Can someone explain what happens if I fill out this form wrong? I'm in the UK too and trying to open a Schwab account. I've been putting it off because I'm worried about making a mistake on these tax forms.

As someone who went through this exact process with Charles Schwab as a UK resident, I can confirm what others have said about Article 13. The rate for capital gains is indeed 0% for UK residents under the US-UK tax treaty. The key thing to understand is that you're essentially telling the IRS that as a UK resident, you're exempt from US capital gains tax on your stock investments. This is why you enter "0%" - it's not that there's no rate, it's that the rate is zero percent withholding. One tip that helped me: when you're filling out the form, make sure you also complete the certification section properly. You need to certify that you're a UK resident for tax purposes and that you're the beneficial owner of the income. Charles Schwab will typically accept the form within a few business days if everything is completed correctly. If you're still unsure, I'd recommend downloading the official IRS instructions for Form W-8BEN and the actual US-UK tax treaty text from the IRS website to double-check. The treaty language can be dense, but Article 13 is pretty clear about capital gains taxation.

Pro tip: check your transcripts early morning EST time, thats when they usually update. Source: been doin this for years

Don't panic! This is totally normal for returns filed at the end of January. The "Return Not Present" message doesn't mean your return was lost or rejected - it just means the IRS hasn't processed it into their system yet. During peak filing season (Jan-April), the IRS can take 3-4 weeks or even longer to process returns, especially with the volume they're dealing with right now. Your return is likely sitting in their processing queue. If you filed electronically, you should have received a confirmation email with an acknowledgment that it was successfully transmitted. That's your proof it made it to them. If you're really concerned, you can use the "Where's My Refund" tool on IRS.gov - it updates more frequently than transcripts and will show if there are any issues with your return. I'd give it another week before calling the IRS directly. Their phone lines are swamped right now and you'll probably just get told the same thing - to wait for processing to complete.

I actually dealt with this exact situation when we sold our house in 2022. One tip that saved us - we had taken "before" and "after" photos of all our major projects, and our tax accountant said these were super valuable as supporting documentation. Make sure to create a spreadsheet detailing each improvement: when it was done, material costs (with receipts when available), and a reasonable estimate of costs when receipts are missing. For the missing receipts, we researched average costs for similar projects in our area during the same time period. Also, dig through your email for Home Depot/Lowe's/etc. order confirmations - I was able to recover a lot of digital records from old emails that I had forgotten about!

One thing to keep in mind when calculating your basis - the IRS has a "safe harbor" provision for home improvements that might help with your documentation concerns. If you can show that similar improvements in your area during the same time period cost within a reasonable range of what you're claiming, that's generally acceptable even with some missing receipts. Since you mentioned getting quotes from contractors, those estimates can actually be really valuable for establishing the fair market value of materials used, even though you can't include labor. For example, if a contractor quoted $50k total for a kitchen remodel and you know labor typically represents 60-70% of renovation costs, you could reasonably estimate that $15-20k worth of materials were involved. Also worth noting - given your substantial gain even after the primary residence exclusion, you might want to consider if any of the work qualifies for energy efficiency tax credits that could offset some of your tax liability. Things like new windows, HVAC systems, or solar installations might qualify for additional benefits beyond just adding to your basis.

Wondering if anyone uses TurboTax to file this kind of income? Is it straightforward to enter multiple survey sites or do I need something more advanced?

Just wanted to jump in as someone who went through this exact situation! You're absolutely right that you need to report all that survey income even without 1099s. I made the same mistake of thinking I didn't need to report anything under $600 from individual sites, but the IRS cares about your total earnings, not per-site amounts. The good news is that filing Schedule C for survey work is pretty straightforward once you understand it. You'll report your total income from all sites combined, and you can use business code 541910 for "Market Research and Public Opinion Polling." Don't forget that you can deduct legitimate business expenses like a portion of your internet bill if you used it specifically for survey work. One tip - if you're planning to continue doing survey work, consider setting aside about 25-30% of your earnings for taxes since nothing gets withheld. I learned that lesson the hard way when I got hit with a bigger tax bill than expected! Keep good records of all your payments and any expenses, and you'll be fine.

Does anyone know if there's a difference between how the 846 date works for amended returns versus regular returns? I'm waiting on an amended return refund and my transcript shows an 846 code with next Tuesday's date, but I've heard amended returns can be different?

Amended returns work the same way with the 846 code! The date shown is still when the IRS schedules your refund to be sent. However, amended returns (Form 1040-X) typically take much longer to process initially - usually 16-20 weeks compared to the standard 21 days for regular returns. But once you see that 846 code on your transcript, you're in the home stretch! The refund timing from that point follows the same pattern as regular returns. So if your transcript shows 846 with next Tuesday's date, you should expect your refund to arrive on Tuesday (for direct deposit) or within a few days after that if it's a paper check. The wait is almost over!