Tag: Tax Prep

Question:  How should I have my Office Settings so the preparer does not print on the 8879 or on 1040 page 2?

Answer:  Select ERO Name Only from the Signature on Form 8879 drop down box and select Hide preparer Name on 1040 Print

Question:  What does marking Disable Third Party Designee Prefill do?

Answer:  It prevents the preparer information from populating the third party designee information in the e-file section.  The section will remain available in the event a third party other than a volunteer preparer needs to be designated.

Question:  If I select Hide Preparer Name on 1040 print will it also hide the preparer name on the state return?

Answer;  Currently no, but we are working on a solution that will incorporate the use of this option at the state level.  When this feature is completed and in production the state name will not be printed on the state return if this is selected.

10/3/18 – 3:15pm ET

Issue #2149 has been resolved and new 2014 returns can now be prepared once again. We apologize for the inconvenience this may have caused at your sites.

9/27/18 – 10:40pm ET

We have opened Issue #2149 where users are receiving the “An unexpected error has occurred” message when clicking “Start Return” after entering a Taxpayer SSN. This is only impacting the creation of new 2014 returns. Existing 2014 returns can still be accessed from Client Search. We will update this post once this issue has been resolved.

Before taking the Section 933 Exclusion for exempt PR income, be sure you have first reported the earned Puerto Rican sourced income so that the exclusion is reducing the applicable amount. To first report the Puerto Rican sourced income on Form 1040 from the Income menu go to “Other Income” > “Other Income Not Reported Elsewhere”. Enter the description as “Puerto Rican Earned Income” and then the dollar value. Once these steps have been taken, use the steps outlined below to claim the Section 933 Exclusion.

(1) Navigate to the Income Section

(2) Click begin on the Other Income Line

(3) Click Begin on the Compensation Line located on the Less Common Income menu

(4) Select Begin on the Section 933 Excluded Income from Puerto Rico

(5) Answer the Bona Fide Resident question

(6) Answering Yes displays an entry that allows you to enter the amount to exclude.   Enter the amount and click Continue

(7) If you need to itemize deductions, navigate to Itemized Deductions.  The screen will display the percentage amount that you can enter for each item based on the income exclusion

(8) The excluded amount will be subtracted on Line 21

blog posted 02/21/2018

Scenario: The site is setup to offer the 8888, but the taxpayer only wants their refund deposited to one bank account.

Where should I enter the bank account information?

You should enter the information in the Bank Account 1 section and select the Pull Refund button.

DO NOT skip Bank Account 1 and enter it in either Bank Account 2 or Bank Account 3

This will result in a validation error because IRS MeF does not allow this scenario

Solution: Enter the information in Bank Account 1 and remove it from Bank Account 2 or Bank Account 3 and transmit the return again.

Scenario:  Your site uses Form 8888.  The preparer selects the return type of E-file: Direct Deposit

The preparer then scrolls down the Taxpayer Bank Account section in e-file and enters the full amount of the refund in the paper allocation section:

This results in a validation error because IRS MeF efile does not allow this situation

Solution:  Change the Federal return type to:  E-file: Paper Check and transmit the return again

The IRS issued final forms and instructions to software vendors last week.  We are in the final implementation of delivering phase I to production.  This phase will include the ability to designate the disaster area in the Personal Information Section.

You will then be able to enter the inputs from their TY2016 return into the application.  Once the Disaster Designation has been made in Basic Information, a menu option will appear at the bottom of the main income menu titled, “Prior Year Income for Hurricane Disaster Victims”. Preparers will have the option to let the program determine the most advantageous calculation for the return or choose to use the prior year figure.

This phase I delivery will also include the changes to charitable contributions as it applies to Disaster Areas. Within the Itemized Deduction menu > Gifts to Charity, users will first complete the “Cash Gifts to Charity”. After completing this menu, a new menu will appear labeled, “Cash Donations to Disaster Relief Charities”. This is where the preparer will designate the amount of cash donations made towards disaster relief efforts.

Phase II will implement changes that impact Form 8606

Blog posted  01/30/2018

Scenario:

Complete the Form 8863 entry page and use the browser auto-fill feature and click Continue.  Receive the following error:

Workaround:

Click the error and the page will take you to the Institution (typically this is institution 2 if you have completed the first institution information)

Click the X (see example above) and the following page will display:

Click OK and then Continue.   The Education Summary Page will display

Solution:

This will be resolved in a future update

Blog Posted 01/21/2018  10:52 am EST

Scenario:

Navigate to the 8863 and select Cancel

Issue:

The page does not go back to the Credits Menu as expected

Workaround:

Click any link in the left navigation panel under the Federal Section or enter a new form number in the Forms Selection box

Solution:

This will be resolved in a future update.

Blog posted 01/21/2018 10:43 am EST