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furushotakeru posted:It depends on whether one of you is making significantly more than the other. If you are both making the same amount then I would not normally expect you to need additional withholding on top of Married 0 or whatever. I also find the W-4 worksheet to be almost worthless. Thanks!
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Jan 15, 2014 00:03
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I believe if you claim 1 exemption as a married filing jointly taxpayer, you're getting significantly less money taken out of your paycheck in taxes than if you claim 1 exemption as a single taxpayer. Can someone confirm/deny?
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Jan 15, 2014 04:52
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kaishek posted:Does anyone have any recommendations for a free or inexpensive online Tax service that can deal with investments? Or am I stuck paying $49.99 for TurboTax Premier because I sold 3 stocks last year? Sometimes you gotta pay to play, hoss. Or you can print out the PDF forms and do it by hand.
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Jan 15, 2014 18:59
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I've been using TaxAct Online for years. A couple times I have filled out both them and another online service (H&R and Turbotax, if memory serves) since the online ones are usually free to fill out the info up until the point where you pay for/print out/efile the return - both times I got the same numbers from both products so I went with the much cheaper TaxAct. TaxAct Ultimate with E-File and State E-File is currently $11.98 if you lock in now: http://slickdeals.net/f/6560268-taxact-2013-ultimate-online-version-fed-state-11-98 Even if you don't use them, shouldn't be any harm in making your account to lock in the price and the option. Normal price is still only $18. All but savings accounts for my investments are in tax-advantaged accounts so I can't speak from experience, but I can't imagine that it would be an issue. TaxAct had proper forms for oddball stuff like the MCC tax credit back in '04, so something as common as taxable investments these days shouldn't even be a question.
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Jan 15, 2014 19:21
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I've done my taxes before, but this always catches me off-guard - when do 1099E forms typically go out? I just got my W-2's and now that I remember that yes, it is tax season, I'm somewhat concerned I might have trashed the 1099E thinking that they were another "pay your loans" reminder letter.
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Jan 15, 2014 20:09
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Oxxidation posted:I've done my taxes before, but this always catches me off-guard - when do 1099E forms typically go out? I just got my W-2's and now that I remember that yes, it is tax season, I'm somewhat concerned I might have trashed the 1099E thinking that they were another "pay your loans" reminder letter. Those stupid forms sometimes come out in letters, not in a specific tax form, our clients accidentally throw them out all the time. They're supposed to be out 1/31.
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Jan 15, 2014 20:20
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AbbiTheDog posted:Those stupid forms sometimes come out in letters, not in a specific tax form, our clients accidentally throw them out all the time. They're supposed to be out 1/31. Alright, thanks, guess I'll start making calls if I don't have anything by early February or so.
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Jan 15, 2014 20:42
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Oxxidation posted:Alright, thanks, guess I'll start making calls if I don't have anything by early February or so. They typically come with your January loan statement, I think.
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Jan 15, 2014 21:50
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AbbiTheDog posted:Sometimes you gotta pay to play, hoss. I am the kind of person that would do it by hand just to save $20, but TaxACT will work pretty well for me (including the state filing is a nice perk). Thanks!
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Jan 15, 2014 21:50
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Oxxidation posted:I've done my taxes before, but this always catches me off-guard - when do 1099E forms typically go out? I just got my W-2's and now that I remember that yes, it is tax season, I'm somewhat concerned I might have trashed the 1099E thinking that they were another "pay your loans" reminder letter. I got mine online (Along with everything else). Try checking your loan servicer's website.
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Jan 15, 2014 22:52
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My OCD dictates that I point out that it is 1098-E not 1099-E. That is all.
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Jan 15, 2014 23:26
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The IRS does have freefile for people making under $57k. Unfortunately it will be a few weeks before it's up and running, but they won't start processing the returns until Jan 31st anyhow, so no point in rushing things out the door.
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Jan 16, 2014 05:21
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Is there any way to estimate how much removing one deduction on my W4 would impact my paychecks going forward? It'd be going from 2 to 1, and I'd like to have the buffer seeing as my total refund is estimated at $7 this year. Just in case anything weird happens next year if the paychecks wouldn't be significantly impacted.
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Jan 16, 2014 06:25
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GobiasIndustries posted:Is there any way to estimate how much removing one deduction on my W4 would impact my paychecks going forward? It'd be going from 2 to 1, and I'd like to have the buffer seeing as my total refund is estimated at $7 this year. Just in case anything weird happens next year if the paychecks wouldn't be significantly impacted.
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Jan 16, 2014 14:02
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You can get this from the IRS as well. http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p15.pdf.IRS 2014 Publication 15 - Page 41 - Table 5 posted:$76.00 Weekly Initio fucked around with this message at 16:14 on Jan 16, 2014 |
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Jan 16, 2014 16:12
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Received a motor vehicle tax bill from my town in December. The check was in the mail on December 31, 2013, but the town didn't cash it until January 7, 2014. Will I be able to use that bill for deduction purposes on my 2013 tax return or will I have to wait for 2014?
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Jan 17, 2014 10:33
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Hey, I a question about the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion Credit and whether or not it will apply to me next year. I am employed and live in Switzerland and have been for the past five years. However, this summer I will spend 12 weeks working an internship in the US at a US company. Then I will return to my job here. I have read the information here. In my case, I fail the "physical presence test" because I will have spent too much time in the US. I have talked with a few people who told me I will have to pay taxes on all of my foreign-earned income next year because of this. However, it seems to me that I still pass the "bona fide residence test". The page I linked above states "You meet the bona fide residence test if you are a bona fide resident of a foreign country or countries for an uninterrupted period that includes an entire tax year." I will not be giving up my residency here while I am temporarily in the US, so it sounds to me like I will indeed still be considered a bona fide Swiss resident next year. Am I missing something?
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Jan 17, 2014 17:22
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This past year was my first semester as a student, so I'm a bit baffled. My tuition was paid for partially by a grant, and then the rest was subsidized and non-subsidized federal loans. My tuition so far is super cheap, I only paid a little under $2,000. Sallie Mae handles my loans, and they state while I may have earned interest on my loans, I don't qualify for any deductions. So, if I'm understanding correctly, I shouldn't be expecting any tax forms from the school before I could file, correct? Also, none of my tuition qualifies for either school tax credits (lifetime learning or american opportunity) because it was paid for by a grant and loan? If I understand correctly, I still qualify for one of these credits because I paid for my textbooks out of pocket, so that is covered up to 100% right? So confused 
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Jan 17, 2014 19:38
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babyturnsblue posted:This past year was my first semester as a student, so I'm a bit baffled. My tuition was paid for partially by a grant, and then the rest was subsidized and non-subsidized federal loans. My tuition so far is super cheap, I only paid a little under $2,000. Sallie Mae handles my loans, and they state while I may have earned interest on my loans, I don't qualify for any deductions. Student loan interest is deducted when you PAY it, not when it accrues. You can deduct/use for credit any expenses paid out of pocket or with loan proceeds. You cannot use any expenses paid for with a grant.
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Jan 17, 2014 19:57
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furushotakeru posted:Student loan interest is deducted when you PAY it, not when it accrues. Oh, very good to know! Thank you!
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Jan 17, 2014 20:45
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porkfriedrice posted:Received a motor vehicle tax bill from my town in December. The check was in the mail on December 31, 2013, but the town didn't cash it until January 7, 2014. Will I be able to use that bill for deduction purposes on my 2013 tax return or will I have to wait for 2014? Postmark date, so it'll be a deduction on your 2013 taxes.
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Jan 17, 2014 21:42
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babyturnsblue posted:Oh, very good to know! Thank you!
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Jan 18, 2014 00:22
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My wife started a new job in Virginia but we domicile in Maryland. As far as I know these two states have a reciprocity agreement so that in my wife's case you file a VA W-2 stating you're exempt from withholding because you'll pay MD, and then file a MD W-2 to do withholding. However, my wife's company said today they are not "registered to withhold income tax in the state of MD." I'm confused, because my tiny consulting firm that's based in CO can do this for me. Regardless, she's going to talk to the finance dept. on Monday when people are actually around, but is there some force of law that enters in here? If the company can somehow refuse to withhold for her, how do we approach things?
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Jan 18, 2014 00:49
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E: figured it out Bloody Queef fucked around with this message at 13:59 on Jan 18, 2014 |
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Jan 18, 2014 01:07
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a slime posted:Hey, I a question about the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion Credit and whether or not it will apply to me next year. I am employed and live in Switzerland and have been for the past five years. However, this summer I will spend 12 weeks working an internship in the US at a US company. Then I will return to my job here. Well you arguably maintained your bona fide foreign residence for the entire tax year, despite being in the US for twelve weeks (you also arguably did not). There are some cases that would support your position: (from Postlewaite, INTERNATIONAL TAXATION: CORPORATE AND INDIVIDUAL, Para. 3.04, FN 62) quote:See G.L. Walker, 16 TCM 171, Dec. 22,283(M), TC Memo. 1957-40 (six-and-one-half-month United States stay acceptable); F.F. Hack, 33 TC 1089, Dec. 24,112 (1960) acq. (four-month stay acceptable; taxpayer had been in Peru previously for ten consecutive years). In M.A. Carpenter, CA-5, 74-1 ustc ¶9473, 495 F2d 175 (1974), the court compared factual situations that had previously been considered by the Tax Court in L. Larsen, 23 TC 599, Dec. 20,801 (1955) acq. and in R.A. Henningsen, 26 TC 528, Dec. 21,785 (1956) acq., aff’d, CA-5, 57-1 ustc ¶9637, 243 F2d 954 (1957). The Fifth Circuit considered Larsen's six-week return to the United States as a fact in favor of finding continued foreign residence while regarding Henningsen's two-year United States stay as negative. The court declined, however, to be more specific in determining what length of return visits would be acceptable, saying: "Such an approach would logically require the creation of a presumption of residence in the United States after passage of some specified period of time, a Draconian measure we are unwilling to adopt." See also Rev. Rul. 73-492, 1973-2 CB 291 (13-month domestic stay unacceptable). The key would be to show that your bona fide residence was in Switzerland throughout the year (i.e. your home, family, possessions, papers, friends, activities, etc.) and that the trip to the U.S. was temporary in intention and fact. That said, if you do not qualify for the exclusion, you may take a dollar for dollar credit against U.S. tax for income taxes paid in Switzerland on foreign source income. I should caveat this information with the fact that I do not really encounter the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion in my practice and this is all the result of 15 minutes of research.
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Jan 18, 2014 02:30
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If I rolled over a Traditional IRA to a Roth IRA with the same financial company (no change of trustee), and I received a 1099-R that showed the entire rollover amount as taxable with code "2" in box 7, is that correct? Shouldn't it be "G"?
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Jan 18, 2014 05:38
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PatMarshall posted:Well you arguably maintained your bona fide foreign residence for the entire tax year, despite being in the US for twelve weeks (you also arguably did not). There are some cases that would support your position: (from Postlewaite, INTERNATIONAL TAXATION: CORPORATE AND INDIVIDUAL, Para. 3.04, FN 62) Thanks a ton for this. I'll continue to do some more research, this makes it clear that it's not cut and dry.
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Jan 18, 2014 10:08
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scribe jones posted:Postmark date, so it'll be a deduction on your 2013 taxes. Thank you.
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Jan 19, 2014 05:36
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kaishek posted:If I rolled over a Traditional IRA to a Roth IRA with the same financial company (no change of trustee), and I received a 1099-R that showed the entire rollover amount as taxable with code "2" in box 7, is that correct? Shouldn't it be "G"? No, it is correct because you moved money from a pre-tax account to a post-tax account and therefore need to pay tax on that amount. Code 2 means the rollover isn't subject to early withdrawal penalties.
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Jan 19, 2014 09:21
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furushotakeru posted:No, it is correct because you moved money from a pre-tax account to a post-tax account and therefore need to pay tax on that amount. Code 2 means the rollover isn't subject to early withdrawal penalties. OK, thanks! I got a 1099-R from a rollover of a 403(b) to the same Roth that was categorized 'G', and I thought that both transactions were basically the same thing but got different codes.
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Jan 20, 2014 01:05
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A question: I am an engineer taking part-time MBA courses. My employer sponsors $15k per year of direct-pay tuition. Each class gets a "taxable" or "non-taxable" designation from my supervisor, but I am not sure whether or not this affects my actual withholding. I do not believe it does. 5 of my 6 classes were marked nontaxable by my supervisor. Since $15k does not cover all of my tuition, I incurred about $10k additional out of pocket tuition expense (Federal loans). I have read some complicated material that suggests that MBA tuition is deductible in the right circumstances (http://mobile.businessweek.com/articles/2013-12-31/the-irs-just-won-tuition-deduction-case-against-an-mba-dot-are-you-next). I feel that I have a good case that it is enhancing my ability to perform in my current role, and I had 18 months in the role before I started school. But, given the fact that only $10k is out of pocket, do you think it's worthwhile to consider this? If not, is my situation simple enough to be appropriate for TaxAct/Turbotax or should I be looking for a tax professional? (Other than tuition, my tax scenario is unremarkable) Thank you.
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Jan 21, 2014 00:22
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antiga posted:A question: I am an engineer taking part-time MBA courses. My employer sponsors $15k per year of direct-pay tuition. Each class gets a "taxable" or "non-taxable" designation from my supervisor, but I am not sure whether or not this affects my actual withholding. I do not believe it does. 5 of my 6 classes were marked nontaxable by my supervisor. Since $15k does not cover all of my tuition, I incurred about $10k additional out of pocket tuition expense (Federal loans). From what you describe I would assume that the cost of the 6th class will be added to your W-2. So your actual cost for tax purposes is the cost of that 6th class, plus the $10K additional you paid. If you qualify it would be an unreimbursed employee expense, deductible on schedule A subject to a floor equal to 2% of your AGI for the year. Or, you could claim lifetime learning credit on up to $10K of expenses. Can't double dip though.
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Jan 21, 2014 00:52
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furushotakeru posted:From what you describe I would assume that the cost of the 6th class will be added to your W-2. So your actual cost for tax purposes is the cost of that 6th class, plus the $10K additional you paid. With the audit risk for the Unreimbursed exmployee expenses, I'd make sure the OP's ducks are in a row before claiming. 1) Get copy of employee manual, what does it say about this kind of expense? 2) Written request and denial of reimbursement from employer/supervisor. 3) Store these in your tax files for seven years.
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Jan 21, 2014 01:04
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I swear, trying to read self-employment tax law is like staring into the Book of the Dead. The hobby rule for business expenses, does it just mean you can't itemize a net loss, or does it mean you can't even put any expenses on your Schedule C(-EZ) and have to pay taxes on the gross? Basically, a friend of mine who's a dA artist that made about two grand in art commissions last year wants to know if she can offset it with what she spent on a new Wacom tablet.
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Jan 21, 2014 22:12
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Kilty Monroe posted:The hobby rule for business expenses, does it just mean you can't itemize a net loss, or does it mean you can't even put any expenses on your Schedule C(-EZ) and have to pay taxes on the gross? The Section 183 Hobby Loss Rule basically means that you can only claim expenses up to the gross income received for the year (that is, have $0 for the net income/loss) if the art work is deemed a hobby for tax purposes rather than a for-profit business. Edit: And yes, hobby expenses have to appear in Schedule A (Line 23) and are subject to a 2% of AGI test, while hobby income is included on Line 21 (Other Income) rather than Schedule C(-EZ). Horseshoe theory fucked around with this message at 23:14 on Jan 21, 2014 |
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Jan 21, 2014 23:09
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ThirdPartyView posted:The Section 183 Hobby Loss Rule basically means that you can only claim expenses up to the gross income received for the year (that is, have $0 for the net income/loss) if the art work is deemed a hobby for tax purposes rather than a for-profit business. Ah. She doesn't own a home, so she's probably SOL for it being worthwhile to deduct then. Oh well, thanks for the answer.
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Jan 21, 2014 23:20
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sullat posted:The IRS does have freefile for people making under $57k. Unfortunately it will be a few weeks before it's up and running, but they won't start processing the returns until Jan 31st anyhow, so no point in rushing things out the door. Does that service feature a deductions calculator like the paid services? Basically, all I need is to deduct student loan interest and want to pay as little as possible.
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Jan 22, 2014 02:09
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Lee Harvey Oswald posted:Does that service feature a deductions calculator like the paid services? Basically, all I need is to deduct student loan interest and want to pay as little as possible. I've used the TruboTax and H&R Block Free File services. Student loan interest deduction, along with many others, are available. This year's program has started, so check it out yourself.
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Jan 22, 2014 02:50
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Sorry if this has been asked. I received two W2s this year because I switched jobs in July. On top of this, I bought a LLC just to have in December 2012. (There has been no money involved anywhere with it besides when I purchased it) Now that it's been over a year, do I need to do anything with it when filing my taxes? New Hampshire, if that matters.
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Jan 22, 2014 03:10
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EDIT: Nevermind, didn't realize that un-reimbursed business expensess would need to be over 2% of my AGI to be deductible, which it wouldn't.
Minty Swagger fucked around with this message at 16:50 on Jan 22, 2014 |
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Jan 22, 2014 03:13
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