Quiet disclosures are risky. My accountant told me the IRS has algorithms that flag sudden new international form filings and compares them with prior years. If you're not in Streamlined program but suddenly show foreign accounts that have existed for years, they might look closer at your past returns.

I was in a very similar situation about two years ago - had foreign accounts for several years, reported all the income properly, but completely missed the Form 8938 requirement. The stress was unreal once I realized my mistake. After consulting with a tax attorney, I decided to go through the Streamlined Domestic Offshore Procedures rather than just start filing going forward. The key factor for me was that I could honestly certify my non-compliance was "non-willful" - I genuinely didn't know about the Form 8938 requirement since I was already reporting the income. The Streamlined process required filing amended returns for the last three years with the missing 8938 forms, plus a detailed statement explaining why I hadn't filed them before. The 5% penalty on the highest account balance was much better than potentially facing the $10-50k penalties per form if they discovered it later through an audit. One thing that helped my case was keeping good documentation showing I'd always reported the income accurately - bank statements, tax returns, etc. This demonstrated I wasn't trying to hide anything, just didn't understand the separate reporting requirement. Would definitely recommend talking to a tax professional about your specific situation, especially with $175k across multiple countries. The peace of mind from getting compliant through an official program was worth it for me.

Does anyone know if having an instagram where I post outfit ideas and styling tips counts as advertising for tax purposes? I spend a lot of time on that but never thought of it as a business expense before.

Great question Mei! As someone who went through this exact same situation last year, I totally understand the overwhelm. Here are some key points that really helped me: **Start with the basics:** You'll file Schedule C with your regular tax return. The good news is you don't need any special permits for federal tax purposes - just treat it like any other business. **Essential deductions to track:** Transportation to clients (huge one!), professional development (workshops, courses), business use of your phone/internet, photography equipment for portfolio work, business cards/marketing materials, and any styling tools or equipment. **Organization tip:** I wish someone had told me this earlier - set up a separate business checking account even if it's just a free one. It makes tracking so much cleaner and shows the IRS you're treating this as a legitimate business. **Self-employment tax:** This caught me off guard my first year! You'll pay about 15.3% on your net profit for Social Security/Medicare, plus regular income tax. Setting aside 25-30% of each payment you receive is a good rule of thumb. The most important thing is to start tracking everything NOW, even if you're not perfectly organized yet. You've got this! Feel free to ask if you have specific questions about any deductions.

I'm in a very similar situation - verified through ID.me about 6 weeks ago after my return was flagged, and still seeing absolutely no movement on my transcript. The agent told me the same thing about it being processed but no timeline. It's so frustrating not knowing if there's an actual issue or if it's just sitting in some digital pile somewhere. What's really getting to me is that I filed in early March, so we're looking at almost 6 months total now. I've been following the Wednesday/Friday checking schedule that others mentioned, which has helped my sanity a bit compared to checking daily. Has anyone here had success calling the IRS after verification to get an update? I'm wondering if it's worth trying to get through to someone or if they'll just tell me to keep waiting. The uncertainty is almost worse than just knowing it would take X amount of time. Really hoping we all see movement soon - this whole process has been such a nightmare this year!

I went through ID.me verification about 8 weeks ago and finally saw movement last week! My transcript updated with the 971 notice code on a Wednesday, then got the 846 refund code the following Friday with a deposit date. Total timeline was almost exactly 2 months from verification to getting my money. The waiting was absolutely brutal, especially since I filed back in February. What kept me going was reading success stories like the ones in this thread and knowing that once you're verified, you're definitely in the system - it's just a matter of when your return gets picked up for processing. One thing I noticed is that my transcript updated in batches - like multiple codes appeared on the same day rather than gradually. So even though nothing was showing for weeks, when it finally moved, everything happened pretty quickly after that. Stay strong everyone who's still waiting! I know it feels endless but based on what I've seen here, most people are getting their refunds within 6-10 weeks of verification. The system is definitely slow but it does eventually work.

I actually used to work for a tax prep software company (not TurboTax but a competitor) and the stuff that goes on behind the scenes is unbelievable. These companies spend MILLIONS lobbying Congress to keep taxes complicated and prevent the IRS from offering pre-filled returns like they do in other countries. The whole industry exists because they've created an artificial problem. In most developed countries, the government sends you a pre-filled tax form that you just need to verify and sign. But here, we've made it so complicated that people are scared to do it themselves. The free filing program? That was a deal the industry made to prevent the government from creating its own free filing system. They promised to offer free services but then hid them and created obstacles to finding them.

I've been using FreeTaxUSA for the last 3 years and it's WAY better than TurboTax. Federal filing is completely free no matter how complicated your taxes are, and state is only $15. No hidden fees or upsells constantly popping up. TurboTax tried to charge me $120 for self-employment income the year before I switched. FreeTaxUSA handled my Schedule C, home office deduction, and mileage tracking for $0. The interface isn't as pretty but it works perfectly.

My sister went through this exact scenario last tax season. Her ex claimed their two kids despite them living with her full-time. You know what happened? The IRS froze both refunds and sent both parents a letter requesting documentation. She sent in school records showing her address, medical bills she paid, and their custody agreement. Guess what? Her ex's tax return was adjusted, the kids were removed from his return, and he had to pay back the refundable credits he'd incorrectly received. The IRS actually handles these situations pretty effectively, don't you think? The key is responding quickly to any IRS notices and having your documentation ready.

I went through something very similar with my ex last year, and I can tell you that the IRS definitely has systems in place to prevent duplicate payments. When there are conflicting dependent claims, they'll typically send CP87A notices to both parties requesting documentation to prove eligibility. The key thing is that since you already received the advance CTC payments and stimulus for the children, the IRS has a record of this and won't automatically issue duplicate credits to your ex-husband. However, your refund processing might be delayed while they sort it out. Make sure you keep all your documentation ready - custody agreements, school enrollment records showing the kids' address, medical records, etc. Also, regarding him claiming you as a dependent - that's clearly incorrect unless you lived with him the entire year and had gross income under $4,700, which doesn't sound like your situation at all. File your return as soon as possible if you haven't already!