Estimated payment made on 12/31 not counted as current year deduction by default

[puravidapto]

- You make quarterly estimated payments and elect to make the last payment paid on 12/31 (no other choice).
- Next year you treat the estimated payments as paid under payment screen.
- The software still allocate only the first three quarters payment in itemized deduction as if the last payment were paid in January 15 next year.

Does anybody experience this? If so, what is your solution? I would rather not yo manually put in the date and it leads to errors if there are too many manual steps and it is easy if you forget to check.

[George4Tacks]

Where there is a choice to be made, the preparer is responsible for making that choice, not the software. Methinks you protest too much. 

[puravidapto]

Whenever a constructive idea is proposed, it is not uncommon for certain self-assured individuals to dismiss it outright, deeming it either superfluous or unfeasible. Some even pride themselves on their ability to manage complex tasks manually — such as preparing tax returns with nothing more than a pencil and paper — as if such austerity were a badge of intellectual merit. Yet this form of intellectual rigidity does little to advance meaningful progress; on the contrary, it impedes innovation and discourages the open exchange of ideas. To such individuals, I would simply suggest: allow others the freedom to explore possibilities without reflexive skepticism. Let not one rigid perspective curtail the potential of broader collaboration — for, as the saying goes, it only takes one spoiled element to sour the entire pot.

[IRonMaN]

George is a master chef.  If the pot is sour, it's only because he is making his fabulous sweet and sour chicken and hasn't added the sweetness yet. 

As a side note, just because someone thinks they have come up with the greatest idea since sliced bread, doesn't mean other folks have to fall on their knees and worship that idea.  Besides, it really doesn't matter what any other user here thinks of an idea, it's Intuit that you have to convince.  For those of us that started preparing returns with paper and a pencil, we know what a challenge it is to do that convincing.

[George4Tacks]

Maybe I misread your question. I read the question as "Why doesn't the software automatically make the 4th quarter state estimate as paid in that year." 

Are you making a statement that you have entered the 12/31/YY entry as shown in this image and the software still treats the payment as next year. 

Your three points marked as - do not totally make sense to me. I am old and sometimes I get confused. I thought you were saying with your last statement "The software still allocate only the first three quarters payment in itemized deduction as if the last payment were paid in January 15 next year." that the software should read your mind - Last year I made the payment on 12/31 - Why don't you mark this next year the same way - You should know what I am thinking. 

[puravidapto]

George —

My first point concerns the timing of estimated tax payments. When making these payments, taxpayers are given the option to submit the final quarter's payment on December 31, rather than waiting until January 15 of the following year (see image below).

The purpose of this option is clear: to allow inclusion of the payment as a deduction in the current tax year. Accordingly, I would expect the software to reflect this — not by reading my mind, but because I explicitly instructed it to schedule the payment on December 31, and it executed accordingly. Is it too much to expect the software to recognize its own actions? I don’t believe so.

Of course, I understand I can manually adjust the entry, as you demonstrated. But in that case, one might ask: why use software at all? After all, I could prepare my return with pencil and paper. What sets Homo sapiens apart from other species is our evolved ability to create and employ tools — a cognitive advancement that not only increases efficiency but also minimizes human error.

[puravidapto]

Great progress does not unfold in a vacuum. The ease we enjoy today is often built upon the unseen labor and steadfast persistence of others — individuals who painstakingly identify and document bugs, and who invest effort into persuading Intuit to correct them. These are the contributors who champion improvements and dedicate themselves to convincing Intuit to implement meaningful changes.

In contrast, there are always those who remain content to deride from the sidelines — dismissing the ideas of others with reflexive skepticism. They assure Intuit of their own cleverness, claiming no need for certain features or enhancements. It is precisely the presence of such voices that makes it a “challenge,” as you observed, “to do that convincing.”

But a thriving ecosystem is not sustained by dismissiveness — it is cultivated through thoughtful dialogue. It is through openness of mind that we recognize what we have yet to discover, and through collaboration that meaningful progress becomes possible.

[IRonMaN]

Thank you for saving the world for us.