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Mandalay posted:Are you supposed to indicate anywhere on the 1040 that you're a nonresident alien living in the US on a work visa? I didn't see any check boxes. Well, if your living in the US on a work visa you're probably a resident alien, not a nonresident. Here's a useful publication: http://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc851.html. If you really are non-resident, you would file 1040NR (but you're probably not). If you have a work visa, you should qualify to get a SSN, just visit your local social security office: http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10096.pdf.
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Apr 19, 2013 01:00
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PatMarshall posted:Well, if your living in the US on a work visa you're probably a resident alien, not a nonresident. Here's a useful publication: http://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc851.html. If you really are non-resident, you would file 1040NR (but you're probably not). If you have a work visa, you should qualify to get a SSN, just visit your local social security office: http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10096.pdf. I was actually asking on behalf of a friend who has a work visa but not a green card--you know, a TN visa which is not unlike an H-1B. It's sorted but thanks!
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Apr 20, 2013 01:58
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Belated, but it's important to note that whether or not you are a 'resident' for tax purposes is a separate matter from your immigration status. You can be (and many people are) a non-resident alien for immigration reasons but still file as resident aliens for tax purposes.
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Apr 20, 2013 15:27
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Question about the 1040-Es. Started working one job with regular payroll and everything and a standard w2 3/18. So there's the standard 1 exemption w4 on file with that job that is my steady 40 hour a week paycheck. However I also do admin assistant work for a realtor/cab driver and w erealized that since I work for both his companies and freelance out to his friends for basic filing, typing/other office scutwork that they don't wanna pay a full time secretary for its easiest for me to be an independent contractor and let me deal with the taxes (I don't mind, I'm the only non-accountant in my family and have a great grasp of the basics, I just didn't want to be a CPA) However all this didn't start until 3/22. Since I do plan on owing more than $1000 overall for 2013 bwtween all these little secretarial gigs,, do I still have to file an ES for the quarter that runs April-Jun? (I'm assuming yes?) Do I deduct how much I would be getting back if I just had my 9-5 job? (The 9-5 pays crap so the standard 1 exmption witholding would see me with a nice refund) Also since my landlord is my boss, and he's knocking off rent for any repairs I do that improve the value of the apartment (replacing the toilet paper holder that was knocked off the wall with what appears to be a sledgehammer, fixing the broken doorknobs, etc) can he just roll these rent deductions into the 1099 he gives me in the end of the year, or does it have to be a seperate 1099-misc?either way I have to factor it into the 1040-es, correct? vvv I'll see what bossman #1 says, but he is a crazy Tea Party type so I dunno how willing he'd be to see more of my checks disappear to the federal government. Dr Jankenstein fucked around with this message at 01:36 on Apr 21, 2013 |
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Apr 20, 2013 18:17
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Just have your normal employer increase your withholdings from your W2 income and don't bother filing quarterly payments unless they won't work with you. So long as you guess correctly and don't short the IRS a lot of money, it's a perfectly valid way of making sure they have enough money come filing time next year.
kefkafloyd fucked around with this message at 00:35 on Apr 21, 2013 |
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Apr 21, 2013 00:30
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So, all the money that's taken out of my check pre-tax (401k, Healthcare, FSA Card) doesn't count as taxable income on my federal and state income accounts right? edit: Since my wife and I can afford to live on so little I'm thinking about maximizing her 401k this year or next.
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Apr 21, 2013 23:51
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Orange_Lazarus posted:So, all the money that's taken out of my check pre-tax (401k, Healthcare, FSA Card) doesn't count as taxable income on my federal and state income accounts right?
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Apr 22, 2013 04:59
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Ah OK. I'll see what happens with her next paycheck then. Thanks.
Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 16:01 on Apr 22, 2013 |
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Apr 22, 2013 15:35
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Orange_Lazarus posted:So, all the money that's taken out of my check pre-tax (401k, Healthcare, FSA Card) doesn't count as taxable income on my federal and state income accounts right? If you're in a low (15% federal or under) tax bracket you might consider skipping the 401(k) and do a roth IRA instead.
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Apr 22, 2013 17:10
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AbbiTheDog posted:If you're in a low (15% federal or under) tax bracket you might consider skipping the 401(k) and do a roth IRA instead. Or a Roth 401(K)! 
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Apr 22, 2013 20:44
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AbbiTheDog posted:If you're in a low (15% federal or under) tax bracket you might consider skipping the 401(k) and do a roth IRA instead. I am (I've been maxing two ROTH IRA's the past three years) but I really don't expect to be in a higher tax bracket when I retire. I also don't quite understand that logic to begin with, why would a retiree be in a higher tax bracket when they're no longer working and don't need as much income to begin with? My grandparents seem to subsist happily on what many would probably consider a poverty budget because they don't have any debt and their kids are self-sufficient. I'm asking because I suspect I'm overlooking something. I suspect most Americans need to spend a lot of money to be happy and have kids that will probably still be dependent on them up to retirement. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 16:24 on Apr 23, 2013 |
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Apr 23, 2013 16:17
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Orange_Lazarus posted:I am (I've been maxing two ROTH IRA's the past three years) but I really don't expect to be in a higher tax bracket when I retire. I also don't quite understand that logic to begin with, why would a retiree be in a higher tax bracket when they're no longer working and don't need as much income to begin with? My grandparents seem to subsist happily on what many would probably consider a poverty budget because they don't have any debt and their kids are self-sufficient. Social security is ordinary income, and so are IRA/401(k)/annuity funds. Once you have the house paid off and take the standard deductions, it doesn't take much to be in a high bracket relative to your income when you retire. If you look at your effective tax rate, you're probably paying way less in taxes than you think when you have a home loan and a bunch of little crumb crunchers running around.
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Apr 23, 2013 16:46
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Orange_Lazarus posted:I am (I've been maxing two ROTH IRA's the past three years) but I really don't expect to be in a higher tax bracket when I retire. I also don't quite understand that logic to begin with, why would a retiree be in a higher tax bracket when they're no longer working and don't need as much income to begin with? My grandparents seem to subsist happily on what many would probably consider a poverty budget because they don't have any debt and their kids are self-sufficient. Don't overlook one of the other parts of the Roth IRA equation: tax free growth if you withdraw any gains on the account after you reach 59 1/2. If you have a long ways to go till retirement this is much more important than "will I be in a higher tax bracket when I retire". In other words, if you put in $100K into a traditional IRA/401(K) over time and it increases to $250K before you retire, yes you got to deduct that $100K when it went in but you will be taxed on 100% of your distributions after retirement. So let's say you are in the 25% tax bracket now and 15% when you retire - you would save $25K on taxes on the $100K contribution and pay $37,500 in taxes when you take out the $250K. If you put that same $100K into a Roth IRA/401(K) and it increases to $250K before retirement you would pay $25K on the contributed funds and pay $0 when you take it out, a savings of $17,500 even though you are in a lower tax bracket in retirement then when you put the money in. There are also other benefits to a Roth such as the lack of an RMD when you hit 70 1/2, less double taxation in a taxable estate, tax free distributions for your heirs, etc. They aren't for everyone but if used properly in conjunction with long term planning (10+ years) I think there are a lot of advantages to a Roth vs a traditional pre tax account. Plus, given the level of debt (and public debt accumulation) in this country it seems likely to me that tax rates will need to go up at some point in the future, but that is another discussion for a different thread.
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Apr 23, 2013 17:20
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furushotakeru posted:Don't overlook one of the other parts of the Roth IRA equation: tax free growth if you withdraw any gains on the account after you reach 59 1/2. If you have a long ways to go till retirement this is much more important than "will I be in a higher tax bracket when I retire".
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Apr 24, 2013 00:53
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Yeah, basically it boils down to what the individual wants out of their retirement. Anyway, thanks for answering the questions I had.
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Apr 24, 2013 01:53
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Large Hardon Collider posted:Yeah, but if you invest that $25k you save in the tax-deferred IRA, it will grow by the same 150% to $62,500. Put another way, someone who manages to save $100k into a regular IRA will only have $75k to put in a Roth. This is true. The main benefits of a Roth IRA over a traditional IRA are no RMDs at age 70.5, a greater effective contribution limit (17.5k a year that won't be taxed later vs 17.5k that will), and contributions can be taken out without penalty after the account has been open for 5 years.
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Apr 24, 2013 01:57
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I bought 100 shares of a penny stock in 2002. By some time in 2004 or 2005, the company had gone out of business and (based on memory) the stock, after going through a 5/1 reverse split and at least three symbol changes, dropped to virtually no trade volume and was worth some small fraction of a penny per share on the pink sheets. I'm not sure on what exact date the stock became completely worthless, which seems to be of some importance. Now it's 2013 and I still "own" the stock on my TDAmeritrade trading account. I'm looking at this document and not really following the exact rules on whether I can write this off or not. Can I "sell" the stock via TDAmeritrade, and realize the (~$114) loss in 2013? If not, is there any way that isn't a huge hassle to apply this to a past tax year by refiling with a revision? It's only $114 so it's only worth maybe two or three hours of effort on my part. Also it's not clear to me if I have to pay a commission to "sell" this stock in order to dispose of it. If so, that's another $10.
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Apr 24, 2013 23:43
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My wife is filing her 1040 and since I am currently a "non-legal alien spouse" (my green card app is being processed), do I have to file for an ITIN?1040 Instructions posted:If your spouse is a nonresident alien, he or she must have either an SSN or an ITIN if: This is the assumptions I draw from this, We are not filing a joint return, and I am not filing a separate return because I am technically not a US resident. If she fills out her 1040 and does not check me under exemptions line 6b, then none of the above conditions have been met and I don't need to get an ITIN. Are my assumptions correct, or did I just misunderstand all over that?
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Apr 25, 2013 01:27
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Leperflesh posted:I bought 100 shares of a penny stock in 2002. By some time in 2004 or 2005, the company had gone out of business and (based on memory) the stock, after going through a 5/1 reverse split and at least three symbol changes, dropped to virtually no trade volume and was worth some small fraction of a penny per share on the pink sheets. I'm not sure on what exact date the stock became completely worthless, which seems to be of some importance. Some brokerages will buy it from you for a penny so you can take the loss. I, unfortunately, have no knowledge of TD Ameritrade's policy, specifically.
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Apr 26, 2013 00:51
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I am sending in a correction for my sister and I have a question. She is itemizing her deductions and has W-2Gs as income on her federal, and the losses to offset those winnings. The question is on her MN state taxes: (She is a resident of MN and MN doesn't allow you to deduct your gambling losses.) In MN the casinos will not withhold your Federal or State Taxes out of your winnings at the time of payout. In Wisconsin, they do ask if you want to deduct your federal taxes immediately. She won $2000 in Wisconsin, and thought it would work better to have the Federal taken out. Unfortunately, now she can't figure out where to add the W-2G into her MN state forms. Thanks.
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Apr 26, 2013 22:40
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grumbster posted:My wife is filing her 1040 and since I am currently a "non-legal alien spouse" (my green card app is being processed), do I have to file for an ITIN? Yeah, sounds like you're good (unless you need to file yourself). BTW applying for ITINs has become a tremendous pain in the rear end, I've had several client's applications denied because the IRS doesn't understand its own rules and won't accept a certified copy of a passport because it doesn't look the way they expect it to (seals, color, etc.). It's completely absurd to expect people to mail their passports to the IRS for months at a time (or use an acceptance agent, although I'm not sure how viable an option this is in most places).
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Apr 27, 2013 00:32
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catman posted:Some brokerages will buy it from you for a penny so you can take the loss. I, unfortunately, have no knowledge of TD Ameritrade's policy, specifically. OK, thanks. I guess I'll have to contact TDA and see what they can do.
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Apr 27, 2013 07:05
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PatMarshall posted:Yeah, sounds like you're good (unless you need to file yourself). BTW applying for ITINs has become a tremendous pain in the rear end, I've had several client's applications denied because the IRS doesn't understand its own rules and won't accept a certified copy of a passport because it doesn't look the way they expect it to (seals, color, etc.). It's completely absurd to expect people to mail their passports to the IRS for months at a time (or use an acceptance agent, although I'm not sure how viable an option this is in most places). Awesome, thanks for the input. I had a feeling the ITIN process would be a pain, so I'm glad I don't have to go through it.
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Apr 27, 2013 08:09
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Last year, I worked for a California-based company while living in Massachusetts for about three months. I then moved to South Carolina, where I worked for the rest of the year. I split my taxes accordingly, such that MA was only eligible for the taxes while I was actually living there. Alas, I just got a letter from the Massachusetts IRS. They rejected my tax return and want clarification on why I didn't pay MA taxes on my income (even though I did pay some taxes, just not my full income). They also want a letter from my company stating the same reason. At this point, I should just go hire a CPA to help sort out the situation, right? The letter freaked me out...I've never had a problem with my taxes before and am unsure if this is just "routine" or "WTF where is our money?!".
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Apr 28, 2013 23:50
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polyfractal posted:Last year, I worked for a California-based company while living in Massachusetts for about three months. I then moved to South Carolina, where I worked for the rest of the year. I split my taxes accordingly, such that MA was only eligible for the taxes while I was actually living there. From my own experience with working in different states, what I have found is that states will charge taxes only on income you earn in the state, but the rate on that will be based on all the income you earned all year. So if you made $10000 in MA and $10000 in SC but only paid MA taxes as if your gross income was $10000, that wouldn't be enough. Is that what happened? Note: I don't have experience with Massachusetts' income taxes so I don't know if they do this, but I know California for example does.
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Apr 29, 2013 20:57
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polyfractal posted:Last year, I worked for a California-based company while living in Massachusetts for about three months. I then moved to South Carolina, where I worked for the rest of the year. I split my taxes accordingly, such that MA was only eligible for the taxes while I was actually living there. In which state did you file as a resident? Massachusetts or South Carolina?
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Apr 30, 2013 02:23
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Admiral101 posted:In which state did you file as a resident? Massachusetts or South Carolina? South Carolina. In MA I filed as a part-year resident (Form 1-NRPY) Shear Modulus posted:From my own experience with working in different states, what I have found is that states will charge taxes only on income you earn in the state, but the rate on that will be based on all the income you earned all year. So if you made $10000 in MA and $10000 in SC but only paid MA taxes as if your gross income was $10000, that wouldn't be enough. Is that what happened? Hmm, I don't think this is the case. On my MA forms, it shows my full income (MA + SC), and then lists the amount that I earned while living in MA resident (roughly half my income for the year). Blah, I'll just print everything out and go find a CPA 
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Apr 30, 2013 14:16
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So I got 3 love letters from the IRS (CP22e) for 2009, 2010 and 2011. They bring a total tax liability of ~$7500 on me. The notices just indicate the amount of "understatement" of taxes in my reports but not the part of the return that they pertain to. They make reference to an "audit report" but there was no audit report included within the correspondance (although I think I know what they relate to). What's my course of action now (other than calling them obviously...I've been on hold with them for quite a while already).
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May 1, 2013 20:15
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shodanjr_gr posted:So I got 3 love letters from the IRS (CP22e) for 2009, 2010 and 2011. They bring a total tax liability of ~$7500 on me. Would have to see the notices to be sure, but ordinarily a CP22E doesn't get sent out as the first communication. There would have either been a letter audit (CP2000 notice) or an in-person exam, in which changes to the return are proposed and you have the chance to agree/disagree. The CP22E doesn't go out until the changes are finalized. You'll need to call them to see what's up.
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May 2, 2013 01:50
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scribe jones posted:Would have to see the notices to be sure, but ordinarily a CP22E doesn't get sent out as the first communication. There would have either been a letter audit (CP2000 notice) or an in-person exam, in which changes to the return are proposed and you have the chance to agree/disagree. The CP22E doesn't go out until the changes are finalized. You'll need to call them to see what's up. So I called them and they mentioned that the audits occured back in May and June. I had a temporary change of address in place over the summer since I was away and then I moved to a new place but didn't send my Change of a address form to the IRS until February (completely forgot that uni had to do that). I am assuming the aud it notices got lost in the mail or were sent to me while they didn't have an up to date address. I asked them to resend them over the phone But this can take up to two months. I'm reaching out to a CPA but, considering that I missed the audit response period, is there anything I can do now other than suck it up and pay up?
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May 2, 2013 04:11
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shodanjr_gr posted:So I called them and they mentioned that the audits occured back in May and June. I had a temporary change of address in place over the summer since I was away and then I moved to a new place but didn't send my Change of a address form to the IRS until February (completely forgot that uni had to do that). I am assuming the aud it notices got lost in the mail or were sent to me while they didn't have an up to date address. Here are the audit steps: 1) Return flagged by computer 2) Person spends 30 seconds flipping through the return and tosses it on the "audit" or "don't audit" pile. 3) If in audit pile, agent assigned and letter gets sent to last known address 4) The IRS agent will wait for a couple months. If you ignore them, then they simply disallow what they want and issue a draft finding report that gets mailed to you ("here are the anticipated changes....") 5) The IRS agent then issues a final report 6) You have (if I recall correctly) 60 days to challenge the report. I don't remember the specifics, but I do not believe at this time you can bring any new evidence to the table, since you missed that window, and it's more of a technical issue you can argue over. You can send in an amended return after the IRS issues their final report, which will probably be audited again. I don't do a whole lot of audit representation (the ones we do we respond timely), but you might not want to just find a CPA but look for one of those "former IRS agent EAs" that float around. They tend to know they way around the bureaucracy better than the rest of us.
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May 2, 2013 16:37
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I have a strange situation. Last January, I did some freelance work for a friend, who paid me in personal checks, for a client who was in contact with the both of us. She forgot to 1099 me, but counted the income in her taxes. I forgot to count my earnings in my taxes (~$2,000), and since she paid me in personal checks, and didn't 1099 me, I've been advised by others to do nothing. There is a wrench though. The client is trying to 1099 her, as they think she is an actual business, versus a freelancer. She's not responding, and they're bothering me too. So I'm wondering if I should amend my taxes, and if she finally accepts being 1099'd, she has to 1099 me, which means I'd have to amend it then. Should I try to amend now? If so, how? Turbotax isn't really helping me out. Or, do I wait to get 1099'd?
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May 3, 2013 22:06
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I don't see how that's strange at all. The client paid her and "she counted the income in her taxes." (per your post) The 1099-MISC that the client (should have already) sent her is simply a formal way of telling the IRS what income was there. If you think that people can't get 1099-MISCs, you and her are misinformed. If she already "counted the income in her taxes" what difference does it make when she gets a 1099? On the other hand, you need to report the income you received whether you get a 1099 or not. It's true that the IRS will have a tougher time finding this income without a 1099 from her to you, but I'm just telling you what I believe is lawful. Amending is probably your best course of action and I have trouble believing that any tax program worth its salt won't help you amend. (though Intuit has pushed out some buggy pieces of poo poo in recent years)
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May 3, 2013 22:24
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Mandalay posted:I don't see how that's strange at all. The client paid her and "she counted the income in her taxes." (per your post) The 1099-MISC that the client (should have already) sent her is simply a formal way of telling the IRS what income was there. If you think that people can't get 1099-MISCs, you and her are misinformed. If she already "counted the income in her taxes" what difference does it make when she gets a 1099? Thanks for the reply. I should also add that she didn't count my portion of the work, which is why I'm concerned. I've been trying to figure out where to add it in on my turbotax, but I'm not sure if I edit the w2 or if I need to add a new form.
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May 3, 2013 22:55
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1099-MISC freelance contractor income is separate from your W-2 income if this is not part of your day job. When I did my taxes this year in Intuit's desktop product, I think it asked me if I made side income during the interview. I don't know what you mean by "she didn't count my portion of the work" because you did say earlier "she counted the income in her taxes." If you mean that she counted only some of the income on her taxes, and specifically excluded the amount she paid you, I imagine that she just needs to increase the amount on her Schedule C and deduct the amount she paid you. If she is freelancing and subcontracting to other people without filing a proper Schedule C, then 
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May 3, 2013 23:04
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She is. =/. Never working with her ever again.
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May 3, 2013 23:06
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shodanjr_gr posted:So I called them and they mentioned that the audits occured back in May and June. I had a temporary change of address in place over the summer since I was away and then I moved to a new place but didn't send my Change of a address form to the IRS until February (completely forgot that uni had to do that). I am assuming the aud it notices got lost in the mail or were sent to me while they didn't have an up to date address. So following up on this I noticed that my 2012 refund (on "Where's my refund") was applied towards existing tax debt. Is this normal if there is any tax debt at all or is the IRS collecting on my rear end already? We are putting together a response to the Notices that I received with my CPA however I'm concerned since I did apparently miss some communications from them...
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May 5, 2013 01:32
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shodanjr_gr posted:So following up on this I noticed that my 2012 refund (on "Where's my refund") was applied towards existing tax debt. yeah, that's normal. if a prior year tax has been assessed and not paid, they can apply a refund to it. they start with the oldest debt and work forwards AFAIK.
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May 5, 2013 02:15
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Quick question, Is forgiven debt from a foreclosure still excluded as taxable income? A few google searches seem to suggest that the "The Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act" was extended through 2013 but I figured I would check here as well. Thanks in advance.
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May 6, 2013 13:03
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Orange_Lazarus posted:Quick question, Only if it was debt used to acquire or improve the primary home. Otherwise you would have to recognize a pro-rata portion of the debt forgiven as taxable income. You then look to IRC 108 to see if you can exclude the debt due to insolvency. Edit: Look to Form 928.
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May 6, 2013 16:50
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