State News: Connecticut MeF Acknowledgement Delay

Please review the below information from the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services.

Connecticut is seeing significant delays in our MeF acknowledgments going out.  We are working to resolve the issue with the slow response time.  

Tax Tip 2024-35: Debunking common myths about federal tax refunds

 Debunking common myths about federal tax refunds

Once people complete and file their tax return, many of them eagerly await any refund they may be owed. Knowing fact from fiction can help manage expectations as they wait for their money.

Myth: Calling the IRS, a tax software provider or a tax professional will provide a more accurate refund date.

Fact: The best way to check the status of a refund is through the Where's My Refund? tool or the IRS2Go app.

Taxpayers can also call the automated refund hotline at 800-829-1954 to get their refund status. This hotline has the same information about current tax year refunds as Where's My Refund? There is no need to call the IRS unless Where's My Refund? says to do so.

Myth: The Where's My Refund? tool must be wrong if it hasn’t updated yet.

Fact: Where’s My Refund has the most current information about refund status. It is updated once a day, usually overnight. Even though the IRS issues most refunds within 21 days, it's possible a refund may take longer. If the IRS needs more information to process a tax return, the agency will contact the taxpayer by mail. Taxpayers should also consider the time it takes for banks to post the refund to the taxpayer's account. People waiting for a refund in the mail should allow extra time.

Myth: The Where's My Refund? tool must be wrong because the refund amount is less than expected.

Fact: There are several factors that could cause a tax refund to be less than expected. The IRS will mail the taxpayer a letter of explanation if it adjusts a refund. Some taxpayers may also receive a letter from the Department of Treasury's Bureau of the Fiscal Service if their refund was reduced to offset certain financial obligations. Before calling, taxpayers should wait for the letter to understand why the change occurred.

Myth: Getting a refund this year means there's no need to adjust withholding for tax year 2024.

Fact: To avoid a surprise next year, taxpayers should make changes now to their tax withholding. The Tax Withholding Estimator tool can help taxpayers determine if their employer is withholding the right amount. Taxpayers can use the results from the Tax Withholding Estimator to complete a new Form W-4, Employee's Withholding Certificate and submit it to their employer as soon as possible. Withholding takes place throughout the year, so it's better to take this step as soon as possible.

REMINDER: The 2023 Filing Deadline is here - Monday, April 15th, Midnight; Support Hours

The 2023 Tax filing season deadline is here:  

Monday, April 15th, Midnight is the filing deadline.  Transmit returns by 10:00 PM EST to ensure timely filing.

Things to Know:

Support Hours 

Reminder, the Refunds Today Support team will be available the following days/hours thru the April 15th Deadline:

• Monday, April 8th:  8am - 7pm ET
• Tuesday, April 9th:  8am - 7pm ET
• Wednesday April 10th:  8am - 7pm ET
• Thursday April 11th:  8am - 7pm ET
• Friday, April 12th:  8am - 7pm ET
• Saturday, April 13th:  10am - 6pm ET
• Sunday, April 14th:  10am - 6pm ET
• Monday April 15th:  8am - Midnight ET

Processing Times

Please remember, the processing volume at the IRS will increase daily as the deadline approaches. Both return volume and return size will affect processing time. While you are accustomed to receiving your Federal acknowledgements within a one hour time-frame, that turnaround time will increase as the deadline approaches. You may see your acknowledgements take from 2 to 4 hours, and possibly longer.

This is why we suggest that you send returns periodically throughout the day. This will help spread out the volume and also help eliminate some of the 'deadline rush' which also impacts IRS processing.

IRS Reject F8936-048

The IRS has determined business rule F8936-048 was rejecting returns erroneously. The business rule has been disabled; therefore, please resubmit any rejected submissions.

IRS Reject F8936-048:

Form 8936, 'PersonalTaxCreditsAmt' in 'CrPreviouslyOwnedCleanVehGrp' must be equal to the sum of Schedule 3 (Form 1040) 'ForeignTaxCreditAmt' and 'CreditForChildAndDepdCareAmt' and 'EducationCreditAmt' and 'RtrSavingsContributionsCrAmt' and 'EgyEffcntHmImprvCrAmt' and 'CreditForElderlyOrDisabledAmt' and 'TotRptgYrTxIncreaseDecreaseAmt'

Client Accounting Suite/Premier (CAS/P) version 23.3 is available

The 23.3 version of CAS/P is now available from the Solution Center or via the auto-update feature in CAS/P. It includes the following regulatory updates.

Regulatory Updates

The following regulatory information is now available for Client Accounting Suite and Client Accounting Suite Premier:

• 2024 Federal Forms update
• 2024 941 is included.
• 943x and 944x are available in Blank Forms.

• 2024 State Returns - Form updates for the following states are included in this update.
• Alaska
• North Carolina
• Rhode Island
• 2024 State Withholding Rates - The following state withholding calculations have been updated for 2024:

• Maryland Counties
• Note:  As other states change their rates for 204, we will provide updates on the support website.

Software Updates

• Export for the 2024 941 to Payroll Compliance Reporting has been enabled.

IRS Reject F7004-905-03 for Form 7004-Business Extension

Customers submitting an extension for business returns may encounter the following rejection code from IRS.

“F7004-905-03 In Form 7004, Line 1, 'ExtensionReturnCd' the return for which the extension is filed must match the return type established with the IRS for the EIN.
/efile:Return/efile:ReturnData/efile:IRS7004/efile:ExtensionReturnCd”

The Form 7004 form code for the return associated with this application must match the IRS database.  If necessary, the type of return the extension is to be filed for can be updated on Form 7004 line 1 to match the code the IRS has on file.

The form code can be found on the EIN letter the client received form the IRS.  The customer  can also Contact the Internal Revenue Service at 1-866-255-0654 for additional information on the correct form code.

Refunds Today, TaxWise Online - Scheduled Maintenance: February 29, 2024

Scheduled maintenance has been completed. We appreciate your patience as we continue to enhance our systems to offer you the best experience possible.

IRS: Filing Form 8283 for non-cash contributions from K-1 pass-thru entities.

For tax years 2023 and forward, the IRS has changed the filing requirements for reporting non-cash contributions from K-1 pass-thru entities (PTE) on Form 8283. (Refer to the Form 8283 instructions

IRS Reject F1116-004-03

IRS Reject: F1116-004-03:

If Form 1116 'ForeignTaxCrCarrybackOrOverAmt' has a non-zero value and 'ForeignIncmSection951AInd' is not checked and 'ScheduleBNotRequiredInd' is not checked, then Form 1116 Schedule B must be attached at the form level.

Our team is currently investigating the root cause of reject F1116-004-03 with the IRS. Please hold returns containing Form 1116 with Schedule B until further notice. We will update this blog post as more information is made available.

Resolved: IRS reject F1040-034-07 (Prior year)

Updated:  February 9, 2024

On February 9th, IRS will be disabling the business rule that generated this reject on for tax year 2022 & 2021.  Starting February 9th, please submit the prior year returns previously rejected.  

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Updated: February 6, 2024

IRS is still investigating the issue. In the meantime, If you have a 1099-R, TaxWise recommends holding these Prior Year returns until further notice.

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January 29, 2024

IRS is currently investigating the cause of this rejection and we have a workaround in the meantime. Click here for additional information.

State News: Ohio SD-100 School District Returns

 Please review the below information from the Ohio Department of Taxation

The Ohio Department of Taxation has made the following updates to their 2023 Form Ohio SD-100 and instructions which impact the filing of “Earned Income School District Tax Base” returns. This may require amended returns to be completed for previously filed returns. 

Per the agency, filing for these changes should not take place prior to February 8, 2024. At this time, our updated form release date has not been determined, but it will be as soon as possible.

Form OH SD-100:

• Lines 33, 34 & 35 will no longer be used on the form and will display as “reserved for future use”.
• Line 36 description will change to display as “Line 36 – Earned Income School District Tax Base (see instructions)” 

OH SD-100 instructions:

• The current instructions for lines 33 and 34 will be removed entirely from the online booklet.
• Line 35 is currently a total line and does not have any instructions in the booklet.
• Line description updated to “Line 36 – Earned Income School District Tax Base (see instructions)”
• If you lived in the school district for the entire year: Enter the lesser of line 3 or line 32.
• If you lived in the school district for only part of the year: Enter the lesser of line 32 or a prorated portion of line 3 based on how long you resided in the school district you entered at the top of the column. To prorate, divide line 3 by 12 months, then multiply the result by the number of months you resided in the school district. Alternatively, you may use days instead of months for your proration.

Important: For certain taxpayers, a prorated share of line 3 may not fairly reflect the portion of modified adjusted gross income received while a resident of the school district. Such taxpayers instead may determine the portion of modified adjusted gross income received while a resident of the district by specifically identifying income and deductions received while a resident of that district. They will then enter the lesser of that amount or line 32.

See the guidance for part-year residents on pages 64-65.

To stay up to date on the latest information, please visit: https://tax.ohio.gov/individual/school-district-income-tax

Puerto Rico: 1040-SS and Multiple W-2s

The Refunds Today team has found an issue with 1040-SS and Multiple W-2s. 

We are working on a resolution and expect a new module no later than Monday, February 5th. We recommend holding any returns that fall into this category until a resolution is posted. 

We apologize for the inconvenience and will update this post as updates are made. 

EFC Reject 38 for Alabama, Colorado, and Georgia Business

If you have received an EFC Reject 38 on Alabama, Colorado, and Georgia C Corp, S Corp, and Partnership returns this is because these states have not been approved yet by the State agencies.

A new Alabama and Georgia module will be delivered to put diagnostics in place to prevent eFile creation and then another module release will enable eFile support once agency approval is obtained.

Additional updates will be provided as the new modules become available.

*Resolved* TaxWise Online: Intermittent issues with ESignature service

*Resolved*

On Saturday, January 27, 2024 at 5:00 PM CST some TaxWise Online customers may have experienced intermittent issues with ESignatures. The issue was resolved at 5:58 PM CST Thank you for your patience.

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On Saturday, January 27, 2024 at 5:00 PM CST some TaxWise Online customers may be experiencing intermittent issues with ESignatures. Thank you for your patience as our team investigates.

Filing W2s and 1099s with Payroll Compliance Reporting/W2-1099

Many businesses are impacted by the IRS decision to lower the e-file mandate to 10 returns. With Payroll Compliance Reporting, you already have the software needed to ensure that you and your clients are compliant with this mandate.*

If you need assistance with creating Payroll Compliance returns, watch these short videos:

Creating W2 returns

Preparing 1099 Returns

Preparing Series 94x Returns

W2s

W2s must be uploaded directly to the Social Security Administration Business Services Online (BSO) website. Please note the process to log into the BSO website has changed. You must have a Social Security Online account, Login.gov, or ID.me credential to gain access to the BSO application. Your BSO User ID and password is no longer used to access BSO employer services. For more information or to obtain a login visit the SSA Business Services Online Welcome Page. 

1099s

1099s, 1098s, 5498s, and W2-Gs are filed to the IRS FIRE System through Payroll Compliance Reporting. You do not need a Transmitter Control Code (TCC), when filing through our software.

Note: Series 94x Returns can also be filed using Payroll Compliance Reporting. An EFIN is required to file these returns. Log into your IRS eServices account to verify that you have these return types added to your EFIN. 

*If you need Payroll Compliance Reporting, please reach out to your Account Manager.

Payroll Compliance Reporting (PCR) version 23.1 is now available

In this release, the W-2 and 1099 mappings are updated to support the QuickBooks, Sage and Client Accounting Suite imports for 2023.

Installation Instructions:

The following installation types require the 23.1 update:

• Stand-Alone
• Workstation Only
• Workstation/Server

Server Only installations do not require the 23.1 update.

• As a best practice, it is recommended that you close the application on all workstations and update each one separately.

State News: Texas Electronic Forms for Filing 2024 Franchise Tax Reports

Please read the following important information from the Texas Comptroller.

Electronic forms for filing 2024 franchise tax reports are in development and are not available for use through Webfile or from tax preparation software providers at this time. For more information visit https://security.app.cpa.state.tx.us/. 

State News: Georgia Start of Filing Season

Please read the following important information from the Georgia Department of Revenue.

The opening date to e-file individual returns is February 2, 2024.

Pre-Ack Deadline for 2023 Tax Season

Monday January 29th, 2024, is the official opening day of IRS electronic filing for the 2023 Tax Filing Season.

The Pre-Acks for TaxWise will be disabled at Midnight-ET on Sunday, January 28th, 2024. Please be sure to submit any Pre-Ack Returns before this time.

Also, ensure you have downloaded and are using the most current Bank Module:

• 3Fund - v2
• EPS - v2
• Fee Collect - v2
• Refund Advantage - v2
• Republic - v2
• Santa Barbara - v2

Client Accounting Suite/Premier (CAS/P) version 23.2 is available

The 23.2 version of CAS is now available from the Solution Center or via the auto-update feature in CAS. It includes the following regulatory updates.

Regulatory Updates

The following regulatory information is now available for Client Accounting Suite and Client Accounting Suite Premier:

• 2023 Federal Forms update
• 2023 1099 NEC updated revision.
• 1099 MISC and 1099 NEC include a print update to show 2023 in the year box.
• The Iowa W-2 electronic filing formatted file was updated to current specifications.
•  2024 W-4 is available in Blank Forms.

Important: All 1099/1096 forms submitted to the IRS must be printed on the red ink approved forms. Failure to comply with this may result in fines or rejections. To order the 1099/1096 red ink forms for Client Accounting Suite, call Nelco at 1-800-266-4669.

• 2024 State Withholding Rates - The following state withholding calculations have been updated for 2024:

• Colorado
• Georgia
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Oregon
• Vermont
• Note:  As other states change their rates for 204, we will provide updates on the support website.
• Reminder: Be sure to update the state wage limit in the State Setup before processing payrolls for 2024.

• Review the Year End Guide for all Regulatory questions and procedures. The Year End Guide is available on-line in PDF format from the Help Menu.

Software Updates

• The 2023 Tax Exports for ATX and TaxWise are available in this update. Tax Line assignments have been updated for 2023.
• The 2023 Tax Exports for ProSystem fx, Axcess, Lacerte Tax, and ProSeries Business Tax have been enabled.
• Client Write-Up has been updated to work with QuickBooks and Sage 50 2024.

Reminder - Partner Verification Refresh

In order to be prepared and ready for the 2023 Tax Season, this is a reminder to refresh Partner Verification to confirm your banking enrollment information (Partner, Product, and Fees) is correct in the TaxWise Desktop and TaxWise Online Applications.

TaxWise Desktop - Steps for Partner Verification:

1 -- Log in as Admin in Taxwise Desktop

2 -- Select ‘Tools > Utilities/Setup Assistant’

3 -- From the Utility window select ‘Setup > Setup Assistant’

4 -- Select ‘Partner Verification’

5 -- Select the ‘Refresh Data’ button

6 -- Confirm partner verification:

Once Partner Verification is refreshed, the page will show current updated Partner Verification data with your bank partner’s information. Please verify and confirm all fees and product selections are correct in the TaxWise desktop application.

TaxWise Online -- Steps for Partner Verification

1 -- In the upper left, Select the ‘Loggedin User>Settings’

2 -- Select ‘Partner Verification’

3 -- Confirm Partner Verification data under ‘Settlement Solutions’

 

If you have any questions, please contact customer support via any of these options:

1. Chat at SFS TaxWise Chat (cch.com)
2. Open a Support case at https://support.cch.com/
• Select the option that best describes your issue and complete all applicable information. Our support team will research your issue or question and contact you with an answer.
3. Phone at 866-641-9473.

Tax Season 2023: Password Recources

Tax Season is here.  

If you are are having issues recalling your password, please check out this brief tutorial on how to rest your password quickly. 

Wishing you a successful Tax Season. 

SUPPORT

If you have any questions, please contact customer support via any of these options:

1. Chat with a live agent SFS TaxWise Chat (cch.com)
2. Open a Support case at https://support.cch.com/

SALES
If you have not purchased or renewed Refunds Today for Tax Year 2023, you can contact your Account Manager at 800-495-4626 to get setup for the 2023 season.

IRS News: Delayed Startup for Forms 990-T, 1120-POL, and 8868

Please take note of the important information below from the IRS concerning Forms 990-T, 1120-POL, and 8868.

Forms 990-T (all tax years), 1120-POL (all tax years), and 8868 for Tax Year 2023 will not be available in Production until March 17, 2024.

All Forms 990-T and 1120-POL submitted before March 17th will receive Reject R0000-120:

The IRS Submission type that was filed is not being accepted by the Modernized e-File (MeF) at this time. Please check the MeF web page under irs.gov for more information. The submission type filed was <type>.

Form 8868 for Tax Year 2023 extensions submitted before March 17th will receive Reject R0000-225:

This submission contains a form or schedule that is not currently supported for electronic filing.

IRS will be communicating the next steps for filers that are currently past due or will be past due if not filed prior to March  17^th. ETA on communication from the IRS is next week.

*Resolved* State News: Connecticut MeF Outage

 *Resolved*

Connecticut Department of Revenue Services has resumed processing MeF returns.

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Please be aware that we have received the following important message from the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services.

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Connecticut has discovered an issue where Estimate MeF submissions were being rejected erroneously. The Connecticut MeF gateways have been temporarily shut down until the issue is resolved.

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State News: Connecticut MeF Outage

Please be aware that we have received the following important message from the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services.

*****

Connecticut has discovered an issue where Estimate MeF submissions were being rejected erroneously. The Connecticut MeF gateways have been temporarily shut down until the issue is resolved.

*****

Refunds Today - Spring 2023 Operating Hours

Happy New Year 2024 and welcome to the 2023 Tax Season. 

Normal Operating hours for Spring 2023(January - April) include:

• Monday - Friday, 8am - 7pm ET
• Saturdays, 10am - 6pm ET
• Sundays, Closed;  Support will be open April 7th and April 14th for End of Season

Full times and Dates (and latest updates) for the upcoming Tax Season can always be found here:  Support Hours of Operation 

SALES
If you have not yet purchased or renewed Refunds Today for Tax Year 2023, you can contact your Account Manager at 800-495-4626 to get setup for the 2023 season.


Wolters Kluwer wishes you a very successful Tax Season. 

State News: Colorado E-file Opening Delay

Please read the following important information that we received from the Colorado Department of Revenue.

"Our current estimated opening date for all income tax types is February 12, 2024. This date is subject to change."

Update: IRS Opens for Business Returns on January 16, 2024

 Please Note:  

The IRS will begin accepting all business tax returns at 9:00 a.m. Eastern time on Tuesday, January 16, 2024. 

Due to the number of legislation changes, the following forms will not be accepted, for the 2023 tax year, until Monday, January 29, 2024. If these forms are submitted with a tax return, the return will be rejected. Once these forms are available, they must be submitted in XML format and not as a Binary Attachment to claim the Clean Energy credits.

Form 3468 - Investment Credit 

Form 3800 - General Business Credit 

Form 7207 - Advanced Manufacturing Credit 

Form 7210 - Clean Hydrogen Production 

Form 8835 - Renewable Electricity Production Credit 

Form 8933 - Carbon Oxide Sequestration Credit 

Form 8936 Schedule A - Clean Vehicle Credit 

Please monitor the MeF Status page on IRS.gov for updates.

Reminder - Remain vigilant against suspicious email activity

This is a reminder that Wolters Kluwer will never email you to ask you to provide personally identifiable information (PII).

Requests to do so are signs of suspicious activity.

We strongly advise against clicking any links in this type of message, even if the email appears to be generated by Wolters Kluwer.

Refunds Today 2023 Federal and State E-File availability

Tax Season is beginning to ramp up. The Refunds Today team would like to keep you updated on the availability of Federal and State E-file Modules.

The Release Dates(estimated and Actual) for the Refunds Today modules can be located on the Refunds Today Site here.

In addition, important E-file dates can be found here.

Please refer back to these links often for latest Release dates.


SUPPORT
If you have any questions, please contact customer support via any of these options:

1. Chat with a live agent SFS TaxWise Chat (cch.com)
2. Open a Support case at https://support.cch.com/
• Select the option that best describes your issue and complete all applicable information. Our support team will research your issue or question and contact you with an answer

SALES
If you have not purchased or renewed Refunds Today for Tax Year 2023, you can contact your Account Manager at 800-495-4626 to get setup for the 2023 season.

Refunds Today: Pre-Acknowledgement (Pre-ack) is now available for Tax Year 2023

January 2nd, 2024, marks the beginning of the tax season for those of you offering Pre-acknowledgement (Pre-ack) advances through TPG, Republic Bank, EPS and Refund Advantage. 

If you haven’t enrolled to offer bank products yet, our partners are still open and accepting enrollment applications for all products.

Once you have enrolled, check out our FAQs below for pre-ack advance products.


How do I apply for Pre-ack inside of the return?
On the main information, select bank products and check the box for the appropriate bank (your active bank). You will then visit the bank application and complete the necessary steps, including selecting advance and the taxpayers preferred disbursement. Once that is completed, you will efile the return.

What is EFC reject 91?
EFC 91 is an EFC reject you will receive when the bank rejects the Pre-ack return. To fix these rejects print the ack report and search for the bank rejection, this will tell you what the reject is and you can fix and resend.

SUPPORT
If you have any questions, please contact customer support via any of these options:

1. Chat with a live agent SFS TaxWise Chat (cch.com)
2. Open a Support case at https://support.cch.com/
• Select the option that best describes your issue and complete all applicable information. Our support team will research your issue or question and contact you with an answer

SALES
If you have not purchased or renewed Refunds Today for Tax Year 2023,  you can contact your Account Manager at 800-495-4626 to get setup for the 2023 Tax season.

Tax Season 2023: I can't remember my password

Tax Season is here.  

If you are are having issues recalling your password, please check out this brief tutorial on how to rest your password quickly. 

Wishing you a successful Tax Season. 

SUPPORT

If you have any questions, please contact customer support via any of these options:

1. Chat with a live agent SFS TaxWise Chat (cch.com)
2. Open a Support case at https://support.cch.com/

SALES
If you have not purchased or renewed Refunds Today for Tax Year 2023, you can contact your Account Manager at 800-495-4626 to get setup for the 2023 season.

State News: Arizona Families Tax Rebate Information

Important Information from the Arizona Department of Revenue

Arizona Families Tax rebate was issued pursuant to Senate Bill 1734, as passed by the fifty-sixth legislature, first regular session, and signed into law by the governor.

The Internal Revenue Service has determined that the rebate is subject to federal income tax and, thus, requires it to be reported as part of the federal adjusted gross income on the 2023 federal income tax return. For this reason, the Arizona Department of Revenue (ADOR) is issuing a Form 1099-MISC, Miscellaneous Information, which reports miscellaneous compensation and other payments such as this rebate.

Note that the rebate is not subject to Arizona income tax and should be subtracted from the federal adjusted gross income on the 2023 Arizona individual income tax return.

ADOR will provide taxpayers Form 1099-MISC online through its secure portal. Taxpayers will be able to access the Form 1099-MISC on and after January 31, 2024 by visiting AZTaxes.gov

For more information on the Arizona Families Tax Rebate taxability and frequently asked questions, visit Arizona Families Tax Rebate.

Online Check Printing is now available

 Online Check Printing (OCP) makes your check authorization files available immediately. You do not need to wait for the Electronic Filing Center (EFC) to process and download acknowledgements in the software prior to printing checks. 

• Online check print data is automatically transmitted to the bank provider as soon as the print session is complete.
•  Faster processing of check print data decreases the wait time for taxpayers to have their check cashed. 
• OCP allows you to print checks anywhere with internet access. 
• Check authorization files are stored securely and require login information with an additional multi-factor authentication.

Please refer to this video for instructions regarding OCP use.