http://www.businessweek.com/printer/articles/18010-the-people-vs-dot-the-irs
― dandydonweiner, Monday, 9 April 2012 11:01 (twelve years ago) link
yeah my withholding is messed, but I'm mostly just offended that there isn't a single deduction or tax credit that I (/ the gf) qualify for.
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 13:53 (twelve years ago) link
Do you pay student loans? Deduct the interest.
― Jeff, Monday, 9 April 2012 13:59 (twelve years ago) link
no I don't maybe I'll get some
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 13:59 (twelve years ago) link
alfred: statute of limitations for audits is 3 years, and 10 years from date of assessment for a tax liability. i think you're fine.
― kurwa mać (Polish for "long life") (Eisbaer), Monday, 9 April 2012 14:40 (twelve years ago) link
for COLLECTION of a tax liability.
― kurwa mać (Polish for "long life") (Eisbaer), Monday, 9 April 2012 14:41 (twelve years ago) link
Thanks! I also read, however, that if you DON'T file taxes at all there's no statute of limitations. So be warned.
― Exile in lolville (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 9 April 2012 14:41 (twelve years ago) link
there isn't a single deduction or tax credit that I (/ the gf) qualify for
Not even the 'standard deduction'? Even if you can be claimed as a dependent by someone else there is a minimum standard deduction of $950, and you and the gf might qualify for that deduction up to $5800 - presuming you are each filing as single. Ferret out IRS publication 501 and fill in the worksheet on page 24. And don't forget about the 'personal exemption', either!
― Aimless, Monday, 9 April 2012 15:41 (twelve years ago) link
yeah I meant beyond the standard deduction
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 15:43 (twelve years ago) link
not that smaller deductions would matter w/ that in mind, it's still insulting that there aren't any that affect me. my gf could have deducted books n'stuff for grad school but it didn't come close to approaching the standard deduction.
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 15:45 (twelve years ago) link
i don't have any figures, but there are many millions of wage earners who don't itemize, so you are in a crowded boat. Mortgage interest is the biggest reason to itemize. Pretty much the only other way to make itemizing pay off for ordinary people is to have a shit ton of medical expenses and who wants that?
― Aimless, Monday, 9 April 2012 15:56 (twelve years ago) link
so my gf is filing a schedule c for her grad stipend - can we submit that without pay stubs?
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 16:10 (twelve years ago) link
that's a good question! but i don't know the answer. no expert, etc.
generally speaking, the documentation is only really going to matter if you're audited, and the audit risk on small potatos tax returns is vanishingly small. i would expect her grad school has a record of it somewhere, so if they try to pinch you, you can probably dig up some proof and beat the rap. just read the irs instructions slowly and carefully before you file to make sure you understand them.
― Aimless, Monday, 9 April 2012 16:25 (twelve years ago) link
yeah I think a lot of her grad school friends just pretend like they don't have to pay taxes
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 16:31 (twelve years ago) link
xp - was it reported on a 1099 Misc? Generally stipends/fellowships for grad school are considered wages (not subject to self-employment tax).
― sarahell, Monday, 9 April 2012 16:44 (twelve years ago) link
hmm other things I read online suggested a schedule c but maybe 1099 misc is better.
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 16:47 (twelve years ago) link
Often these things are reported on Form 1098-T (which reports tuition/fees payments made). The amount in the scholarship/fellowship box will be significantly larger than the amount in the box for tuition/fees paid. The difference would be considered taxable income. However, you can reduce that by relevant expenses.
― sarahell, Monday, 9 April 2012 16:48 (twelve years ago) link
If she didn't receive a 1099-Misc from the school showing the income, then she shouldn't be filing a Schedule C.
― sarahell, Monday, 9 April 2012 16:49 (twelve years ago) link
she didn't receive *anything* from her school and just has untaxed pay stubs (and then started getting direct deposit, so doesn't even have many). so we don't really know what tuition/fees even were.
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 16:51 (twelve years ago) link
She really needs to check w/her school to see how they reported the income.
― sarahell, Monday, 9 April 2012 16:53 (twelve years ago) link
hmm would it really make a huge difference if we just ignored the tuition that the school paid to itself?
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 16:56 (twelve years ago) link
the issue is where she reports her payments, and what payments were reported. If (as I'm guessing is the case) her stipend was considered a scholarship/fellowship and reported on the tuition statement, then she needs to report that as wages (line 7). If it was considered non-employee compensation, then she would file a schedule C. If she reports the income inconsistently with how the school reported it, the IRS might get "confused."
― sarahell, Monday, 9 April 2012 16:58 (twelve years ago) link
the school's tuition statement or hers? I believe she is considered an employee, but I think tuition might be 'waived' and not paid for? I will tell her to email the school though.
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:01 (twelve years ago) link
the school should have issued her a tuition statement. Have her email the school and ask for the 1098-T. What she reports should match what they report, more or less. Sometimes schools' reporting misses things, for example, UC Berkeley (a couple of my clients are UCB grad students) doesn't include some mandatory fees in the fees they report as paid/charged. In that case, she can deduct them from the amount she reports as income.
― sarahell, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:14 (twelve years ago) link
hmm that makes sense. alright, last question (thanks a lot btw) - I'm looking at the 1099-MISC, and I know she gets to deduct her books from this...but where?
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:20 (twelve years ago) link
Wait, I think you might be confused. The 1099-Misc is a form she would have received from the school IF her payments were considered non-employee compensation. I would be surprised if that were the case.
― sarahell, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:23 (twelve years ago) link
in summary:
if 1099-Misc, then Schedule Cif 1098-T scholarship/fellowship > tuition/fees, then line 7 wages
― sarahell, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:24 (twelve years ago) link
okay yeah I was actually on the school website and was looking at 'Other Stipends' and not 'Grad School Stipends'. would her deductions just be included in regular deductions and thus still not outweigh the standard deduction (being sig less than $5800) - I think that was what I originally assumed.
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:26 (twelve years ago) link
also on the university's website it says 'Tax Document Issued by the University: None' for grad stipend
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:30 (twelve years ago) link
what she would do would be:
1. calculate the difference between the amount reported as scholarship/fellowship income and tuition/fees paid as per the form received from the school.
2. figure out what other expenses she had that are deductible from that income. This is one of those special situations that has its own rules/worksheet
3. deduct those additional expenses
4. report that amount (income - school reported tuition & fees - other deductible expenses) on line 7 of the 1040.
― sarahell, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:33 (twelve years ago) link
xp - that's probably because it's reported on the 1098-T, which all students receive.
― sarahell, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:35 (twelve years ago) link
keep seeing this as INCOME TAXI
― Disco Bob & MC Criminal (Shakey Mo Collier), Monday, 9 April 2012 17:36 (twelve years ago) link
https://www.ecsi.net/img/1098t_2011.jpg
the form should look like this.
the amount in box 5 would include her stipend and tuition payments.
― sarahell, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:38 (twelve years ago) link
okay I think a lot of the confusion is coming from the fact that they must have sent it to the wrong address or something. I will tell her to get one asap. thanks a lot sarah!
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:42 (twelve years ago) link
no prob. it's likely it's something she could download, as opposed to waiting for it to be mailed. At least that's how UC Berkeley does it, as you probably know.
― sarahell, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:52 (twelve years ago) link
not sure, the school site says 'we can mail you a new one', but it's possible they can get it sooner. I think we just figured if something like this existed she would have gotten it.
― iatee, Monday, 9 April 2012 17:54 (twelve years ago) link
You can also directly check http://www.1098t.com/ if the school she goes to is registered with the site.
― Où sont le Lord Custos d'antan? (Leee), Tuesday, 10 April 2012 01:03 (twelve years ago) link
hmm that might be nifty thank you
― iatee, Tuesday, 10 April 2012 01:04 (twelve years ago) link
does anyone know which form I gotta use if I made, say, $400 chump change besides my salary? 1040 not 1040A, right?
(yes, I report every dime, I can't do time)
― World Congress of Itch (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 12 April 2012 14:27 (twelve years ago) link
if it's only $400, you can call it miscellaneous income on line 21. But yeah, that requires the 1040.
― sarahell, Thursday, 12 April 2012 14:30 (twelve years ago) link
@self-employed folks: is there a good rule of thumb for calculating quarterly estimated taxes? my income will probably vary over the course of the year and will likely be quite different from last year, so i don't think just dividing what i payed in 2011 by four really makes sense.
― it's smdh time in America (will), Thursday, 12 April 2012 14:59 (twelve years ago) link
Glad I re-read the rules on the 1099-G because I could have done myself out of a refund.
― American Fear of Pranksterism (Ed), Thursday, 12 April 2012 15:10 (twelve years ago) link
No help here, I'm afraid. I like the estimated quarterlies that my tax preparer has set up -- they usually leave me with a refund that covers my April payment and most of my June payment, so I don't have to worry about it until the fall, which is when I get my biggest paychecks of the year.
― improvised explosive advice (WmC), Thursday, 12 April 2012 15:11 (twelve years ago) link
xxp - it depends on how much you net, and what other deductions you have. Self-employment tax used to 15.3%, but now I think it's down to 13.3% because of the payroll tax cuts. So, you have to figure that plus your regular income tax rate.
― sarahell, Thursday, 12 April 2012 15:16 (twelve years ago) link
However, you want to pay at least as much as you owe at the end of this year, unless you know your income is going to be significantly lower.
― sarahell, Thursday, 12 April 2012 15:18 (twelve years ago) link
Was helping a friend with turbotax and found out that it had apparently "upgraded" him to the home and business service for $99 (fed only), which he clearly did not need as a single, childless retail worker with no assets or outside income. What's worse, there is no way to downgrade once you "upgrade." Seems pretty fucked up.
― i don't believe in zimmerman (Hurting 2), Monday, 16 April 2012 21:35 (twelve years ago) link
Did it charge him $99 or was he upgraded for "free"?
― sarahell, Monday, 16 April 2012 22:44 (twelve years ago) link
no it charged him.
― i don't believe in zimmerman (Hurting 2), Monday, 16 April 2012 22:57 (twelve years ago) link
well, if it makes him feel any better he can deduct that next year
― an independent online phenomenon (DJP), Monday, 16 April 2012 22:58 (twelve years ago) link
only if he itemizes deductions
― sarahell, Tuesday, 17 April 2012 05:14 (twelve years ago) link