I've been in Chapter 13 for exactly 37 months now. In my district, they distinguish between earned income credits and regular tax refunds. I was allowed to keep 100% of my $3,742 EIC last year, but had to surrender 75% of my regular refund of $1,893. The trustee required me to provide my complete tax return within 14 days of filing. They then issued a determination letter exactly 21 days later specifying what I could keep. The process varies significantly by jurisdiction though.

This is such helpful information from everyone! I'm actually dealing with this exact situation right now - filed my taxes two weeks ago and have been dreading the conversation with my trustee. Reading through these experiences, it sounds like the key things are: 1) Don't spend the refund before getting approval, 2) Have documentation ready for any expenses you want to justify, and 3) Know that each district really does handle it differently. @Mei Chen - that's really encouraging that your district allowed you to keep 100% of the EIC! I'm hoping mine has a similar policy. Did you have to file any specific paperwork beyond just notifying them, or was it more automatic once they reviewed your return? For anyone still figuring this out, it might be worth calling your trustee's office early in tax season to ask about their specific procedures. Better to know upfront than be scrambling after you've already filed!

Am I the only one who thinks it's ridiculous that student aid can be taxable at all??? The government gives us grants because we need financial help for college, then turns around and taxes us on that same money? Make it make sense. 🙄

I completely understand your frustration - dealing with scholarship taxation can be really stressful! From what I've learned through my own experience and research, the key is tracking exactly how you used the refund money. Since you mentioned using the $1750 for rent and groceries, that portion would likely be considered taxable income. However, if you also purchased any required textbooks, lab supplies, or other course materials with scholarship money during the same academic year, you might be able to reduce the taxable amount. My advice would be to gather all your receipts and records from that semester - tuition bills, book purchases, required supplies, etc. Calculate your total qualified educational expenses and compare that to your total scholarship/grant amount. Only the excess beyond qualified expenses needs to be reported as income. Also, don't stress too much about perfect precision if you can't find every receipt. The IRS expects reasonable estimates based on your best recollection. Just be honest and consistent in how you calculate it. You've got this!

You might want to check your TurboTax account for an actual acceptance email or notification. In my experience, TurboTax will update from "pending" to "accepted" within exactly 24-48 hours if everything goes smoothly. Then WMR typically updates 24 hours after that. If it's been more than 72 hours since filing and you still see "pending" in TurboTax (not just WMR showing nothing), I'd suggest calling TurboTax directly at their support line to verify if there were any transmission issues.

I can definitely understand your concern! I went through this exact same worry pattern last year. Here's what I learned from my experience and talking to IRS representatives: The "pending" status in TurboTax generally means your return has been transmitted to the IRS but they haven't yet sent back the official acknowledgment. This is completely normal and expected during the first 24-48 hours after e-filing. Regarding your amended return concerns from last year - those delays were likely due to the complexity of Form 1040-X processing, which requires manual review. Regular returns (Form 1040) go through automated systems first, so the timeline is much more predictable. A few things to keep in mind: • WMR often lags behind TurboTax status updates by 24-72 hours • Filing time matters - returns submitted on weekends may take longer for initial processing • Peak filing season (late February through April) can cause slight delays in status updates If you're still seeing "pending" in TurboTax after 72 hours, then I'd recommend contacting their support. But given that you mentioned checking "multiple times today," you're likely still well within the normal processing window. Your return is almost certainly in the IRS queue and progressing normally.

Another thing to consider is timing. If you're close to year-end, you might be able to strategically split your tuition reimbursements across tax years. For example, if you're taking classes that span December-January, you could submit for reimbursement of fall semester in December (up to the $5,250 tax-free amount) and then submit spring semester in January (getting another $5,250 tax-free in the new tax year). I did this last year and was able to get almost $10,500 tax-free by splitting it across two tax years. Check your company's policy though - some have rules against this.

This is such a confusing area of tax law! I went through something similar last year with my company's education benefit program. One key point that hasn't been fully addressed - make sure you understand exactly how your employer is coding the reimbursement. Some companies mistakenly include the entire amount as taxable wages when only the portion above $5,250 should be taxable. I had to work with our payroll department to correct this because they were treating my entire $8,000 reimbursement as taxable income instead of just the $2,750 excess. That mistake would have cost me hundreds in unnecessary taxes. Also, if you're pursuing a degree that's directly related to your current job responsibilities, document everything thoroughly. While you can't claim education credits on employer-paid expenses, proper documentation of the work-relatedness can sometimes help with how the reimbursement is processed. The timing strategy mentioned by Daniela is smart too - I wish I had known about that approach when I was dealing with this!

I'm jumping in late to this conversation, but wanted to share that I just went through this exact scenario last month. Small partnership investment, tiny loss (mine was -$23), and TurboTax throwing the Form 8990 warning at me. After reading through all the helpful advice here, I followed the steps everyone outlined: checked Box 20 (no Code AH), contacted my partnership to confirm their small business election status, and then confidently overrode TurboTax's warning. My return was e-filed and accepted without any issues. What really struck me is how this thread demonstrates the value of community knowledge over just blindly following tax software warnings. The software is designed to be cautious, but sometimes that caution creates unnecessary stress for situations that clearly don't warrant it. A $16.50 loss triggering business interest expense limitation forms is the perfect example of when human judgment needs to override algorithmic warnings. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - it's exactly this kind of practical advice that helps newcomers navigate tax season without losing their minds over software glitches!

I'm a tax preparer and see this Form 8990 confusion constantly with small partnership investors. Your situation is textbook exempt - with only a $16.50 loss and no Code AH in Box 20 of your K-1, you absolutely do not need to file Form 8990. The business interest expense limitation (Section 163(j)) was enacted to prevent large corporations from over-leveraging, not to catch small investors with minimal losses. Think about it logically - what business interest expense could possibly be limited on a $16.50 loss? Here's my professional advice: Override TurboTax's warning and e-file. The software is being overly cautious because it sees a K-1 and defaults to assuming complex forms might be needed. But the IRS instructions are clear - without Code AH checked and with such a minimal amount, you're exempt. If you're still nervous, print out the Form 8990 instructions and read the exemptions section. You'll see that your situation clearly falls under multiple exemptions. Don't let tax software create stress over something that's a complete non-issue for your tax situation.