What scenario modeling does

Scenario modeling lets you project a client's tax picture forward in time, test different strategies, and compare outcomes side by side. Tax Planning takes the validated baseline (from the uploaded 1040) and lets you:

Roll the baseline forward to a future tax year (e.g., 2026, 2027, or further)
Apply tax strategies like Roth Conversion, Maximize 401(k) or State Relocation
Manually adjust individual 1040 line items
Compare multiple scenarios side by side to see tax impact.

All calculations run on a deterministic rules-based engine. If you upload the same 1040 with the same inputs, you will get the same result every time.

What tax year are my scenarios calculating

Each scenario has a specific year attached to it. To see or change the year:

Open the scenario
Look at the year indicator at the top of the scenario view
Click to change the year

Changing the year triggers a full Federal and State recalculation based on that year's tax rates, inflation adjustments, and standard deductions. The system uses projected tax rules for future years.

Making changes and recalculating

Important: After you make a change in a scenario, you may need to save before the recalculation runs. If you change an input and do not see the expected update to Total Income, Tax Impact, or the tax calculation, save the scenario first and then check again.

Common changes that trigger recalculation:

Adding an Action (Roth Conversion, Maximize 401(k), Change Marital Status, etc.)
Changing the projection year
Manually editing individual 1040 line items
Changing filing status or dependents

After saving, the system performs a full Federal and State recalculation.

Understanding Tax Impact

Tax Impact is the dollar difference between the Lookback (baseline) and the current scenario. It appears at the top of the scenario view.

If Tax Impact shows $0 when you expect a change:

Confirm you saved the scenario after making your changes
Verify the changes actually applied — look at the individual 1040 lines to see if they updated
Confirm you are looking at the right scenario (not the Lookback by accident)
If lines updated but Tax Impact is still $0, the changes may have offset each other (e.g., you added income and also added a deduction of the same size)

If you have saved, the lines have updated, and Tax Impact is still $0 unexpectedly, contact support — this could indicate an issue.

Interpreting zero values

In some cases, you may see $0 federal tax or $0 taxable income in a scenario. This is usually correct — it means the client's standard deduction, credits, and other offsets have reduced their taxable income to zero.

Before treating a $0 value as a bug:

Check the client's total income against the standard deduction for their filing status
Confirm credits (Child Tax Credit, EITC, etc.) are applying correctly
Look at Line 15 (Taxable Income) and Line 24 (Total Tax) on the 1040 view within the scenario

If the numbers still look wrong after checking, contact support with the client's email and a description of what you expected to see.

Comparing scenarios

Once you have built two or more scenarios, you can compare them side by side:

Go to the Scenarios tab
Select the scenarios you want to compare
The system displays them in a side-by-side view showing tax, IRMAA, after-tax wealth, and other key outputs

The Side-by-Side Comparison view is the primary way to demonstrate strategy impact to clients and is particularly powerful for Roth Conversion modeling (e.g., "No Conversion" vs. "Pay from Conversion" vs. "Pay from Taxable Account").