I've been through a very similar situation and want to emphasize something that several others have touched on but bears repeating: the timing of your house sale could literally save you thousands of dollars in taxes. When my divorce was finalized in October 2023, we initially planned to sell the house afterward. Thankfully, our tax advisor caught this and explained that selling while still married would preserve our $500K capital gains exclusion versus the $250K each we'd get as single filers. Our house had appreciated about $400K since purchase, so this timing difference saved us roughly $37,500 in taxes (15% capital gains rate on the extra $250K exclusion). We ended up requesting a brief delay in finalizing the divorce to coordinate the sale, and the court was actually quite understanding when we explained the significant financial impact. Most judges recognize that better financial outcomes for both parties means less potential for future disputes. For your daughter and the dependency/Head of Household question: even with your ex having primary custody, if you can document that your daughter stayed with you for more than 183 nights (including partial custody during school breaks, holidays, etc.), you could still qualify for Head of Household. The tax savings compared to Single filing status can be substantial - potentially $1,000-3,000 annually depending on your income. My biggest recommendation is to get a tax professional involved in reviewing your divorce agreement before it's finalized. They can spot opportunities and potential issues that even good divorce attorneys might miss since tax law isn't their specialty.

I went through almost this exact situation two years ago and want to share what I learned the hard way. The December 31st rule is absolutely strict - there's no exception for maintaining a household together for most of the year. Once that divorce decree is signed, you're legally single for the entire tax year. However, don't give up on Head of Household status too quickly. Even with a 60/40 custody split, you might still qualify if you track the nights carefully. My custody agreement looked similar on paper, but when I actually counted nights including school holidays, summer vacation time, and makeup days, I ended up with 195 nights - just enough to qualify for Head of Household. The key is to start documenting EVERYTHING now. I used a simple calendar app and noted every night my son stayed with me. Also track all household expenses you're paying - mortgage, utilities, groceries when your daughter is with you, etc. The "paying more than half the household costs" test for Head of Household is separate from the custody nights requirement. For your house situation, seriously consider selling before the divorce finalizes if possible. My ex and I initially resisted this because emotions were running high, but our tax advisor showed us we'd save about $28,000 by preserving the married filing jointly capital gains exclusion. We ended up delaying our final decree by three weeks to close on the sale - best financial decision we made during the entire process. One last tip: get your divorce attorney and a tax professional talking to each other before you sign anything. Tax implications should absolutely factor into your settlement negotiations, especially around who claims your daughter in which years.

I just found this thread after getting my own 5071C letter today, and wow - what a goldmine of information! Reading through everyone's experiences has been both reassuring (I'm not alone in this!) and incredibly educational. I'm planning to implement the Tuesday 7:03am strategy that multiple people have had success with. The reasoning about avoiding the 7:00am rush makes perfect sense - it's like trying to be the first person through the door at a Black Friday sale, but sometimes being second or third in line is actually better! One thing I'm adding to my preparation based on all the detailed advice here: I'm creating a "verification binder" with tabs for each year's returns, a page with all my addresses and dates, and even a section with my spouse's information including those obscure details like parents' names. Better to be over-prepared than scrambling during the call. The mental health strategies are just as valuable as the tactical ones. I love the idea of treating this like a scheduled work block rather than a stressful ordeal. Planning to set up my "phone station" with good lighting, comfortable seating, and maybe some adult coloring books for the hold time. Thanks to everyone who shared their victories and failures - you've turned what felt like an impossible mountain into a series of concrete, actionable steps. Here's to joining the "successfully got through" club soon! 🤞

Just wanted to add my experience to this incredibly helpful thread! I was stuck in TPP limbo for 9 days before finally getting through yesterday using a combination of strategies from here. What worked for me: Called Wednesday at 7:04am EST (following the "avoid the 7:00am rush" wisdom), used the direct 1-800-830-5084 line, and waited about 12 seconds before responding to any prompts. Got through after a 71-minute hold - painful but victorious! The document prep advice from this thread was spot-on. They asked me for my 2022 AGI, my address from 2021 (with zip code), and even the exact amount of federal taxes withheld from my W-2 two years ago. Having everything organized beforehand made the verification smooth. One tip I'd add: I kept a glass of water nearby during the hold. Sounds silly, but when you're finally talking to an agent after waiting over an hour, having a clear voice helps with the verification questions! For those still trying - hang in there! This thread proves it's absolutely possible. The persistence pays off, and that refund will feel even sweeter after this ordeal. Thanks to everyone who shared their strategies - this community support made all the difference! 💪

I'm so glad I stumbled across this thread! As a complete newcomer to corporate tax forms, I was having the exact same panic about Form 8879-Corp that everyone else described. I kept staring at Line 3 thinking I was missing some crucial piece of knowledge about how to determine if something was a loss or not. Reading through all these explanations has been like having a lightbulb moment - I was completely overthinking what should have been a simple copy-and-paste operation! The key insight for me was understanding that Form 8879-Corp isn't a calculation form at all, it's purely administrative. All the heavy lifting has already been done on the main corporate return (like Form 1120), and this form is just pulling key numbers for verification before e-filing. The "(Loss)" notation that was confusing me so much is literally just telling me how to format negative numbers - use parentheses. It's not asking me to analyze whether the corporation made or lost money, because that's already been determined in the main return preparation. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences and broke this down so clearly! This community is amazing for helping newcomers understand these intimidating forms. I feel so much more confident approaching other tax documents now, knowing that it's okay to feel confused initially and that there are always helpful explanations available here.

This thread has been absolutely amazing to read through! I just joined this community and was having the exact same confusion about Form 8879-Corp Line 3 that everyone else described. I kept getting stuck on that "(Loss)" notation and thinking I needed to somehow evaluate the corporation's financial performance myself. The breakthrough for me was reading all the explanations about how Form 8879-Corp is purely administrative - it's not asking me to calculate anything new, just to verify numbers that already exist on the main corporate return. The "(Loss)" part is just formatting instructions, not a question I need to answer! I love how this community breaks down complex tax concepts into understandable language. As someone who's completely new to corporate forms, it's incredibly reassuring to see that confusion is normal and that even experienced members went through the same learning process. The analogy of Form 8879-Corp being like a "receipt" or "verification sheet" really helps frame what this form is actually for. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences and explanations - you've turned what felt like an impossible puzzle into something I can actually understand and work with!

Just wanted to share another approach that worked for me - if you have access to your employer's HR department or benefits administrator, they might have the complete TIN information on file. I was dealing with a similar issue where I couldn't get the full TIN for my Prudential 401(k) distribution, and after trying all the phone number suggestions here, I reached out to our company's benefits team. They had all the tax identification numbers for our retirement plan providers in their records and were able to give me the correct TIN within an hour. This might be especially helpful if your 1099-R is related to a workplace retirement plan rather than an individual account. The HR/benefits folks deal with this stuff regularly during tax season and usually have quick access to the information we need.

I've been following this thread and wanted to add one more tip that saved me a lot of headache. If you're still unable to get through to Prudential or find your 1099-R, you can actually request a wage and income transcript directly from the IRS that will show the complete TIN information they received from Prudential. You can get this transcript online at irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript, by phone at 800-908-9946, or by mailing Form 4506-T. The transcript will show all the 1099-R information that was reported to the IRS, including the full TIN. This is especially useful if you're dealing with multiple retirement accounts and need to verify which TIN goes with which distribution. The online transcript is usually available immediately, and it's free. This way you can get the official information directly from the IRS without having to navigate multiple customer service departments. Just make sure to request the "Wage and Income Transcript" for the specific tax year you need.

I'm really glad to see this thread has generated so many helpful suggestions! As someone who works in tax preparation, I want to emphasize that the IRS wage and income transcript really is your golden ticket here. It's free, reliable, and contains all the information you need from your missing W2s. One thing I'd add that hasn't been mentioned yet - when you do get your transcript and file that 2017 return, make sure to file it as soon as possible even if you can't pay any taxes owed immediately. The failure-to-file penalty is much steeper than the failure-to-pay penalty (5% per month vs 0.5% per month). You can always set up a payment plan with the IRS later if needed. Also, don't be surprised if the wage transcript shows slightly different numbers than what you remember from your original W2s. Sometimes employers make corrections after issuing the original forms, and the transcript reflects the final reported amounts. This is actually better for your filing since it matches exactly what the IRS has on record. The advice about VITA programs is spot-on too - they're incredibly helpful for situations exactly like this and won't cost you anything. Good luck getting everything sorted out!

This has been such a helpful thread! I'm in a similar situation with missing W2s from 2019 and was feeling pretty overwhelmed about where to start. Reading through everyone's experiences and suggestions has given me a clear roadmap forward. I think I'm going to start with the IRS wage and income transcript like most people suggested, then check my old email accounts and phone photos as backup. The VITA program sounds like a great resource too - I had no idea free help was available for situations like this. One question for anyone who's been through this process - when you requested the wage transcript online, did you need any specific information beyond just your SSN and address to verify your identity? I'm wondering if I need to gather any other documents before I start the online process. Thanks again to everyone who shared their experiences and advice. It's so reassuring to know that other people have successfully gotten through this same situation!