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2020 Tax woes - New York!
I always do our tax the old-fashioned way, pen and pencil, paper forms, calculator when needed.
1040 was dead easy this year, since there were no substantial changes from 2019 to 2020 in our personal income situation. So I’m about to mail the 1040 to the IRS, they owe us a few hundred dollars. New York is always dead easy - just transfer a few figures from the 1040 to the NY form, then take our NY deductions, and we never owe any NY tax at all (we are retired, and NY tax regime is extremely friendly to retired people on low to moderate incomes.) I printed off the IT-201, NY tax form, compared it to last years .. it is exactly the same! So far, so good. Then, just to double check, I looked at the “what’s new” section in the IT-201 instructions. Oh dear. From March 2020, New York income tax is “decoupled” from the federal tax code. So any changes to your federal tax as a result of new changes to the federal tax code, you have to undo via a new form. One big example, starting in 2020, you can take a deduction for charitable donations, even if you use the standard deduction. But NY doesn’t recognize this new IRS provision - so you have to undo it in your NY taxes. Hey thanks, Albany, for yet another tax form and a new complication! https://proconnect.intuit.com/taxpro...-need-to-know/ |
Re: 2020 Tax woes - New York!
Originally Posted by robin1234
(Post 12978852)
I always do our tax the old-fashioned way, pen and pencil, paper forms, calculator when needed.
1040 was dead easy this year, since there were no substantial changes from 2019 to 2020 in our personal income situation. So I’m about to mail the 1040 to the IRS, they owe us a few hundred dollars. New York is always dead easy - just transfer a few figures from the 1040 to the NY form, then take our NY deductions, and we never owe any NY tax at all (we are retired, and NY tax regime is extremely friendly to retired people on low to moderate incomes.) I printed off the IT-201, NY tax form, compared it to last years .. it is exactly the same! So far, so good. Then, just to double check, I looked at the “what’s new” section in the IT-201 instructions. Oh dear. From March 2020, New York income tax is “decoupled” from the federal tax code. So any changes to your federal tax as a result of new changes to the federal tax code, you have to undo via a new form. One big example, starting in 2020, you can take a deduction for charitable donations, even if you use the standard deduction. But NY doesn’t recognize this new IRS provision - so you have to undo it in your NY taxes. Hey thanks, Albany, for yet another tax form and a new complication! https://proconnect.intuit.com/taxpro...-need-to-know/ Good reason to use Turbo Tax - it picks up any changes and saves you lots of time. Well worth worth the few bucks it costs Glad you caught the change before filing |
Re: 2020 Tax woes - New York!
I used to do my tax returns on paper, but didn't find the instructions user-friendly. There would be something like: "If line xx is equal to or more than line xx, subtract line xx from line xx. Then go to line xx of the next column. Otherwise, go to line xx..", and I'd spend a lot of time going through it, getting lost as to its purpose, only to realize later that I could have left it out as it only made a difference for a particular, small category of taxpayers- but of course there was nothing in the instructions to indicate this. I doubt if form-filling will become more user-friendly now that most people e-file. I e-file now (not with Turbotax but with another provider); my IRS return is free and I only pay a small amount for my state return.
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Re: 2020 Tax woes - New York!
Originally Posted by MMcD
(Post 12978929)
Bummer
Good reason to use Turbo Tax - it picks up any changes and saves you lots of time. Well worth worth the few bucks it costs Glad you caught the change before filing
Originally Posted by vespucci
(Post 12979136)
I used to do my tax returns on paper, but didn't find the instructions user-friendly. There would be something like: "If line xx is equal to or more than line xx, subtract line xx from line xx. Then go to line xx of the next column. Otherwise, go to line xx..", and I'd spend a lot of time going through it, getting lost as to its purpose, only to realize later that I could have left it out as it only made a difference for a particular, small category of taxpayers- but of course there was nothing in the instructions to indicate this. I doubt if form-filling will become more user-friendly now that most people e-file. I e-file now (not with Turbotax but with another provider); my IRS return is free and I only pay a small amount for my state return.
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Re: 2020 Tax woes - New York!
I use Turbotax to prepare all of the forms and then I review it line by line before e-filing. I feel that is the best of both worlds.
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Re: 2020 Tax woes - New York!
Originally Posted by tom169
(Post 12979255)
I use Turbotax to prepare all of the forms and then I review it line by line before e-filing. I feel that is the best of both worlds.
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