Ask MetaFilter posts tagged with incometax

Please help me get my tax refund

Anonymous — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 09:13:53 -0800

I'm Canadian. I was lazy, and forgot to file my tax returns for the three previous years. I also lost all of my T4 slips, and some of my work was done for companies that no longer exist. Am I up the creek without a paddle? I was a pretty disgusting slob for a while (World of Warcraft, don't ask :( ) and didn't file my tax returns for the years of 2005, 2006, and 2007. I didn't owe anything in 2005 or 2006, but I have a fairly sizeable refund owed to me for the year of 2007.

Here's my problem: I'm not sure how to get my giant refund in 2007 without filing my 2005 or 2006 reports. I don't know how I can file those without either fudging the details or somehow re-obtaining my T4 slips (some of which were issued by companies that are no longer in business). Are employers obligated to send T4s to the government as well as employees? If so, can I obtain a copy?

Else, is there some way I can make a (very good-faith) declaration that I didn't owe any income tax that year, or, for that matter, skip paying it altogether, and receive my refund for 2007?

Also, slightly less important, but would still be helpful. Since the 2007 return is overdue, will I still receive my refund in full?

Thanks :D

Throwaway email - cdntax@gmail.com

Two exciting questions about Canadians earning income abroad

Anonymous — Mon, 26 May 2008 15:20:44 -0800

How do taxes work for a Canadian citizen producing creative content for an american publication? How about a Canadian providing 'e-training' to an American? I currently have a gig producing content for a subscription-based web-publication, based in the U.S. The publication is a registered LLC. I know that creative work is different from, say, contract work, but I'm still sort of confused about how it is treated, as income... I'm obviously not going to be getting a T4 or anything. In total, the income should come out to a little more then $1000 a month. How do I go about reporting this income? I'm sort of an income-tax noob, I'll concede up front.

Slightly more obscure, I also occasionally do work teaching certain computer-skills to individuals from around the world, for which they pay me hourly. The skillsets involved are fairly obscure, and their instruction commands very good compensation. As an individual, how would this income be dealt with for tax purposes? I imagine it's different from the creative work, since i'm more accurately working in a sort of consultancy roll, albeit individual-to-individual, not to a business.

In both cases, the work is done purely through the internet, with no physical interaction between parties. In the first case, the compensation would generally be via cheque; in the second it would be through something more like paypal.

What's the easiest way for me to deal with this income? Is there a simple form for this sort of stuff, or is it complicated?

My NY state tax return was rejected because of the company who filed it. Now what?

unknowncommand — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 18:38:17 -0800

I think that the online tax service I used has messed up the New York State taxes for *anyone* who filed from New York City or Yonkers. Now what do I do? (sorry, long) I paid my federal taxes with free file, using one of the tax services linked from the IRS' page. Of course, I was too lazy to mail in my New York State return (IT-201), so I paid the company $12 to file it. A few days after submitting the return, their site said that it was rejected. There was no error code indicating what I should fix, and everything looked fine, so I just resubmitted. A week later, I checked back and saw that it was rejected again, with an error code of 0130. According to the NY State website, this means that the local taxes on my W-2 form did not match those on my IT-201.

So, I went over their online IT-201, and sure enough, there was no place to enter any information about local taxes (NYC and Yonkers are the only parts of the state that pay local taxes). I emailed the company to point out that their service would cause all state tax returns filed from NYC and Yonkers to be rejected, and their response was, "We were not able to support certain parts of some forms this season." So, of course, they offered me my $12 back. At which point, my head exploded.

Okay, seriously, am I insane? Is this not a big deal? Shouldn't it be on the news or something? It seems to me that this will fuck over at least a few other people.

1. I called the NY State tax office, and the woman actually got really panicky, but told me to call the IRS and the Better Business Bureau.
2. I called the IRS, but they didn't care because it is a state thing. I pointed out that they were verifying the accuracy of the company's services by listing it on their site, and they directed me to complain to the company who approves the free file businesses. That company wants a really complicated complaint, which I will do, except that it seems kind of small potatoes.
3. I have not yet called the BBB, because surely SURELY this is a huge deal and some government agency should deal with it.

Should I call the state tax people again? Or the BBB? Or what?

What do I do now that I've missing the deadline to file a state tax extension?

pinksoftsoap — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 21:06:38 -0800

Posting for a friend: I just filed my Federal Tax extension at 12:00PM midnight. It said it got filed - did I make it? Also, I was not able to file any extension for State Tax in time for the deadline. What will happen and what should I do now?

Penalty for not filing U.S. income tax, if one will receive a refund?

lorimer — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 09:09:30 -0800

U.S. tax question: if I'll definitely be receiving a refund rather than paying tax, what will happen if I neither file nor file an extension by the end of the 15th? (Will it just mean that I won't receive my refund until I do file -- or will it mean a fine/fee that reduces my eventual refund?)

I should've sorted this out ages ago but ... care to answer a last minute US tax/education credit question?

zeph — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:44:41 -0800

Egads! Last-Minute-(US)Tax-Question-Filter: Can a person generally claim the "Qualified Payments" as listed on their 1098-T form (sent from the university in addition to a W-2) towards an education credit? Or only the amount that they themselves paid, rather than the amount that was paid on their behalf by the university as part of their whole assistantship package? I know you're not my accountant and of course this isn't "official" tax advice, but suddenly I'm getting cold feet in terms of what I believe I can or cannot claim on my US Federal Income Tax for the year. I've read the IRS's Publication 970 (Tax Benefits for Education) but it still isn't clear to me and so I was hoping maybe someone else has figured it out for themselves and would be willing to share, or at least to reassure me that I won't wake up tomorrow surrounded by IRS commandos. So here goes:

My university sent me a 1098-T form, where Box 1 lists "Qualified Payments" as X dollars, and Box 5 lists my Scholarships/Grants as Y dollars. Those scholarships were a little bit less than my total "Qualified Payments" (or tuition), so every bit of them went to paying my tuition. Should I, therefore, claim the "Qualified Payments" amount as an educational tax credit? Or only the part I paid out of pocket (X - Y = Small Out of Pocket Amount)?

Looking at the eligibility requirements for the Lifetime Learning tax credit, it indicates (unless I'm grossly misunderstanding it) that any money that is paid towards my education, whether by me or someone else, can be claimed by me as a tax credit so long as that "someone else" doesn't claim it on -their- taxes. I'm assuming that this applies even if that someone else is the university itself so I think I'm okay in claiming this - but again, I don't want to misstep simply because I misunderstood the terms of the credit. Looking at my 1098-T, though, it does say "Summary of Educational Tax Credit Transactions" directly above the by-semester listing of my spring and fall tuition, so I'm assuming/hoping I'm on the right track here.

The difference in my refund between taking this credit with the full 'Qualified Payment' amount or not is somewhat large (at least for a very broke student like me!), so of course I would really like to take it if I could - so long as it's 100% legal, which is why I just want to double-check that my understanding of the matter is right. Again, I know this isn't official advice, but if someone could either raise the red flag for me if I -am- doing things wrong, or give me a tentative thumbs-up if I'm right in thinking I can claim my Qualified Payments as a tax credit, I would be most grateful either way!

(next year I'm going to go to a professional, AND I'm going to do it long before my taxes are actually due ... honest and for truly!)

Am I resident in two states for tax purposes?

media_itoku — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 11:34:18 -0800

Starting next month I will have a job in the state of Maryland. My permanent residence is in West Virginia (I own a house there, live in it, and my husband lives and works there), and I rent a flat in maryland during the week. My question: which state do I fill out a W2 for when I go to payroll? There are many questions here from people who live in one state and work in another. But what are the residency implications if I also rent in the state I work in? Am I a resident of WV or of MD (the payroll office says I should only fill out a W2 for West Virginia)?

How much does it cost to have your income tax done by an accountant?

GleepGlop — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 14:48:57 -0800

Quick survey: how much does your accountant charge to do your income tax? My googling has failed for this seemingly simple question. I dont know if they charge by the hour or charge depending on the complexity of your situation or what. I'd just like to get an idea of how much this generally costs.

Total taxes

JamesJD — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 20:04:27 -0800

My friend and I were having a discussion over acceptable marginal tax rates. I'm wondering where I would look to quickly find out how much of my income I would have to pay in state and federal taxes at different income levels. Is there a quick (online) way to figure this out? Exclude complications like stocks, marriage, other tax breaks, etc. If you want a specific salary, how much would I have to pay in taxes on a $100,000 salary? Thanks!

Please Mr Taxman, just tell me what I need to do!

antifuse — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 07:38:13 -0800

How do I calculate my foreign tax credit on my Canadian tax return? Ok... I'm a Canadian national, with residential ties to Canada (car, bank accounts, etc because I'm moving back there in June), worked in Ireland for all of 2006. I'm trying to do my Canadian taxes, and I was using QuickTaxWeb, except that they don't seem to calculate my foreign tax credit for me. I've tried figuring it out, but the wording on the tax guides with respect to this particular value is SO CONFUSING. But basically, it comes down to this:

1) I had zero Canadian income.
2) I paid taxes here in Ireland.
3) I fully intend to pay my proper Canadian tax bill, if any.

I know that Canada and Ireland have a tax treaty to avoid double dipping, but I can't seem to figure out my foreign tax credit amount - or do I not get a foreign tax credit due to the tax treaty with Ireland? It's really quite confusing.

As it stands, QuickTaxWeb is currently telling me that I owe $600 in provincial tax, but nothing in federal tax. If that's the case, then so be it, but it doesn't seem like my return is correct with no value put in for my foreign tax credit. Added on top of that, my RRSP contribution for the year (only $600, but better than nothing) doesn't seem to have any effect on the amount that I owe/get back, which doesn't seem right either.

Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!

How can I prepare for tax fallout from my grant?

jeffmshaw — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 05:48:37 -0800

I am an American working overseas for a year on a grant. It is my primary source of income, and there is no tax withheld from the grant. I am looking for advice on the best way to prepare for the tax situation I will face. The grant is a Fulbright scholarship, if that matters. According to this publication, it is treated as scholarship/fellowship income. This means I can probably deduct "local transportation, lodging, and food expense[s]" as well as business expenses (it's a journalism grant). For a number of reasons, I'm sure I'll need professional help on this, but I'd appreciate assistance on any of the issues below.

1. I've been saving every receipt that might be useful. Is this the best approach, or is there another way to make it easier on myself or the tax preparer that will assist me?

2. People in my position are supposed to pay "Estimated Tax Payments," but the form [pdf] has a table that only assumes dollar income -- I am paid in Japanese yen so I have no idea what conversion metric to use that will satisfy the IRS.

3. As I said, I know I need to consult a pro. What is the best way to approach finding a qualified tax professional that will advise me about my actions during 2007? (I believe this would be worth it -- if you do not, feel free to advise me of that). I am in Japan now, and I do not know where in the U.S. I will live when I return, so I'm wondering where I should be looking.

Why do they make these things so confusing?

fvox13 — Thu, 23 Mar 2006 14:37:13 -0800

Do I have to pay self-employment tax if I also work for someone else? I got two tax documents this year: A W-2 and a 1099-Misc. The W-2 says I made $6200, and the 1099 says I made an additional $1400. On the W-2, they took out $225 for social insecurity and $53 for medicare. I know that the self-employment tax pays for social insecurity and medicare for contractors, but I've already paid towards these. How do I know if I've paid enough? Can I just use a 1040-EZ and add the wages from the W-2 to the amount from the 1099, or is there something else I should do/file?

How should American living overseas handle inheritance

planetkyoto — Fri, 02 Dec 2005 06:51:27 -0800

Expat American hates money, inherits share of house, perhaps $100,000. Do I need an accountant, a lawyer or something else to advise? I have no debts, but a 1-year-old baby I'd like to sock away education money for. Should I keep money stateside and invest, bring it to Japan, send it to Jersey Isle shysters? What kind of accountant/financial adviser keywords should I be looking for?

Question number 13472

pinkkitty — Thu, 30 Dec 2004 13:10:53 -0800

Who should do my tax filing? The accountant who's done my taxes for the last 13 years? Or, should I give Turbo Tax a go? Last year the accountant charged me $450. Turbo Premier costs $69.95. [+]

Question number 12675

orange swan — Wed, 08 Dec 2004 13:35:19 -0800

What's a good site that outlines basic information and tips for filing a U.S. income tax return for the individual? I know about the one on Yahoo, and I'm looking for something along those lines.

Question number 9630

limitedpie — Tue, 24 Aug 2004 11:51:58 -0800

If one has a business that is registered as an LLC (with no partners-- just the one person) and if: the business location (office) is in one state, the owner lives in another state and most of the business (or clients) are in a third state in which state is state income tax due-- where the office is, the owner's residence or where the clients are?

Question number 9415

scarabic — Sun, 15 Aug 2004 11:40:57 -0800

How much money do you need to make in a year before you have to start paying Federal income tax? Is there a magic number below which they just let you off the hook?