Ultratax IRS Reject Notices

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#1
deniz  
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Has anyone ever run into issues with IRS rejection notices in Ultratax?

When I made the switch to UT from TaxAct I assumed it would be similar to any other tax software package and would automatically send notices of IRS rejections. But, apparently if you don't specifically request acknowledgements, it will display the status as "Return Transmitted to CS" with no indication of a filing issues. This was unexpected because any diagnostic checks at the software level are displayed prominently. I later found out from Thomson that certain big firms requested that the automatic notice be turned off so their staff would constantly monitor acknowledgements. UT even has an notice page, saying you should reconfigure the software to automatic notices, but dont bother to just set it up that way in the first place.

This is probably common knowledge, but it has been an very painful lesson for this solo practitioner and I hope nobody else has to go through this misery.
 

#2
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Admittedly, I did not even know there was a way to turn on automatic notices. I have always just relied on retrieving acknowledgements and verifying acceptance, though I also receive e-mails when accepted. I like UT, but not everything is well thought out.
 

#3
novacpa  
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Ask UT to share in the Penalties?
Let us know their reaction?
 

#4
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deniz, I've never had a problem with IRS rejection notices with UT, but I have always verified e-file acceptance before the return is in the "closed" pile.

novacpa, I highly doubt that UT (or any other software) would willingly share in penalties caused by the ERO not verifying acceptances/rejections. I'm sure it's somewhere in the terms and conditions of using the software. The OP might be able to get some penalties waived with the IRS (attempted to timely file, but misunderstanding with the new software led to not catching rejections). For everything else there is E&O.
 

#5
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Prior to this year we always handled rejections as they were received (during the transmittal process). However, near the deadline there are too many and we would extend and handle later.

You can open the efile status screen and filter to rejected only, which happen to be in bold red.

This year we also turned on the email notification for rejections which has been nice.

However, if you have one rejected that is still showing as “transmitted to CS” more than 24 - 36 hours then you have a software problem.

That happened to us one tax season deadline. UT said it was becuase we submitted over 1,000 returns (counting federal and states independently) in the last 24 hours before the deadline. The “status” of those returns were frozen and had to be manually updated by CS over the course of a week.
 

#6
makbo  
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deniz wrote:When I made the switch to UT from TaxAct I assumed it would be similar to any other tax software package and would automatically send notices of IRS rejections.


What do you mean by "send notices"?
 

#7
deniz  
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Thanks for the feedback everyone.

TA is configured to send emails informing the preparer as soon as IRS rejection is received without any setup or intervention required from the preparer. Consistent with the rest of the software, I assumed the status screen in UT would be updated automatically because the efile transmittal check is automatic and you cant proceed without clearing it. After learning about the issue, I did hire a UT consultant to make the changes in the setup for automatic emails and acknowledgment retrieval, but it was certainly not an intuitive process as I had to enter screens that i have never even seen before.

I am also baffled why we are even given the option not to retrieve rejection notices immediately, let alone making it the default option for everyone. I even found this notice from UT saying you should change your setting to automatic retrieval, so apparently, I must not be the first person to encounter the issue: https://cs.thomsonreuters.com/ua/ut/201 ... talocs.htm
 

#8
makbo  
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deniz wrote:Consistent with the rest of the software, I assumed the status screen in UT would be updated automatically

There is an "Electronic Filing Live" screen that you can view every time you start the software (home page) that will tell you the current efile status of all transmitted returns without any extra configuration or other action on your part. This screen advises you "Awaiting retrieval" when an acknowledgement is ready.

deniz wrote:you cant proceed without clearing it.

I don't know what you're talking about here. I have never run into something in UT where I "can't proceed without clearing it", other than the login! :cry:

deniz wrote:I am also baffled why we are even given the option not to retrieve rejection notices immediately, let alone making it the default option for everyone.

I too am a sole practitioner and have not had any problems. Since you moved to a new software, I'm surprised you didn't take the time to at least once convince yourself that something you transmitted had been acknowledged by IRS. Having done it once, you would have no more surprises. Haven't you ever used the "CS Connect" dialog to retrieve software updates or a PRP license for some entity or non-resident state return? All the send/retrieve functions are in the same place.

FWIW, I don't remember when using ProSeries in years past that I was sent automatic efile status notices either. In fact, the email (substitute Form 9235) for acceptance is one of the things I really like about UT compared to ProSeries.
 

#9
smtcpa  
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I find it hard to place the blame on UT here. As with any new software, you have to understand the setups. Like others, I monitor all acceptances before closing the project and I notice when a reject has occurred. I am a long time UT user except for the 2016 filing season when we switched to Lacerte. I believe that the email notification on rejects is a new(ish) feature and it is quite useful.
 

#10
deniz  
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I am very serious about having competency in taxation, but there are no university classes at undergrad, masters, law or even LLM nor are there any specific professional standards requiring us to be experts in running tax compliance software, let alone efile transmittals. The state societies dont teach tax software because they are privately owned. Yet our whole practice is based on being experts in tax compliance software, we cant even mail returns in anymore, and there is no tolerance for software issues at the IRS. When is the last time anyone has been to an Ultratax or Pro series class or even seen one offered as part of a CPE package? I just finished Engage, 250 + classes, and not a word about tax compliance software.

I understand that this is obvious stuff to the experienced compliance pros.
 

#11
CathysTaxes  
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I use Drake and they have many self study webinars on using their software.
Cathy
CathysTaxes
 

#12
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When I went to university, they didn't offer any courses in how to market an accounting firm to new clients, how to manage angry employees or clients, how to maintain a romantic relationship during tax season, how to prepare workpapers, how to deal with the IRS, or how to convert clients' attempted bookkeeping into financial statements, either. And that's much more important than the stuff you learn in school!

The last time I took UltraTax-specific CPE was last December; they offer a 4 credit software update webinar that I take every year. When I transitioned to them for the 2015 tax season, I also took their e-filing course (I think it's this one: https://cs.thomsonreuters.com/training/ ... rseno=1113,). They're relatively expensive per credit, but I've always learned something that I can use and implement.

We are all human beings; we all make mistakes. It is always a mistake to make any assumptions when dealing with a software transition. It was probably also a mistake in prior years to rely on e-mail for rejected returns in previous years, because an e-mail outage or it being classified as spam could have left you in a similar pickle. Just don't make the worst mistake of them all -- not learning from your prior mistake.
 

#13
deniz  
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makbo -

"There is an "Electronic Filing Live" screen that you can view every time you start the software (home page) that will tell you the current efile status of all transmitted returns without any extra configuration or other action on your part. This screen advises you "Awaiting retrieval" when an acknowledgment is ready."

-I am staring at the Electronic Filing Live" screen, there is no listing of the client file.

-I have connected with retrieve acknowledgments several times, the status of client: "Return Transmitted to CS". No red e, nothing. I just chatted with UT tech support, their response - this stuff happens.
 

#14
PDXCPA  
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In Ultratax, if you efile and then change the clientID, Ultratax will not be able to record the acknowledgment or reject on the record you changed the clientid on. The efile status will remain the same as "...Transmitted". This is the only scenario that I'm aware of that could cause what OP describes.
 

#15
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deniz wrote:-I am staring at the Electronic Filing Live" screen, there is no listing of the client file.

-I have connected with retrieve acknowledgments several times, the status of client: "Return Transmitted to CS". No red e, nothing. I just chatted with UT tech support, their response - this stuff happens.


Once you retrieve the acknowledgments, the client no longer shows in the electronic filing live screen. Once you've retrieved them, you should find them on the electronic filing status page (the green e). This is also where you can print the 9325s for your records.
 

#16
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PDXCPA wrote:In Ultratax, if you efile and then change the clientID, Ultratax will not be able to record the acknowledgment or reject on the record you changed the clientid on. The efile status will remain the same as "...Transmitted". This is the only scenario that I'm aware of that could cause what OP describes.


Or in my case where we transmitted too many in a short period of time. That’s the only real error we’ve had in 16 years of e-filing.

UT’s e-filing system is clunking, incredibly slow, and their rejection errors are often vague and meaningless if you can’t read code. But I assume that’s rather par for the course. But it’s always been accurate and quick to update.
 


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