Tax confusion with PFL caregiver benefits - received payment in 2023 for 2022 claim
I'm totally confused about how to handle taxes for my wife's PFL caregiver benefits. She took time off in December 2022 to care for me after I had major back surgery. EDD finally approved her claim but we didn't actually get the payment until April 2023 (typical EDD delays, right?). Do we report this income on our 2022 tax return since that's when she actually took the leave? Or on our 2023 taxes since that's when we received the money? The EDD website is so confusing and the tax info section doesn't clearly address this situation. We just talked to someone at EDD who gave us a vague answer about 1099-G forms, but I'm still not sure what to do. Has anyone dealt with this timing issue before?
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CosmosCaptain
Tax accountant here. For PFL benefits, you report the income in the year you RECEIVED the payment, not when the leave occurred. So if you got the money in April 2023, it will be reported on your 2023 tax return that you'll file in 2024. EDD will send a 1099-G form in January 2024 showing the benefit amount.
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Ravi Choudhury
•Oh thank you!! That's actually a relief because I already filed our 2022 taxes thinking we'd just need to amend later. So we just wait until next year and include it then? Does EDD automatically send the 1099-G or do we need to request it?
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Freya Johansen
we had the same issue last yr when my husband got pfl for helping me after csection but payment came like 2 months later in new year... edd told us we dont report til we get the 1099g form the next jan so its all good
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Omar Fawzi
•Same happened to my sister but then she got a tax notice because she forgot to include it the next year! Make sure to watch for that 1099-G form in the mail so you don't miss it.
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Chloe Wilson
The EDD system is such a disaster with these payment delays! My PFL claim for taking care of my dad took THREE MONTHS to process last year, then they had the audacity to expect me to know exactly how to report it for taxes. The whole system is designed to confuse people and then penalize them when they make mistakes. I've called them 8 times about various issues and get different answers EVERY SINGLE TIME!
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Diego Mendoza
•While I understand your frustration, the tax reporting rule is actually consistent: PFL benefits are reported in the tax year they're received, regardless of when the leave period occurred. This is standard for all income reporting to the IRS - it's based on when you have receipt of the funds, not when you earned them. EDD will send the 1099-G to the address they have on file in January following the year of payment.
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Anastasia Romanov
my wife got pregancy disability that crossed from december into january and we were confused about teh taxes too... turns out they sent TWO 1099-Gs, one for each year! so you might want to check if that happens to you too. super confusing.
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CosmosCaptain
•That's a different situation. Pregnancy disability (SDI) that spans two calendar years will generate two 1099-Gs because payments were issued in two different tax years. In OP's case, they have a single PFL payment that was just delayed until the following year, so they'll only receive one 1099-G for the year the payment was received (2023).
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StellarSurfer
If you're still waiting on a definitive answer, I'd recommend using Claimyr to connect with an EDD agent directly. I was dealing with a similar tax question about my PFL benefits and spent days trying to reach someone. With Claimyr, I got through to an actual EDD specialist in about 20 minutes who confirmed exactly how my benefits would be taxed. Saved me so much frustration! Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/DOLxZQb92wM?si=6N1iCQ3a8Cdb2Ay5
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Ravi Choudhury
•Thanks for this suggestion! We actually just got confirmation from EDD, but I'm bookmarking this for future reference because dealing with their phone system is a nightmare.
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Omar Fawzi
FWIW I just updated my tax software preferences to remind me in January to look for the 1099-G. One year I completely forgot about some disability payments and had to amend my return later, such a headache!
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Ravi Choudhury
•That's a really good idea! I just set a calendar reminder for next January too. Thanks!
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Ravi Choudhury
UPDATE: We just got off the phone with EDD and they confirmed what everyone here said - since the payment was received in 2023, it will be included on the 1099-G for 2023 taxes (filed in 2024). Apparently this is standard practice. Thanks everyone for your help!
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Diego Mendoza
•Glad you got confirmation! For future reference, this rule applies to all types of taxable income - it's always based on the year you receive the money, not when you earned it. The technical term is "constructive receipt" in tax language.
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