JJStephens

After downloading the 2/24 update the problem went away. Go figure.

I do a lot of work with non-profits. Form 1023 would be a VERY welcome addition. Payroll tax forms (941, 944, W2, 1099, state forms, etc) I know they're in the form filler but it would be nice to have them available within the program itself (ala ATX). The rest of this isn't a new forms request but it sure would be nice if . . . there were yes/no check boxes instead of drop downs (e.g., for the EIC due diligence questions) in the Preparer Options there was a default e-file and/or 3rd party PIN option Ohio state & school district pages 2 would display in the review and would actually show live data The user manual reflected current nomenclature (e.g., on pg 30 the Forms Pane lists Form, Common, Type, Used but in the program they are listed as XPert, XPress, Type, Used).

I'm a TRX newbie, still trying to navigate a new (to me) program. I'm beginning to get the knack of it . . . but it's still taking me 25-50% longer than ATX did (I used ATX for 15 years). Sure would be nice if they had yes/no check boxes instead of drop downs--that would make data entry a lot faster. I had three returns to transmit to the EFC this evening. I completed all three of these returns yesterday but did not receive the signed 8879s until today. The first one went through just fine but the next two displayed an audit error that says I indicated a bank product was to be used but no bank product was selected. I have NEVER used bank products and definitely did not set them up for these (or any other) clients. When I click on the 'go to the problem' link it takes me to a screen that asks me if the client has signed a bank products authorization. Checking no does not clear the error (nor does checking yes). I did not get the audit error upon completion of the returns yesterday. I did download a program update today--I suppose that could be the culprit. Is anyone else having this problem? Any idea how to clear it?

After about 15 years with ATX I switched to TRX this year. I'm still not sure how I like it. Some aspects seem pretty intuitive but others . . . I guess I'm the proverbial old dog that isn't so great at learning new tricks (deep sigh). Back in my ATX days I could modify the master forms to add my typed preparer's 'signature' to various forms. How do I do that in TRX-Pro 1040? Also, in the preparer setup, I was not able to get the program to take my CAF number. Anyone else having that problem? Any idea how to solve it?

As a general rule Form 1023 must be filed by the last day of the 27th month after the organization's original charter date in order to have exempt status recognized as of the charter date. If they file after the deadline they will probably be recognized as exempt only as of the filing date of Form 1023 (see Form 1023 Schedule E). Prior activities would not be exempt (i.e., donations would not be deductible--which makes for great donor relations!-- and (unless the org qualifies to file Form 1024 for the prior period) net income could be subject to tax). When the organization broke ties with the 'central' or 'parent' organization under whose group letter they were operating as a 'subordinate' they had 27 months to submit their own Form 1023 requesting a individual letter. Since they did not do that my guess is that when they file they will be eligible for recognition retro-active only to the date of filing. However, if there were extenuating circumstances they can appeal for a special dispensation of grace. I work almost exclusively with religious non-profits and have taken that track on three occasions--it worked on two of them.

For calendar year fiscal period the deadline for 1120s (and variants) was 3/15.

Unless a late extension comes in, I'm done. This is the earliest I can remember wrapping things up in 24 years of tax prep. See ya-- my pillow beckons for a quick power nap!

Mike-- like you, I do a lot of clergy returns and have run into the same problem several times. I just recorded $1 of interest so that the return shows a positive gross income. That has always done it for me.

Help me thaw my brain freeze. Taxpayer's daughter is a college student but still lives at home (qualifies as a dependent). Parents provide all support except that she has a PT job to pay her tuition. Do mom & dad get to claim the tuition or is it lost (since she won't be able to claim herself on her own return)? BTW, this is my first post this year. I've periodically monitored the board (as usual, great stuff!) but haven't needed to ask till now. Just had a brain freeze on this one. Guess its from too many hours--in addition to my tax work I'm also pastoring full time and contending with a wife who is (finally) recovering from an 8 month long serious illness. But the weather is improving, she's getting better, only two more weeks of taxes and Easter's coming!

When I tried to load ATX yesterday it required that I create a User Name and now requires that I enter that user name every time I load the program. I am a one user operation. I suppose it's not that big a deal (more of a petty annoyance) to have to type in my name each time I start the program but just I don't understand why this suddenly started happening. Any thoughts?

I specialize in religious non-profits--therefore do a fair number of 990s. Over the past couple days I've submitted several who (as usual) waited till the last moment to get me their stuff just before the extended deadline. So far three of them have been rejected. The rejection code says the EIN is not recognized as a 990 filer and the return type does not match the IRS' files for that EIN. Two of them are returns that rolled over from successful e-filings last year. Anyone have the same problem? Any idea what to do (before I resort to calling the IRS)?

Client got ex'es 401k in the divorce. She is converting it to an IRA in order to withdraw funds for a down payment on a house (as you know, up to $10k is not subject to the 10% early withdrawal penalty for qualifying first time home buyers). Here's where things get interesting. She has to close within two weeks but the investment broker says it will take longer than that to transfer ownership of the 401k to her, convert it to an IRA and then do the withdrawal. The mortgage company says they will write the loan with a smaller initial down payment (but charge PMI) and then accept the balance when the IRA withdrawal comes through (and eliminate the PMI). Pub 590 says that in order to qualify for the early withdrawal penalty exception the money has to be used for 'acquisition costs' within 120 days of the withdrawal. It also defines the acquisition date (contract date for purchases; occupancy date for builds/rebuilds)--but does not indicate what the significance of that date is. In this case, the funds would be given to the mortgage company immediately upon receipt. What I'm unsure of is whether the withdrawn funds can be applied AFTER the closing date and still qualify for the penalty exception. Any thoughts (other than delaying the close, which the mortgage broker is apparently not willing to do)?

Lucho & Wendy--thanks for your feedback. Both were really helpful! Jerry

Like a lot of other EAs (& CPAs), I'm always on the lookout for free and/or cheap (er, I mean inexpensive) CPEs. I just got a flyer from The Tax School in Newark CA offering a variety of courses at what appears to be a reasonable fee (however, even 'reasonable fees' are no bargain if the material is lousy). They're offering several 24 CPE hour courses for $89 and will throw in a 2 hour ethics course for an extra $19. Their web site is at www.thetaxschool.com. Surprisingly, the 'testimonials' page on their web site has no entries (could just be a new page). The do have a good return policy (full refund including S&H) within ten days. My first couple questions are: have any of you heard of this outfit? Have you used their service? Is it any good? And a second question is: do any of you have other good, reasonably priced sources of CPE? Thanks, one and all, for your input. Jerry

Thanks for the feedback. They may or may not meet the 05 (see pg 3 of Pub 5329) exception (amount in excess of 7.5% of AGI). What I'm wondering is if they meet the 03 exception for total disability.

Taxpayer is totally disabled. Spouse has a qualified plan. Both are under 59.5. Does the spouse's withdrawal from her 401k qualify for exclusion from the additional 10% tax on early withdrawal by virtue of the husband's disability? I have a vague recollection that it does not but cannot find a definitive source.

I'm an Ohio based accountant. A tax-exempt (501c3) client is hiring an OK based employee. I've never done OK payroll before. The basic income tax withholding isn't an issue; but I'm interested in things like workers' comp, unemployment, etc (as they relate to a tax-exempt employer). Can anyone offer any tips and/or point me to a good (ideally free!) primer?

Sorry, folks. I know no one but me is interested in this . . . but a sad fact of my life is that this time of year I have no life and no one to share these little victories with except my fellow long-suffers. I just transmitted my final extended return . . . mine! I feared I was going to owe about $7K; turned out to be only $4600. I ought to be thrilled . . . but somehow I'm having a hard time getting excited about writing the check (deep sigh).

Maybe I should have griped sooner. As soon as I posted the original venting I tried again for the umpteenth time . . . and they all went through! Maybe I'll make it home in time for dinner after all!!!

Like a lot of you I am pulling my hair out trying to transmit some last minute e-files and extensions. I keep getting messages that say (in effect), 'there's nothing wrong with the file--we just can't handle it right now.' The ATX web site says it's due to high volume and their best solution is to just keep trying. Every try that is rejected requires reloading the return and recreating the e-file. Arrghhh! I've been trying since 1pm (it's now after 6pm) to send about a dozen files. I've spent at least two of those hours (at a time I don't have an extra 2 minutes to spare) recreating e-files only to have them rejected again. I was wavering on renewing with ATX. I waver no more. I was a gnat's eyelash from jumping to Drake or TRX last fall. I'll be contacting them tomorrow. I know I'm not the only one with a tale of woe. Just needed a place to vent a bit.

Wow! That's simple. Sure wish the instructions had told me that a couple hours ago! Thanks for the info.

I set up the sole beneficiary as 100%. I also tried setting the tier 1 and ier 2 percentages to 100%--to no avail. All the K-1 dollar amounts are still blank. I'm sure it's something simple that I'm not doing--a 'head space error'. I'm just at a loss where to go next. I can't imagine that I'll be able to get through to tech support today (or ever, if many posts on this site are to be believed).

Are you saying there does not need to be a trust return? I'm not doing the beneficiary's return, just the trust.

I've only done a handful of trusts but none of them were grantor trusts. I'm a bit befuddled how to proceed--hopefully someone out there can point me in the right direction. If I understand things correctly, everything (income & expense) should pass through to the trust beneficiary (question #1: do I understand things correctly?). It seems to me that all the income & expense info should flow to Sch K-1. . . but the K-1 is blank. Am I missing something on getting the info to flow to the K-1? There is a Grantor Trust Information page that appears to have all the inc/exp info--but it doesn't print unless I manually select it. It includes a statement that says, "Please note that partnership K-1 information is not included on this tax information letter. Do not prepare your individual tax return until this information is received. For more information please consult your tax advisor." Does that simply mean that if the trust received a partnership K-1 (which it did not) that any such K-1 info is not included on that report? Any help you can offer will be immensely appreciated.

A single member LLC can be treated as a 'disregarded entity'. If so, for tax purposes the LLC is essentially ignored and the owner reports biz income and expense as though it was a sole proprietorship (e.g., on Sch C).