retirement plans

Below are the instructions for entering a Solo 401(k).  If the program is still showing an excess contribution, return to the section where you entered information for for TurboTax to calculate your maximum contribution.  Go through that in reverse and delete the information you added and be sure to uncheck the box next to Maximize Contribution to Individual 401(k) after deleting any input you added.  

Here’s how to enter your Solo 401(k) contributions in TurboTax:

1. Sign in to your TurboTax account, and open or continue your return.
2. Search for self-employed retirement plans (be sure to include the hyphen) and select the Jump to link.
3. Answer Yes to the question, Did you make a 2023 self-employed retirement plan contribution?
4. Answer Yes to Did you contribute to an Individual or Roth 401(k) plan?
5. On the next screen, enter your Elective Deferrals and any Catch-Up Contributions you made in 2023.
6. Enter your Employer Matching (Profit Sharing) Contributions for 2023.
   • Note: There's no Employer Matching box for Roth 401(k)s because any matching employee contributions are pretax.
7. If you haven’t made all your contributions for the tax year and would like TurboTax to calculate your maximum contributions for the year, check the box next to Maximize Contribution to Individual 401(k) and Continue.
8. On the Adjusting Self-Employment Income screen, enter any changes you'd like to make to your self-employment income as it’s been calculated by TurboTax (this is rare). Enter a positive number if you’re adding an amount, and a negative number if you’re subtracting.
9. Select Continue.
10. If you checked the box next to Maximize Contribution to Individual 401(k), you’ll see Your Self-Employed Retirement Deduction. This screen shows the maximum amount you can contribute to your Solo 401(k) for the tax year.
11. Answer the questions on the following screens, until you reach Your Retirement Contributions. This is a summary of the contributions you’ve made to your Solo 401(k) during the tax year.