Just a heads up - the 1099-K threshold changed again. For 2024 taxes it's $5,000 so more people are getting them than ever. This is why so many are confused about how to report them!

One thing that helped me when I was confused about this - make sure you're looking at your Uber driver dashboard for the year-end tax summary. It breaks down exactly what you earned vs. what passengers paid (which is what shows on the 1099-K). The difference is huge - my 1099-K showed like $12,000 but I actually only earned about $8,500 after Uber's fees. You'll want to report the full 1099-K amount as income in the Self-Employment section, then deduct all of Uber's commissions and fees as business expenses. Also don't forget about tolls if you paid any - those are deductible too. FreeTaxUSA makes it pretty easy once you know to look under Self-Employment Income instead of trying to find a specific 1099-K form entry.

Super quick question - does anyone know if this affects the mortgage interest deduction limit? Like, if we both claim part of the interest, do we each get up to the limit amount, or is the limit split between us?

This is such a smart approach to think about optimizing your deductions as a household! You're absolutely right that sometimes it makes more financial sense for one person to claim the full deduction rather than splitting 50/50. Just to add to what others have said - make sure you also consider the state tax implications if you're in a state with income tax. Some states have different rules or limits for mortgage interest deductions that might affect your optimization strategy. Also, since you mentioned you're both on the title, you might want to document your agreement about how you're handling the tax deductions. It's not required, but having a simple written agreement between you two about who claims what can be helpful if questions ever come up later. This is especially useful if you decide to change your approach in future years. The key thing the IRS cares about is that the person claiming the deduction actually paid that portion of the expense, so as long as you set up your payment structure to match your deduction claims, you should be in good shape!

Friendly reminder to everyone that the IRS is SEVERELY understaffed and underfunded! They're still dealing with backlogs from the pandemic and system limitations. The people answering phones are doing their best with limited resources. My sister works for the IRS and says amended returns are processed in the order received, but there are exceptions where returns get flagged for various reasons that require manual review. Sometimes these get stuck in queues waiting for available staff. Yes it's frustrating but the frontline employees aren't the ones creating these delays! They literally can't process returns any faster than the antiquated systems and staffing levels allow.

I completely understand your frustration - 9 months is definitely excessive for an amended return, especially when your 2020 amendment was processed quickly. Based on what others have shared here, it sounds like there might be a specific issue holding up your 2021 return that the phone reps aren't identifying. I'd strongly recommend trying multiple approaches simultaneously: 1. Request your account transcript online through the IRS website - this often shows processing codes and flags that phone reps don't mention 2. Contact the Taxpayer Advocate Service at 877-777-4778 - they're specifically designed to help with situations like yours where normal channels aren't working 3. Reach out to your Congressional representative's office - many have constituent services that can inquire directly with the IRS on your behalf The fact that you mentioned unemployment income and a change from HOH to married filing status might be relevant - sometimes these changes trigger additional reviews that can cause delays. When you call next, specifically ask if there are any "freeze codes" or "hold codes" on your account and request to speak with someone who can actually review your file rather than just check the general status. Don't give up - 9 months with no clear explanation is not acceptable, and you have legitimate options to escalate this beyond the standard phone support.

Slightly different perspective here - have you considered just separating out the sales tax on your invoices/receipts instead of absorbing it? There are a few benefits: 1. Customers actually expect to see sales tax added separately 2. It's WAY easier for accounting/bookkeeping 3. You don't cut into your profit margins 4. Avoids all this tax deduction confusion When I switched from inclusive to exclusive pricing, my sales didn't drop at all - turns out customers are used to seeing the tax added at checkout. Just something to consider as a simpler solution to your problem.

I've been dealing with this exact same issue in my small business! After reading through all these responses, I'm convinced that backing out the sales tax from gross receipts is definitely the right approach rather than trying to deduct it as an expense. One thing I'd add is to make sure you're also considering multi-state sales tax rules if you sell online. I got caught off guard when I started selling to customers in other states and didn't realize I had economic nexus obligations in some of them. Each state has different thresholds for when you need to start collecting and remitting sales tax. Also, if you're doing craft shows or farmer's markets across state lines, you might need temporary sales tax permits in those states. I learned this the hard way when a show organizer informed me I needed to collect local sales tax for that jurisdiction. The good news is once you get your system set up correctly to separate the tax component from your actual sales revenue, quarterly filings become much more straightforward. I use a simple spreadsheet that automatically calculates the breakdown, and it's saved me so much headache compared to when I was trying to figure out deductions.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news but I have Fidelity too and my 1099 was delayed until March 15th last year even though I only had basic ETFs. Turns out one of my funds had income reclassification. Three weeks after I finally got my "final" 1099, they sent an amended one with minimal changes. The whole system is frustrating.

I feel your frustration! I'm in a similar boat with Fidelity - my consolidated 1099 got pushed back to March 5th even though my portfolio is pretty straightforward. What's annoying is that they can't give you a specific reason beyond the generic "waiting for final tax information" message. From what I've learned dealing with this, the February 15th deadline is more of a guideline than a hard rule. Brokerages can file for extensions with the IRS, especially when they're waiting on corrected information from fund companies or dealing with complex corporate actions. The silver lining is that once you do get your form, it should be more accurate than if they rushed it out. I've had friends who got their 1099s "on time" only to receive multiple corrections later, which is arguably worse than waiting a bit longer for the right information the first time. If you're expecting a refund and want to get the process started, you might consider using your December statement to estimate your tax situation while you wait for the official form. Just be prepared to file an amendment if there are significant differences.