Don't forget to check local requirements too! My teenager had to get a business license for his lawn business in our town even though he's under 18. It only cost $25 but we had no idea until a neighbor (who happens to work for the city) mentioned it to us. Some places don't require it for minors or under certain income levels, but worth checking your local rules.

Great question! I went through this exact situation with my daughter's tutoring business last year. Here are the key points that helped us: First, yes - since your son will likely exceed $400 in self-employment income, he'll need to file a tax return and pay self-employment taxes (about 15.3% for Social Security and Medicare). This applies even though he's a minor and your dependent. He'll use Schedule C to report his business income and expenses. Keep detailed records of everything - income from each customer and all business expenses. Even small things add up: gas for the mower, oil, replacement parts, business-related mileage when you drive him to customers, etc. The good news is that with proper expense tracking, his taxable income will be lower than his gross earnings. And since he's likely under the standard deduction threshold for regular income tax, he'll probably only owe the self-employment tax portion. One tip: have him set aside about 15-20% of his earnings in a separate account for taxes. This way you're not scrambling to pay when filing time comes. It's also great practice for him to learn about business finances! Don't stress too much - this is actually a wonderful learning opportunity for him about entrepreneurship and taxes. The IRS has good resources for small business owners, and there are plenty of tax prep services that handle simple Schedule C situations like this.

Just to add another perspective from someone who's dealt with this confusion before - you're absolutely on the right track! I had the same worry my first year with multiple 1099s and ended up calling the IRS (after waiting on hold for literally 3 hours). The agent confirmed exactly what everyone here is saying - no need to attach 1099s without withholding. One thing that really helped me was creating a simple checklist to make sure I reported everything correctly: 1099-DIV dividends on Schedule B, 1099-INT interest on Schedule B, 1099-B transactions on Form 8949/Schedule D, and any 1099-MISC depending on the type of income. I keep this checklist with my tax files each year now and it makes the process much smoother. The key is just being thorough with your data entry - the IRS matching system is very good at catching discrepancies, so as long as you report everything accurately, you're golden!

I went through this exact same confusion last year! You're absolutely correct - you don't need to attach your 1099 forms if they don't show any federal or state tax withholding. The IRS already receives copies of all 1099s directly from the issuers, so they have all that information in their system. Since you're dealing with 1099-DIV, 1099-INT, 1099-MISC, and 1099-B forms, just make sure you're reporting the income in the right places: Schedule B for the dividend and interest income, Form 8949 and Schedule D for the capital gains transactions, and depending on what type of income is on your 1099-MISC, it might go on Schedule C or elsewhere. The key is accurate reporting, not physical attachment of the forms. If you're e-filing (which I'd recommend), there's definitely no need to mail anything separately. Keep your 1099s for your records in case you need to reference them later, but you're good to go without attaching them to your return!

This is exactly the clarification I needed! I've been seeing these terms thrown around in different Facebook groups and Reddit threads, and it was getting confusing. Filed my return on February 15th and have been getting "Return Transcript Not Found" ever since. Based on what everyone is saying here, it sounds like I'm still within normal processing timeframes. One question though - does the type of forms you file affect which status message you see? I had to include Schedule C for my side business this year, and I'm wondering if that puts returns into a different processing queue that might show different transcript statuses. Thanks for breaking this down so clearly, especially the distinction between the different "not found" variations. This community has been incredibly helpful during tax season!

This thread has been incredibly helpful! As a newcomer to dealing with IRS transcripts, I was getting really anxious seeing "Return Transcript Not Found" for my 2024 return that I filed on February 28th. Reading through everyone's experiences, it sounds like I'm still well within normal processing times. I appreciate the clarification on the different status messages - I had no idea there were distinct meanings between "Not Found," "Blank," and "N/A" transcripts. One thing I'm curious about: for those who eventually saw their transcripts update, did you notice any pattern to when the updates happened? Like specific days of the week or times? I've been checking every few days (trying not to overdo it based on what @Yuki Yamamoto mentioned about excessive queries), but I'm wondering if there's an optimal time to check. Also, has anyone noticed if the IRS2Go app shows transcript updates at the same time as the website, or does one typically update before the other? Thanks again for all the detailed explanations - this community knowledge is so much more helpful than the generic IRS website information!

Has anyone been able to qualify as a Real Estate Professional to get around these passive loss limitations? I'm trying to figure out if it's possible with my situation. I work full-time (about 2,000 hours per year) but also spend a ton of time managing my properties (maybe 15-20 hours per week).

I went through the exact same confusion with Form 8582 when I first started with rental properties! Those "unallowed losses" basically mean your rental losses are suspended because of the passive activity loss rules. Here's what's happening: If your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) is over $150,000, you generally can't use rental property losses to offset your regular income like wages. The losses aren't gone forever though - they carry forward indefinitely until you either have passive income to offset them against, or you sell the property. There's a potential exception if your MAGI is under $100,000 and you actively participate in managing your rentals - then you can deduct up to $25,000 in losses against other income. But based on your situation with 4 properties generating losses in your first year, I'm guessing your income might be above that threshold. The good news is those suspended losses will eventually be useful when you sell the properties or if you generate passive income from other sources. Keep good records of the amounts each year - you'll need them later!

Quick tip: Always save PDF copies of your returns from any software you use. That way you can do a line-by-line comparison to catch exactly where the discrepancy happened. I found a $520 error last year by comparing forms this way - one software miscalculated my self-employment tax completely.

This is exactly why I always recommend double-checking your return with a second software before filing! The $653 difference you found is significant and unfortunately more common than people realize. Since you've already identified that TurboTax missed your student loan interest deduction, you're definitely on the right track with filing an amended return. Just make sure you have all your documentation ready - the IRS will want to see your Form 1098-E (student loan interest statement) to verify the $2,100 deduction you're claiming. One thing to keep in mind: the student loan interest deduction phases out at higher income levels, so double-check that your modified adjusted gross income qualifies you for the full deduction. But if FreeTaxUSA properly calculated it and you're under the income limits, you should be good to go. Filing that 1040-X might take several months to process, but getting back $650+ is definitely worth the wait. In the future, maybe run your taxes through two different programs before filing - could save you this headache next year!