ProSeries Tax Idea Exchange
Submitted by SCB on 06-07-2021 12:50 PMI called support today because my client's Q1 2021 estimated tax payment wasn't withdrawn from her checking account on 4/15. I was told that if the taxpayer had her 2020 federal balance due withdrawn from her checking account then it wasn't possible to also have Proseries direct the IRS to automatically withdraw her 2021 quarterly estimates from her checking account. That sounded wrong to me but Amanda from Intuit told me she's 99% sure that her explanation is correct. I told Amanda that the cover letter generated by Proseries says the following:
Your balance due of $286.00 will be automatically withdrawn from your checking
account on April 15, 2021.
Federal estimated income tax payments for tax year 2021 are due as follows:
Voucher 1 ...................... 04/15/2021 ....................... $ 270.00
Voucher 2 ...................... 06/15/2021 ....................... $ 270.00
Voucher 3 ...................... 09/15/2021 ....................... $ 270.00
Voucher 4 ...................... 01/18/2022 ....................... $ 270.00
You have chosen to have the four estimated tax installment amount listed above to be
paid via electronic funds withdrawal from your bank account on the date listed above.
That sentence is clear to me and I believed that the estimates would also be timely withdrawn from her checking account. If the balance due and the estimates can't both be done then why isn't the instruction letter worded to indicate that fact. My client didn't have her Q1 2021 estimate withdrawn on 4/15 and none of the remaining estimates will be withdrawn either according to Amanda.
This is my first year using ProSeries and to me this is a serious flaw in the software. Intuit either needs to reword the instruction letter to make it clear that the estimated payments won't be automatically withdrawn or program the software to not allow electronic funds withdrawal for payment of both a balance due and payment of subsequent year estimated taxes.