I went through this exact same situation a few months ago! Like others have mentioned, tax prep fees are almost always deducted from your federal refund only - most states don't allow third-party deductions from state refunds. Here's what helped me figure it out: I found my "Refund Transfer Authorization" form that I signed when I chose to pay fees from my refund. It clearly showed that only the federal refund would be used for fee payment. My tax software (TurboTax) also had a detailed breakdown in the "Documents" section showing the fee allocation. For your state refund being lower than expected, I'd suggest double-checking if you had any state taxes withheld that you might have forgotten about, or if there were any state-specific credits that got adjusted during processing. In my case, my state had automatically applied a credit I wasn't aware of, which changed my final refund amount. If you're still unsure, most tax prep companies have a customer service line specifically for refund questions - they should be able to pull up your account and show you exactly where each fee was deducted from. Don't stress too much though, this confusion happens to a lot of us! 😊

Hey Noah! 👋 As someone who's also navigated the US tax system as a newcomer, I totally understand the confusion! The good news is that you're almost certainly overthinking this - tax prep fees are virtually always taken from federal refunds only, not state refunds. Here's what I'd recommend checking first: • Log into your tax prep service and look for a "Fee Summary" or "Refund Disbursement" document • Compare your actual state tax return (the final filed version) with your initial calculations - you might have missed a deduction or credit adjustment • Check if your state made any automatic adjustments during processing (this happens more often than you'd think!) The fact that you received your federal refund in full actually supports this - if fees were deducted, they would have come out of that amount first. Your state refund difference is likely due to calculation variations or state-specific processing adjustments. Don't worry, this exact scenario trips up tons of people every tax season! Once you find that fee breakdown document, everything should make much more sense. The tax system here has a lot of moving parts that aren't always obvious at first glance. 😊

Don't forget you still have to pay the self-employment tax of 15.3% on your net profit from doordash (after deducting mileage and expenses). The mileage deduction reduces your income tax but you still gotta pay SE tax on whatever profit is left.

This is actually a really common scenario that confuses new gig workers! Your calculation sounds about right. Here's what's happening: Your $7,300 DoorDash income minus the $2,600 mileage deduction leaves you with $4,700 in taxable profit. The self-employment tax on that would be around $664 (15.3%), plus regular income tax. But if you had taxes withheld from another job earlier in the year, those withholdings get applied against your total tax liability. So even though you owe taxes on your DoorDash income, the amount already withheld from your W-2 job might be more than your total liability, resulting in a refund. A few things to double-check: - Make sure your tax calculator is including self-employment tax (many don't) - Verify you're using the correct 2025 mileage rate (it's $0.70 per mile) - Consider other deductible expenses like phone usage, delivery bags, etc. It's totally normal to get a refund in this situation - it just means you prepaid more than you actually owe. Just make sure all your deductions are legitimate and well-documented!

Is there a quick way to estimate how much EIC I might get? I'm a single parent with 2 kids making about $32,000 from my job and some gig work.

Just to add some clarity for the original poster @Malik Johnson - since you mentioned you're a bartender with tips, make sure you're reporting ALL your tip income accurately. The IRS pays close attention to tip reporting in the service industry, and underreporting tips can not only get you in trouble but also reduce your EIC since it's based on your reported earned income. If your employer doesn't already track and report all your tips through payroll, you'll need to use Form 4137 to report unreported tip income. This includes cash tips that customers give you directly. Many bartenders don't realize that underreporting tips actually hurts them twice - once by potentially triggering an audit, and again by reducing credits like the EIC that they're entitled to. With your AGI being lower than your gross due to 401k and health insurance, you're in a good position for the EIC. Just make sure your tip reporting is accurate and complete!

Just wanted to chime in as someone who went through this exact situation last year. I had to file back taxes for 2020 when I was working as a retail manager, but by the time I filed (in 2023) I had moved into accounting. The key thing is that the occupation field on your tax forms should reflect what you were actually doing during the tax year you're filing for - so in your case, definitely put "bartender" for your 2022 taxes. This helps the IRS verify that your W-2 income and any tips you reported make sense for someone working in the service industry during that time period. One thing that helped me was gathering all my old pay stubs and W-2s from 2022 before I started filling out the forms. Having that documentation made it much easier to remember exactly what my job title was and when I worked there. Also, if you received any 1099s for tip income or side work during 2022, make sure those occupations match up consistently across all your forms. The IRS is pretty understanding about back taxes as long as you're being honest and thorough. Just take your time with the forms and don't rush through the details!

One thing I learned when I was filing my back taxes is that it's really important to be consistent with dates too. Since you mentioned you changed jobs, make sure you check exactly when you stopped working as a bartender in 2022. If you worked part of the year as a bartender and part as something else, you might need to list the occupation that provided the most income for that tax year. Also, keep copies of everything you file - especially for back taxes. The IRS might have questions later, and having your own records of what you submitted (including what occupation you listed) can save you a lot of headaches down the road. I made that mistake on my first back tax filing and regretted it when they sent me a follow-up letter months later asking for clarification. Don't stress too much about it though - as long as you're honest about what you were actually doing in 2022, you'll be fine. The occupation field is just one small part of a much bigger picture, and the IRS mostly uses it to make sure everything else on your return makes sense.

I can confirm what others have said - you don't need to file just to preserve your capital loss carryover. I was in a similar situation a couple years back with about $5K in losses and took a year off from working. When I resumed filing the following year, all my losses were still available to use. The key thing is to keep good records of your original loss calculation from last year's return. Make copies of your Schedule D and any supporting worksheets that show how you arrived at the $6,500 loss. The IRS doesn't make these disappear just because you don't file in a zero-income year. That said, focus on your health recovery - that's way more important than worrying about tax filings right now. Your losses will be there when you're ready to get back to earning income and filing returns again.

I went through this exact situation a few years ago and can confirm what others are saying - you absolutely do NOT need to file a return just to preserve your capital loss carryover. I had about $8,200 in capital losses and didn't file for two years due to having no income while dealing with some personal issues. When I finally resumed filing, all my losses were still available and the IRS had no problem with it. The key is keeping your documentation from the year you realized the losses - I kept my original Schedule D, the Capital Loss Carryover Worksheet, and copies of my 1099-B forms just to be safe. Don't stress about this while you're focusing on your health recovery. Your $6,500 in losses will be waiting for you when you're ready to get back to work and start filing again. The carryover doesn't have an expiration date - it stays with you until you use it up against future gains or ordinary income (up to $3K per year). Take care of yourself first - the tax stuff will sort itself out when you're ready.