Hang on - have you checked if your state has income tax at all? Not all states do! Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming don't have state income tax, and New Hampshire only taxes investment income. If you're in one of those states, you don't need to file a state return at all!

Don't stress too much about this! I went through the exact same thing last year and found a few good solutions. First, definitely check if your state has its own free filing portal - many do and they're separate from the federal programs. You can usually find these by searching "[your state name] department of revenue free file" or similar. If that doesn't work out, I'd actually recommend trying the fillable PDF route that Jake mentioned. I was intimidated at first too, but once I had my federal return next to me, it was mostly just copying numbers from one form to another. Most state returns start with your federal AGI and then make small adjustments from there. Also, don't be afraid to call your state tax department if you get stuck on specific questions. I know the hold times can be rough, but the people who answer are usually pretty helpful with walking you through the forms. You've already done the hard part by completing your federal return - the state is usually much simpler!

Just went through this last year with my grandkids. Make SURE the bank sets up the account with the child's SSN as the primary tax ID number!!! My bank messed this up and reported all the interest under my SSN even though the account was supposed to be a custodial account. Had to file an amended return and it was a huge hassle. When you open the CDs, specifically ask who will receive the 1099-INT and verify it will be issued to the child's SSN.

This is such a thoughtful way to handle your stepchild's survivor benefits! I went through something similar when my sister passed and I became guardian of her two kids. A few practical tips from my experience: When you open the CDs, bring your stepchild's Social Security card and specifically tell the bank representative that this is a custodial account funded with the child's survivor benefits. Ask them to read back to you exactly whose SSN will be the primary tax ID on the account - this saved me from the reporting headache others mentioned. Also, keep detailed records of where the money comes from (survivor benefits) and what it's used for. I created a simple spreadsheet tracking the monthly survivor benefit deposits and any transfers to CDs or other investments. This documentation was really helpful when I had questions about dependency status and support calculations. One thing that surprised me was that some banks have special "Representative Payee" account types specifically for people managing Social Security benefits for others. These accounts are designed to keep the beneficiary's funds separate and ensure proper tax reporting. You might want to ask if your bank offers this option. The dependency and tax credit questions you're asking are exactly the right ones - it shows you're being really careful about doing this properly!

I filed my Form 1045 in June 2024 for a significant NOL from my consulting business that shut down. After reading this thread, I'm now at about 6 months which seems to align with what everyone else is experiencing. One thing I want to add that hasn't been mentioned - make sure you keep detailed records of everything you submit. I sent mine certified mail and kept copies of every single page. My accountant also recommended attaching a cover letter explaining the situation clearly, which might help the processor understand the case faster. The waiting is brutal, especially when you're counting on that refund, but it sounds like most people are eventually getting their money. I'm going to try calling using one of those services mentioned here if I don't hear anything by month 8.

I'm currently preparing my Form 1045 for a substantial business loss from 2024 and this entire thread has been incredibly eye-opening. Based on everyone's experiences, it sounds like I should be mentally preparing for at least a 6-month wait, possibly longer. A few questions for those who've been through this process: 1. Is there any advantage to filing earlier in the tax year vs later? Like if I get my 1045 submitted in February vs April, does that make any difference in processing time? 2. For those who used services like taxr.ai for preparation - did you feel confident that the calculations were accurate enough that you didn't need additional CPA review? I'm trying to balance cost vs accuracy here. 3. Has anyone tried including a detailed cover letter explaining their situation and the urgency? I'm wondering if that helps flag the application for faster processing or if it just gets ignored. The lack of any tracking or status updates from the IRS seems like the most frustrating part. At least with regular tax returns you get some acknowledgment that they received your filing. The complete radio silence for months on end with a potentially large refund hanging in the balance is really stressful. Thanks to everyone who's shared their experiences - it's helping me set proper expectations and prepare all my documentation thoroughly before submitting.

Does anyone know if the VITA certification tests are the same difficulty level as last year? I barely passed the Advanced certification and am nervous about doing it again.

Thanks everyone for all the helpful info! I just wanted to share my experience as someone who's been coordinating a VITA site for 3 years. A few additional tips for returning volunteers: - Start checking the Link & Learn system regularly starting in early November - sometimes the new year's tests roll out gradually - Don't wait until the last minute! Sites usually want all volunteers certified by mid-December so we can schedule training sessions - If you're planning to do Advanced certification again, I'd recommend reviewing Schedule C (business income/expenses) and the retirement savings contributions credit - these seem to trip up a lot of people Also, for anyone worried about the difficulty level - the IRS actually provides really good feedback when you get questions wrong during practice tests. Use that to your advantage! The goal isn't to make the tests hard, it's to make sure volunteers are prepared to help taxpayers accurately. Looking forward to another great tax season helping folks in our community!

2 Has anyone noticed that the blended tax rate shown in different tax software programs can vary slightly? When I calculated mine in TurboTax it showed 23.8% but when I checked with H&R Block online it showed 23.5%. Same numbers entered in both! Which one is right??

Thanks for asking this question - I was having the exact same confusion! The explanation about progressive tax brackets makes perfect sense now. One thing that helped me understand it better was looking at the actual tax bracket amounts for our filing status. For 2024 Married Filing Jointly, you're only paying that 35% rate on income between $364,200 and $462,500. Everything below that gets taxed at lower rates (10%, 12%, 22%, 24%, 32%), which is why your average comes out to 23.6%. I found it helpful to think of it like this: if you made $400,000, only $35,800 of that would be taxed at 35%, while the rest gets taxed at progressively lower rates starting from 10%. When you average it all out, you get that blended rate that's much lower than your top bracket.