Indiana DOR is straight clownin this year. took them 2 months to send mine last year

I'm in the exact same situation! Filed on 1/31, got approved 2/7, and still waiting for my DD. Called yesterday and they said there's been some system delays this year causing longer processing times even after approval. The rep told me to wait another week before calling back. So frustrating when you're counting on that money! 😤

Has anyone used QuickBooks Self-Employed to handle this kind of transition? I'm in a similar situation and wondering if it's worth switching software too.

I went through this exact situation with my photography business last year when my business partner had to step away due to health issues. The key thing to understand is that you're not actually "converting" your LLC - you're just changing how it's taxed by the IRS. Here's what worked for me: First, I filed Form 8832 to elect disregarded entity status effective from the date my partner stopped participating. Then I filed a final Form 1065 partnership return covering from January 1st through that date, clearly marked as "FINAL RETURN" at the top. From that point forward, I reported everything on Schedule C. The IRS was actually pretty understanding about the late filing when I explained the circumstances. I did get hit with some penalties, but they weren't as bad as I expected. Most importantly, I was able to keep my business name, EIN, and all my existing vendor relationships intact. One thing I wish I'd known earlier - make sure you get something in writing from your brother acknowledging his withdrawal from the business, even if no money changes hands. It doesn't have to be fancy legal language, but having documentation makes everything cleaner for tax purposes.

One important distinction to make: an offset and a refund are two different things. The offset happens after your tax return is processed and a refund is determined. If you owe federal debts, the Treasury takes your refund to pay those debts before sending you any remainder. Refund advances are typically based on your expected refund amount, not what you'll actually receive after offsets. Most legitimate tax preparation services will run a debt indicator check before approving an advance, which will show if you're likely to have an offset. If they see an indicator, they'll typically deny the advance.

I went through this exact situation two years ago with a student loan offset. Here's what I learned the hard way: most major tax prep companies (H&R Block, TurboTax, etc.) will run a debt check before approving any refund advance, and if they see you're flagged for an offset, they'll automatically deny you. However, some smaller storefront tax preparers might not run these checks as thoroughly. BUT - and this is a big but - if they give you an advance and your refund gets offset, you're still 100% responsible for paying back that advance plus any fees. I ended up owing $347 more than the advance amount after fees and interest when my $2,800 refund got completely offset. My advice? Call the Treasury Offset Program first at 1-800-304-3107 to confirm your offset amount, then explore alternatives like a personal loan from your bank or credit union - the interest rates are usually way better than refund advance fees anyway.

Something else to consider - if you're under 26 and were on your parents' health insurance, or if you had health insurance for part of the year through your previous employer (COBRA or marketplace plan), make sure you understand how that affects your tax situation. The premium tax credit stuff can get complicated with partial year coverage.

Just wanted to add one more important point that I haven't seen mentioned yet - if you're planning to look for work again or do any freelance/gig work later in 2025, filing a return for this year (even with minimal income) can actually be helpful for establishing your tax history. Some situations where this matters: if you apply for certain loans or mortgages, they may want to see recent tax returns as proof of income history. Also, if you end up doing contract work later and need to make estimated tax payments, having filed previously makes that process smoother. Plus, given that you had withholding from your December paycheck and marketplace insurance, you're definitely going to want to file anyway to get that money back and properly reconcile your premium tax credits. The good news is that with mostly zeros to report, it should be a pretty straightforward filing!

For valuing items like clothing and household goods, I've found the Salvation Army donation value guide really helpful: https://satruck.org/Home/DonationValueGuide It gives reasonable ranges for common household items in good condition. Most other big charities have similar guides. Just make sure your valuation makes sense - don't claim $100 for a used t-shirt or $1000 for a basic coffee table.

Great thread everyone! I just wanted to add a practical tip from my experience last year. When listing items over $500 separately on Section A, make sure you're being specific enough in your descriptions. Instead of just writing "clothing item - $600," I learned to be more detailed like "designer wool coat, excellent condition - $600" or "antique dining table, good condition - $750." The IRS instructions mention that descriptions should be "reasonably detailed," and I found that being specific helped me feel more confident about my valuations. It also made it easier when the charity needed to sign off on the form - they could actually visualize what I had donated rather than trying to remember generic categories. Also, if you're donating similar high-value items to the same charity on different dates, you can still group them on one line as long as you note the date range. For example: "2 designer suits, excellent condition, donated 3/15 and 4/22 - $1,200 total.