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One important thing nobody's mentioned: if you've been filing extensions, the statute of limitations on assessment hasn't started running. The IRS generally has 3 years from the date you file a return to assess additional tax. Since you haven't filed, that clock hasn't started. But here's the good news - the IRS typically only looks back 6 years for unfiled returns unless they suspect fraud. If you voluntarily come forward and file your back returns before they contact you, you're in a much better position than if they find you first. Also, self-employed people often overestimate what they'll owe because they forget about all the legitimate business deductions they qualify for. A good tax pro might find you qualify for things like home office deduction, health insurance deduction, SEP IRA contributions, business mileage, etc.
Is this true even if the person has been filing extensions every year? I thought extensions were only for the filing deadline, not for the payment deadline. Wouldn't they still be considered late on payments?
You're absolutely right that extensions only extend the filing deadline, not the payment deadline. So yes, there would still be failure-to-pay penalties accruing from the original due date. However, the key point about the assessment statute of limitations is still valid - the IRS can't assess additional tax beyond what's on a filed return until that return is actually filed. The failure-to-pay penalty is 0.5% per month (up to 25% total), while failure-to-file is much steeper at 5% per month (also capped at 25%). So filing extensions does help avoid the harsher failure-to-file penalty, even if you can't pay immediately. That's probably why @30b012095b50 hasn't gotten collection notices yet - the extensions are keeping the more severe penalties at bay.
I'm a tax professional and want to reassure you that your situation, while stressful, is more common than you think. The fact that you've been filing extensions each year actually shows the IRS that you haven't disappeared - you're still engaging with the system, which works in your favor. Regarding your passport concerns: Since you haven't received any formal notices and there's no assessed tax debt on record, your passport renewal will likely be processed normally. The State Department only gets involved when there's a certified seriously delinquent tax debt over $59,000, which requires formal assessment first. Here's my recommended action plan: 1. **Immediate steps**: Gather all income documents (1099s, bank statements, PayPal records) for the last 6 years. Don't worry about perfection - estimates based on bank deposits work initially. 2. **Find the right help**: Look for an Enrolled Agent or CPA who specializes in unfiled returns. Many offer free consultations and can give you a realistic estimate of what you'll owe. 3. **Start with recent years**: File the last 3-6 years first. The IRS is most concerned with recent compliance. 4. **Consider voluntary disclosure**: Coming forward voluntarily before the IRS contacts you puts you in the best possible position for penalty abatements and payment plans. You're not a bad person - you're someone who got overwhelmed by a complex system. The anxiety you're feeling is actually your conscience telling you to make this right, which is admirable. Take it one step at a time.
Thank you for this comprehensive breakdown - it's exactly what I needed to hear from a professional. The fact that filing extensions has actually been helping rather than hurting gives me some hope that maybe I haven't completely destroyed my situation. Your point about voluntary disclosure is really important. I've been so paralyzed by fear that I never considered that coming forward first could actually work in my favor. One quick question: when you say "estimates based on bank deposits work initially" - does that mean I don't need to have every single receipt and 1099 perfectly organized before I can start? Because that's been part of what's been overwhelming me. I keep thinking I need to have everything perfect before I can even meet with someone, but maybe that's backwards? I'm going to start calling some Enrolled Agents this week. Thank you for giving me hope that this is fixable.
Just went through this exact situation last month! They absolutely will take the full $750 regardless of how small it seems. I owed $680 in back child support and was expecting a $2,100 refund. Got a letter from the Bureau of Fiscal Service about a week before my refund date explaining the offset. They took exactly $680 and I received the remaining $1,420 about 10 days later than my normal refund timing. The process is completely automated once your name hits their database - there's no human reviewing whether the amount is "worth it" or not. If you haven't received a Pre-Offset Notice yet, definitely update your address with both the IRS and your state child support agency because those notices are crucial for understanding your options.
Thanks for sharing your experience! It's helpful to hear from someone who just went through this. I'm curious - did you get any advance warning beyond the Pre-Offset Notice? Like, were you able to see anything on your IRS transcript that indicated the offset was coming, or was the notice really the first sign?
This is really valuable firsthand info! I'm dealing with a similar situation where I owe about $1,200 in back support. Did you have any luck disputing the amount with your state child support agency, or was the $680 figure accurate? Also wondering if the 10-day delay for the remainder of your refund is typical - I'm trying to plan my budget around when I might actually see any money.
The $750 will definitely be taken - there's no minimum threshold for child support offsets. I work in tax preparation and see this constantly during filing season. The Treasury Offset Program is completely automated, so once you're in their system, any refund gets intercepted regardless of the amount. What many people don't realize is that you should have received a Pre-Offset Notice around December or January explaining this would happen. If you didn't get one, check that your address is current with both the IRS and your state child support enforcement agency. The good news is if your refund is larger than $750, you'll get the difference back - it just takes an extra 2-3 weeks to process after the offset. The key thing to remember is that disputing the amount needs to be done through your state child support agency, not the IRS. The IRS is just the middleman collecting the money.
This is really helpful information, especially about the Pre-Offset Notice timing! I'm new to dealing with tax issues and had no idea there were specific notices that should come out in December/January. Quick question - when you say disputing needs to be done through the state child support agency, is there a typical timeframe for how long that process takes? I'm wondering if it's even worth trying to dispute if tax season is already underway, or if people should just accept the offset and work on resolving things for next year.
Another important consideration - make sure you understand the difference between a "rollover" and a "transfer" when dealing with your distribution. What you received is considered an "indirect rollover" (also called a 60-day rollover) because the check was made out to you personally. The 60-day clock starts ticking from when you received the distribution, not when you cash the check. And you only get ONE indirect rollover per 12-month period across all your IRAs, so if you've done any other rollovers recently, this could be an issue. If you're feeling overwhelmed by the timeline, consider calling your intended IRA provider ASAP. Many can help walk you through the process and some will even accept the deposit over the phone with overnight delivery of paperwork to beat the 60-day deadline. Don't wait until the last minute - financial institutions can sometimes take a few days to process these transactions properly.
This is super helpful info about the 60-day rule! I had no idea there was a limit on indirect rollovers per year. Quick question - does the "one rollover per 12-month period" rule apply if I'm rolling from a 401k to an IRA, or is that just for IRA-to-IRA rollovers? I'm worried because I did move some money between IRAs earlier this year and don't want to accidentally violate the rules with this forced distribution.
Great question! The one-rollover-per-12-months rule only applies to IRA-to-IRA rollovers, not to rollovers from employer plans like 401(k)s to IRAs. So your earlier IRA-to-IRA rollover this year won't affect your ability to roll over this 401(k) distribution. However, once you roll this 401(k) money into an IRA, that new IRA would then be subject to the one-rollover rule if you wanted to move it again via indirect rollover within 12 months. Direct trustee-to-trustee transfers are unlimited and don't count toward this restriction - only indirect rollovers where you personally receive the funds. So you should be good to proceed with rolling over your 401(k) distribution without worrying about the rollover limitation!
Just want to add one more critical timing consideration that could save you some stress - if you're getting close to the 60-day deadline, make sure to document EVERYTHING. Keep records of when you received the distribution check, when you deposited it into your IRA, and get confirmation from your IRA provider that they've processed it as a rollover contribution. I've seen situations where people met the 60-day deadline but the IRA provider didn't code the transaction correctly, leading to unnecessary headaches with the IRS later. Most reputable providers will give you a confirmation letter stating the rollover was completed within the required timeframe - definitely ask for this! It's your proof that you followed the rules if any questions come up during tax season. Also, remember that weekends and holidays don't extend the 60-day deadline - it's calendar days, not business days. So if day 60 falls on a weekend, you need to complete the rollover by the Friday before. Better to get it done with a few days to spare than risk missing the deadline by a technicality.
This is excellent advice about documentation! I'm dealing with a similar forced distribution right now and was panicking about the timeline. One thing I'd add - if you're cutting it close on the 60 days, some IRA providers will accept a wire transfer or even a cashier's check to speed up the process. Regular checks can take several business days to clear and be officially recorded as deposited. Also, if anyone is worried about missing the deadline, there are some rare exceptions where the IRS will waive the 60-day rule for circumstances beyond your control (like illness, natural disasters, postal errors), but you definitely don't want to count on that. Much better to just get it done early like you said!
I actually had issues with my EIP going to a closed bank account. If that happened to you, the bank would have rejected it and the IRS should have mailed you a paper check instead. Did you move during the pandemic? That could explain why you never got it.
This happened to me too! The IRS tried to deposit to my old bank account, it bounced, then they mailed a check to my old address. By the time I figured it all out, it was too late to request a trace. I had to claim it on my taxes.
I did move in late 2020, but I thought I updated my address with the IRS when I filed my 2020 taxes. Maybe the second or third payment got sent to my old place? The mail forwarding probably would have expired by then too. I'm definitely going to check out both the tax amendment option and trying to call the IRS directly to see what happened. This whole process is so frustrating!
The good news is that you're not alone in this situation! Many people missed their EIP payments due to various processing issues during the pandemic. Based on your income level ($27,500), you were definitely eligible for all three payments totaling $3,200. Here's what I'd recommend doing in order: 1. **Check your IRS online account first** - Log into IRS.gov and look at your tax transcripts to see if any EIP payments show as issued to you. This will tell you if the problem was on the IRS side (they never sent it) or delivery side (sent to wrong address/account). 2. **File amended returns ASAP** - You'll need to file Form 1040-X for 2020 (for the first two payments) and 2021 (for the third payment). The 2020 deadline is coming up fast in April 2024, so prioritize that one. 3. **If you discover payments were issued but never received** - You'll need to request payment traces instead of filing amendments. Don't beat yourself up about this - the whole EIP rollout was chaotic and lots of eligible people fell through the cracks. The important thing is you're addressing it now while you still can. Those tools others mentioned (taxr.ai for document analysis and Claimyr for IRS phone support) could definitely help speed up the process if you get stuck.
Javier Morales
As someone who went through this exact situation last year, I can tell you that being a month late on one quarterly payment isn't the end of the world! The IRS penalty for late estimated tax payments is calculated using an underpayment rate (currently around 8% annually), but it's only applied to the specific quarter you missed and for the time period you were late. Since you mentioned your estimated payments this year will exceed your total 2022 tax liability, you're likely protected by the safe harbor rule. If your timely payments equal at least 100% of last year's tax (or 110% if your AGI was over $150k), you should avoid penalties entirely. Go ahead and make that June 15th payment now through IRS Direct Pay - no special forms needed, just select "Estimated Tax" for 2023. The system will accept it even though it's late. Any penalty calculation will happen automatically when you file your 2023 return next year. One tip for the future: set calendar reminders for the weird quarterly dates (April 15, June 15, September 15, January 15). They definitely don't follow a logical 3-month pattern, which trips up most new contractors!
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Ravi Patel
ā¢This is really reassuring to hear from someone who's been through the same thing! The 8% rate sounds scary but I guess when it's just applied to one quarter for one month, it's not that bad. Quick question - when you say "timely payments," does that include this late June payment I'm about to make, or does it only count payments that were actually made on time? I want to make sure I understand the safe harbor calculation correctly. Also, thanks for the reminder tip about the weird dates. I've already added all the 2024 quarterly dates to my calendar so I don't make this mistake again!
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William Schwarz
ā¢For the safe harbor calculation, unfortunately the late June payment won't count as "timely" for that specific quarter. However, don't let that discourage you! The safe harbor rule looks at your total payments for the year compared to last year's liability. Here's how it works: if your April, September, and January payments (the ones made on time) plus any withholding from other sources total at least 100% of your 2022 tax liability, you'll still be protected from penalties on the other quarters too. The safe harbor essentially covers your entire year if you meet the threshold. Even if you don't hit the safe harbor, the penalty on just one late quarterly payment is really minimal - probably under $50 based on typical contractor income levels. I ended up owing about $35 in penalties when I missed my September payment, and I learned it was way less stressful than I'd imagined. The calendar reminders are a game-changer! I also set mine for a week before each due date so I have time to calculate and transfer money if needed.
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Anastasia Romanov
I'm also a first-year 1099 contractor and made the exact same mistake! I thought quarterly meant every three months too - it's such a confusing system. Reading through these responses has been incredibly helpful. One thing I learned the hard way is to also check if your state has different quarterly payment deadlines. I'm in Virginia and somehow missed that our state deadlines don't always align with federal ones. Almost made the same mistake twice! For what it's worth, I used the IRS penalty calculator on their website to estimate what my late payment might cost, and it was much less scary than I expected. The peace of mind of knowing the approximate amount helped me stop stressing about it while waiting for any penalty notices. Good luck with your September payment - sounds like you've got a good plan in place now!
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