Customer Support will not be creating issues for these items until the states are closer to finalization.  As information continues to be released and finalized by the states, the Practice Lab will be updated to reflect the most recent information available.

Note: This is the same process every year and is normal behavior.