California Edition

DissoMaster-to-Family Law Software Data Entry Conversion Chart

You may scroll through this chart or search for an entry by pressing Ctrl+F.

To scroll sideways and see the cut-off area of the chart: click anywhere in the chart, then use
the scroll wheel or middle mouse button on your mouse, or use the scrollbar at the bottom.

  DissoMaster Family Law Software
Party Info

Lived with MFS Spouse part of year

This is calculated automatically, based on the date of separation.

Number of children

Click the "add child" button for each child.

% time with Non - custodial parent

Specify the non-custodial time with each child.
Filing Status

Exemptions

Specify the exemption right with each child.

Personal exemptions happen automatically.

You may override on the View/Edit Taxes screen.

Wages / salary

 

You may select the time period appropriate for the wage number you enter..

IRA/401k contrib

 

Scroll to the bottom...

Self-employment income

Specify it with the wage entry.

- Or -

Income & Expenses > Income from Assets, create a Business, and click "more info" to specify business type (e.g., Sole Proprietorship, Partnership, C Corp, S Corp).

Investment Income

 

You may either enter total in each category, at the top of the screen

...or enter assets individually by clicking here...

Specify investment category by clicking "more info" on each asset.

Social Security Income

 

 

Unemployment compensation

 

Royalties, Partnerships, S Corporation Income

 

For businesses, click the button to create each business. Click "more info" to specify business type (Sole proprietorship, partnership, S Corporation, etc.)

 

For rental income, click the button to create a Real Estate property. Click "more info" ...

...and, at the top of the "more info" screen, specify that it is rental real estate.

Then scroll down and fill in the income and expenses of the real estate property.

Click here if the property is partly personal.

Non-Wage Income

 

Public assistance

 

Child support received from prior relationships

 

Imputed Income

 

 

You may indicate that any income is non-taxable by clicking the "non-tax" box to the right of the entry.

New Spouse Income

 

 

Child and Spousal Support Paid on Account of Prior Relationships

 

 

Health and Dental Insurance

 

The table below shows how to enter health insurance into each program, depending on the type of plan.

  Family Law Software Tax Category DissoMaster Data Entry Line
Flexible spending account, cafeteria plan FSA, Flex, Caf, Etc. Health insurance pre-tax wage ded
Other payroll deduction Pay dedn-Not FSA, Flex No equivalent. [This is the most common type of health insurance deduction, but we have not found a way to get this in Dissomaster.]
Not payroll deduction Medical

Health insurance wage deduction

or Health Insurance paid by party

Medical Expenses

 

 

Property Taxes

Deductible interest expense

(Mortgage Interest)

 

Mortgage interest for the current year (not prior year!) is calculated automatically based on the mortgage balance, monthly payment, and interest rate. You may override this calculation simply by typing over it.

Charitable Contribution

 

Miscellaneous Itemized Deductions

 

Any living expense item that you entered is automatically tagged with the appropriate tax category.

Note that miscellaneous itemized deductions have no impact on taxes unless, in aggregate, they exceed 2% of Adjusted Gross Income, and that few people have enough of these deductions to clear that threshold.

Union Dues

 

Mandatory Retirement Contributions

 

 

Hardship Deduction

 

(Children of another relationship)

On the line for the "hardship" child, just clear the checkbox shown below.

The software calculates the hardship deduction.

If you wish to override the software's calculation, go to Deductions > Support, and scroll down to the line where the Hardship Deduction is displayed.

Extaordinary Health Expenses

 

Note that this entry is for child support only (because we can not tell which health expenses would qualify as "extraordinary.") You would enter the same expense as a Living Expense for the FL-150 Income & Expenses Statement, by clicking Income & Expenses > Living Expenses.

Uninsured catastrophic losses

 

 

Note that this entry is for child support only (because otherwise we will not know whether an expense is "catastrophic" or "uninsured"). If you want this to appear on the FL-150 Income & Expenses Statement, you would enter the same expense as a Living Expense by clicking Income & Expenses > Living Expenses.

Necessary Job-related Expenses

 

 

Note that this entry is for child support only (because otherwise we will not know whether an expense is deemed "necessary" by the court). If you want this to appear on the FL-150 Income & Expenses Statement, you would enter the same expense as a Living Expense by clicking Income & Expenses > Living Expenses.

AMT Info

The Alternative Minimum Tax is calcualted automatically by both DissoMaster and Family Law Software.

The entries on these lines in DissoMaster are for extremely rare items that can affect this calculation.

These items include:
  • Interest disallowed for AMT purposes on the deduction of very large mortgages.
  • Adjustment of investment interest expense for AMT purposes.
  • Post-1986 accelerated depreciation that is disallowed for AMT purposes.
  • Exclusion of gain on non-conforming exercise of incentive stock options (ISO's).
  • Deductions related to passive activities that are not allowed for AMT purposes.
  • Tax-exempt interest from private activity bonds.
  • Certain research and experimental costs.
  • Differences between the Foreign Tax Credit as calculated for AMT purposes, versus regular tax purposes.
  • Differences between the Net Operating Loss deduction as calculated for AMT purposes, versus regular tax purposes.


These items are not factored into the Family Law Software tax calculation. If you wish to override the AMT calculation, you may do that on the View/Edit Taxes screen.

Child Care

 

 

Visits, School & Travel Expenses

 

 

Uninsured Health Expenses