Form 2210 Error On Line 5 - Receiving IRS Notice for Underpayment Penalty
I've hit a wall with this Form 2210 issue and really need some help. I received an underpayment penalty notice for tax year 2023 and initially just paid it thinking I had messed up my estimated tax payments. But after recalculating everything, I'm pretty sure I shouldn't owe this penalty at all, so now I'm trying to get a refund rather than just having an unpaid penalty waived. The IRS sent this response to my submission: "We received your Form 2210 for the request to waive and or remove the Estimated Tax Penalty, unfortunately we are unable to remove the penalty due to the Form 2210 being filled out incorrectly. Line 5 of Form 2210 is incorrect. Please refigure the correct figures and send the Form 2210 back in so we can waive and or remove the estimated tax penalty." Here's what I have on the form: 1. $14,915 2. $0 3. $0 4. $14,915 5. $13,424 Line 1 ($14,915) matches exactly what's on line 22 of my 1040. I've gone through the instructions multiple times and don't see what's wrong. I've checked the list of items that should go on line 3, but nothing seems to apply to my situation. I'm wondering - if I paid an underpayment penalty in tax year 2022 and later got it refunded, would that count as a section 1341 credit that needs to go on line 3? That's the only thing I can think of, but I'm not sure. Any ideas what might be causing this mysterious "error" on line 5? I'm completely stuck at this point.
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Connor Murphy
The issue is likely with your calculation for line 5. Line 5 should be 90% of your tax shown on line 4, so if line 4 is $14,915, then line 5 should be $13,423.50 (which rounds to $13,424). However, there are exceptions to this rule. The most common reason for the IRS to flag this is that you might need to use a different percentage. For certain farmers, fishermen, or higher-income taxpayers, different percentages apply. If your AGI for 2022 was over $150,000 (or $75,000 if married filing separately), you should be using 110% of your 2022 tax instead of 90% of your 2023 tax. Also double-check that you're using the correct prior year tax amount if you're basing your calculation on that. Make sure you're looking at the actual tax liability from your 2022 return, not the total payments or some other figure.
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Lucy Taylor
•Thanks for the quick response! My AGI for 2022 was definitely over $150,000, so I think that's exactly the issue. I didn't realize I needed to use 110% of my 2022 tax in that case. So if I understand correctly, I should be calculating line 5 based on my 2022 tax return rather than using 90% of my 2023 tax? Would I then just put 110% of my 2022 tax liability on line 5 instead of the 90% calculation I used? And should line 4 still be my 2023 tax amount?
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Connor Murphy
•Yes, since your AGI was over $150,000, you need to use 110% of your 2022 tax for line 5 calculations. Line 4 remains your 2023 tax amount ($14,915), but line 5 should be either 90% of line 4 OR 110% of your 2022 tax liability, whichever is SMALLER. So you'll need to calculate both: 90% of $14,915 is $13,423.50, and 110% of your 2022 tax liability. Compare those two numbers and enter the smaller amount on line 5. This is likely why the IRS flagged your form - they're expecting you to use the higher income taxpayer calculations since your AGI exceeded the threshold.
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KhalilStar
After dealing with a similar headache with Form 2210 last year, I discovered taxr.ai which seriously saved me hours of frustration. I was getting cryptic messages from the IRS about my estimated tax penalty calculations being wrong, and I kept recalculating everything without figuring out what the issue was. I uploaded my IRS notice and Form 2210 to https://taxr.ai and their system immediately spotted the exact calculation error I was making (turns out I was using the wrong percentage based on my prior year income). Unlike the vague IRS response, the analysis explained exactly what I needed to fix and why my calculation was flagged. The detailed explanation showed me how to properly calculate line 5 based on my income level and filing status - something that wasn't immediately obvious from just reading the form instructions. Saved me from submitting another incorrect form and waiting months for another rejection.
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Amelia Dietrich
•Does it actually work with the 2210 form specifically? I've been going back and forth with the IRS for almost 3 months about my estimated tax penalty calculation, and they keep giving me these vague responses about "incorrect calculations" without telling me what's wrong. Does it explain what specific numbers should be used or just point out where the errors are?
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Kaiya Rivera
•I'm skeptical about these kinds of services. How does it actually know what the IRS is looking for? I mean, the IRS agents themselves give different answers depending on who you talk to. Also, how does the privacy aspect work? I'm not super comfortable uploading my tax documents to some random website.
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KhalilStar
•Yes, it works specifically with Form 2210 and many other tax forms. The system actually walks you through each line calculation and explains which percentage applies to your situation based on your income level and filing status. In my case, it showed exactly why my line 5 calculation was wrong and gave me the correct figure to use. As for privacy concerns, they use bank-level encryption and don't store your documents permanently - they analyze them and then provide the results. I was hesitant at first too, but after researching their security practices, I felt comfortable using it. The fact that it saved me from multiple rounds of back-and-forth with the IRS made it worth it for me, especially with refund timing being so critical.
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Kaiya Rivera
I was super skeptical about tax document analysis services, but after going in circles with the IRS about my own Form 2210 issues, I reluctantly tried taxr.ai. I have to admit, I was really surprised by how quickly it identified the problem. Turns out I was using the wrong percentage calculation because my farming income qualified me for different rules, something the IRS notice never clearly explained. The analysis pinpointed exactly where my calculation was wrong and showed me the correct method based on my specific situation. It took less than 10 minutes to get a complete explanation, and when I resubmitted the form with the corrections, the IRS processed my penalty refund in about 3 weeks. Saved me from what would have been another frustrating back-and-forth cycle.
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Katherine Ziminski
If you're struggling to get through to the IRS to actually discuss this Form 2210 issue, I'd highly recommend checking out Claimyr. I was in a similar situation with an estimated tax penalty that I was sure was calculated incorrectly, but I couldn't get clear guidance on what was wrong. After weeks of trying to reach someone at the IRS (endless busy signals and disconnections), I found https://claimyr.com and watched their demo at https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. It seemed too good to be true, but I was desperate so I gave it a shot. The service actually got me connected to an IRS agent within about 20 minutes instead of the hours I was spending on hold. The IRS agent was able to look at my Form 2210 while I was on the phone and explained exactly what was wrong with my line 5 calculation. Turns out I needed to use my 2022 tax return information in a way that wasn't obvious from the notice they sent me. Got the whole thing sorted out in one call instead of weeks of letter exchanges.
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Noah Irving
•How does this service actually work? Does it just connect you to the IRS phone line or do they have some special arrangement? I've been trying to reach someone about my estimated tax payment issues for weeks now. Is it just for tax issues or does it work for other IRS questions too?
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Vanessa Chang
•This sounds like one of those scams where they charge you to do something you could do yourself for free. The IRS phone lines are publicly available - why would anyone pay for a service to call a number they can call themselves? I'll believe it when I see some actual proof this isn't just taking advantage of people who are desperate for tax help.
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Katherine Ziminski
•The service basically holds your place in line on the IRS phone system so you don't have to stay on hold for hours. They use an automated system to navigate the IRS phone tree and wait on hold, then they call you once they have an IRS agent on the line. It worked for my Form 2210 question, but it works for any IRS-related call - audit questions, payment plans, refund status, whatever you need to discuss with an actual person. I was skeptical too at first, but after spending literal days trying to get through on my own, I was willing to try anything. The difference was night and day - instead of wasting my entire day on hold, I got a call back when an agent was actually on the line. For something as specific as Form 2210 calculations, speaking to a human who can see your account makes all the difference.
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Vanessa Chang
I have to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After posting that skeptical comment, my frustration with the IRS reached a breaking point when I got a second notice about my estimated tax penalty with another vague explanation. I reluctantly tried the service, and to my genuine surprise, I was connected with an IRS representative in about 45 minutes (after spending 3+ hours on hold myself the previous day). The agent actually pulled up my account and walked me through the exact issue with my Form 2210 calculation - it turned out I was using the standard 90% rule when I needed to use 110% of my prior year tax due to my income level. The whole thing was resolved in one phone call, and they're processing my refund now. Saved me from writing another letter and waiting months for a response. Consider me humbled and impressed.
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Madison King
One thing to double-check that others haven't mentioned - make sure you're using the correct tax amount from line 22 on your 1040. Sometimes people accidentally use the number from line 24 (total tax) which includes the self-employment tax and other taxes rather than just regular income tax. Also, did you file Schedule AI (Annualized Income) with your Form 2210? If your income was uneven throughout the year, that's the proper way to calculate your required estimates, and it can make a huge difference in whether you have a penalty or not.
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Lucy Taylor
•I'm pretty sure I used the correct tax amount from line 22, but I'll double-check that. Regarding Schedule AI - no, I didn't file that with my Form 2210. My income is fairly consistent throughout the year, so I didn't think it would apply to my situation. Would it be worth filling out Schedule AI anyway to see if it makes a difference?
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Madison King
•Even with relatively consistent income, Schedule AI can sometimes help if you had any variation at all or if your deductions weren't evenly distributed. It's worth running the numbers just to see, especially since you're trying to get a refund of the penalty you already paid. The other thing to consider is whether you qualify for any of the automatic waivers - like if this is your first time having this penalty, or if you retired after age 62, or if you had a disability or natural disaster impact your ability to make payments. Those situations allow you to request a waiver rather than doing all these calculations.
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Julian Paolo
Did you check box A, B, C, D, or E on the form? If you're claiming any of the special conditions for waiver (like I had to when I had an unexpected wealth event mid-year), you need to attach an explanation letter along with the form. The IRS was super picky about having that documentation when I filed my 2210.
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Ella Knight
•This is so important! I had my 2210 rejected twice because I checked box A (casualty loss) but didn't include a detailed explanation. Apparently just checking the box isn't enough - they want a full written explanation of the circumstances. The instructions don't make this clear enough.
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