If part of your relocation package included temporary housing expenses, check if those were also included in your W-2. My company provided 60 days of temporary housing during my relocation, and that benefit (about $7,200) was added to my taxable income as well. I nearly missed it because it wasn't included in the amount they initially told me would be grossed-up!

This is such a helpful thread! I'm going through a similar situation with my work relocation from last year. One thing I want to add that caught me off guard - if your employer helped with any real estate costs (like realtor fees for selling your old home or closing costs on your new home), those are typically taxable too. My company covered $12,000 in realtor fees when I sold my house, and that entire amount was added to my W-2 income along with the gross-up. I only found out when I got my final paystub and saw a much larger "relocation taxable income" line than I was expecting. Also, Emma, definitely look into what Diego mentioned about tax equalization policies. My company had one but didn't mention it during the initial relocation discussions - I only found out about it when I specifically asked HR about additional tax impacts six months later. They ended up reimbursing me about $3,400 after I filed my taxes!

I'm dealing with something very similar right now with Bovada - they sent me a W2G showing $15,000 in winnings when my actual net winnings were only about $4,200. It's incredibly frustrating because their customer service keeps giving me the runaround. From reading all these responses, it sounds like the key is getting to the right department and being extremely organized with documentation. I'm going to try the approach several people mentioned - bypassing regular customer service and asking specifically for their tax compliance or W2G correction department. One question for those who've been through this successfully: did any of you have to provide additional verification beyond your account records? Bovada is asking me to provide bank statements going back 12 months, which seems excessive for what should be a straightforward correction of their reporting error. Also, for anyone considering the taxr.ai service mentioned earlier - I'm curious if it's worth the cost compared to just organizing the documentation yourself. The peace of mind aspect sounds appealing, but I'm trying to weigh whether it's necessary if I'm already being meticulous with my record-keeping. Thanks to everyone sharing their experiences - it's really helpful to know this isn't uncommon and that there are established ways to handle it properly.

I went through almost the exact same situation with BetMGM about 18 months ago. They issued me a W2G showing $7,300 in winnings when my actual net was closer to $2,100. Here's what I learned from the experience: **Getting BetMGM to respond:** Regular customer service was useless - they kept telling me to "contact the tax department" without providing any actual contact info. What worked was finding their parent company MGM Resorts' investor relations contact and explaining that incorrect tax reporting could be a compliance issue. That got me escalated to someone who could actually help within 48 hours. **Documentation is everything:** I created a timeline showing every deposit, withdrawal, and bet outcome from my account history. The key was proving that some of their "winnings" were actually just returned deposits from cancelled bets or promotional credits that got voided. **Tax filing strategy:** I used the offset method mentioned by others - reported the full W2G amount but subtracted the error with detailed documentation. Never heard from the IRS about it. The key is showing you're trying to report accurately, not hide income. **Timeline:** Once I got to the right person at BetMGM, it took about 3 weeks to get a corrected W2G. They were actually pretty professional once I got past the customer service runaround. Don't give up - BetMGM does have processes to fix these errors, you just need to get to the right department. The gaming commission route mentioned by others is also effective if they continue stalling.

I'm a tax preparer and see this situation frequently. You absolutely cannot report 2021 income on your 2025 return - this would be incorrect reporting that could trigger penalties for both years. The IRS requires income to be reported in the tax year it was earned. Here's what you need to do: File Form 1040X (Amended Return) for tax year 2021 to properly report that $1,900. Yes, you'll face penalties and interest for late filing, but this is much better than the alternative of incorrect reporting which could be viewed as fraudulent. The good news is that you're coming forward voluntarily, which the IRS views favorably. You might also qualify for penalty relief if you can show reasonable cause for not filing originally. Additionally, check if that extra income might qualify you for credits you missed in 2021 - sometimes the credits can actually offset much of the penalty. Don't let the penalties scare you into making a bigger mistake. File the amended return properly and you'll have this resolved correctly.

As someone who went through a very similar situation recently, I want to echo what everyone else has said - definitely file the amended return for 2021, don't try to report it on your current year return. I had about $2,200 in freelance income from 2020 that I discovered in 2023, and I was tempted to take the "easy" route too. What really convinced me to do it properly was learning about the IRS Computer Matching Program. They literally have copies of every 1099 and will eventually match them to your returns. When they find discrepancies, it triggers automatic notices and potential audits. The penalties for incorrect reporting can be much worse than just filing late. I ended up using a combination of the resources mentioned here - used one of the AI tax tools to calculate my expected penalties upfront, then used the IRS callback service to speak with an agent who confirmed my approach. The whole process took about 6 weeks total, and while I did pay some penalties and interest, it was way less stressful than I expected. One tip: when you file Form 1040X, include a detailed explanation of why you're filing late. I wrote that I had genuinely overlooked the 1099 during a chaotic year, and the IRS agent told me this helped show good faith rather than intentional avoidance. You might even qualify for first-time penalty relief if you have a clean filing history. Don't let the fear of penalties push you into making a bigger mistake. Handle it correctly now and you'll have peace of mind going forward.

Just wanted to share my recent experience since I was in a similar situation! I'm a freelance web developer who was completely lost about sales tax requirements. After reading through this thread, I decided to try both the SCORE mentoring (which is free!) and taxr.ai to get a complete picture. The SCORE mentor was incredibly helpful - they walked me through my state's specific requirements and helped me understand that most of my web development services aren't taxable in my state, but website hosting and some digital products I sell are. They also helped me set up a simple system to track everything going forward. Then I used taxr.ai to double-check and get the technical details for multi-state clients. It confirmed what my SCORE mentor said and gave me the exact tax rates I need to use. The combination of both resources gave me so much confidence. One thing I learned that might help others: if you're unsure about whether something is taxable, it's often better to collect the tax and then remit it to the state with a question, rather than not collect it at all. The states would much rather deal with overpayment than underpayment issues! For anyone just starting out - don't let the confusion paralyze you like I did. There are great free and paid resources out there to help navigate this stuff.

This thread has been incredibly helpful as someone who just launched my freelance marketing business! I've been wrestling with the same sales tax confusion for weeks. One thing I wanted to add that I learned from my state's small business development center - some states have "occasional sale" exemptions that might apply to freelancers who only sell physical products occasionally. For example, if you're primarily a service provider but sometimes sell branded merchandise or printed materials, you might not need to register for sales tax collection until you hit certain thresholds. Also, I discovered that many business banking apps and invoicing platforms can track your sales by state automatically, which makes it much easier to monitor when you're approaching economic nexus thresholds in different states. This has been a game-changer for staying organized. The combination of SCORE mentoring and tools like taxr.ai that others have mentioned sounds like the perfect approach. I'm definitely going to try that strategy rather than continuing to stress about this on my own. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - it's so reassuring to know other freelancers have navigated this successfully!

This thread has been incredibly helpful! As a new member who's been dealing with a similar EIN question for my own business, I really appreciate everyone sharing their real-world experiences. I have an LLC that's currently taxed as a partnership (two members), and we're considering changing to corporate taxation. Based on what I'm reading here, it sounds like we'd keep our existing EIN when filing Form 8832 for that change as well - is that correct? The logic everyone's shared about the EIN being tied to the legal entity rather than the tax classification makes perfect sense, but I wanted to confirm since going from partnership to corporation feels like a bigger change than the S-Corp to disregarded entity transitions most people have discussed. Also, has anyone dealt with the timing considerations when you have business partners involved? I imagine coordinating the change becomes more complex when it's not just a single-member LLC making the decision. Thanks for building such a supportive and informative community here!

As a newcomer to this community, I want to thank everyone for such a thorough and helpful discussion! I've been researching this exact EIN question for weeks and getting conflicting information from various sources. The consensus here is crystal clear and really puts my mind at ease - you definitely keep your existing EIN when filing Form 8832 to change from S-Corp to disregarded entity classification. The explanation that the EIN belongs to the LLC as a legal entity (not the tax classification) makes perfect sense. I'm particularly grateful for all the practical tips shared here: - Keeping multiple copies of the Form 8832 acceptance letter - Coordinating the effective date with quarterly tax periods - Notifying banks, vendors, and state agencies about the classification change - Understanding the self-employment tax implications This thread has saved me from potentially making costly mistakes and given me the confidence to move forward with my own classification change. It's exactly this kind of real-world experience sharing that makes online communities so valuable for small business owners navigating complex tax issues. Thank you all for taking the time to share your knowledge and experiences!