Something nobody's mentioned yet - you should check if the debt collector properly renewed the judgment. In most states, judgments expire after a certain period (often 7-10 years) unless the creditor files paperwork to renew it. If yours was from 2013 and they never renewed it properly, it might have expired. You can check this by contacting your county clerk's office and asking about any judgment renewals filed against you. If they didn't renew it and the original judgment has expired, you might be able to challenge the garnishment on those grounds. I went through something similar with an old credit card judgment from 2010. They tried to garnish my bank account in 2022, but I discovered they never renewed the judgment which expired after 10 years in my state. The court immediately terminated the garnishment order when I pointed this out.

Just want to add that if the majority of your income is from SSD, you might qualify to file Form 982 "Reduction of Tax Attributes Due to Discharge of Indebtedness" which can help if you're considered insolvent. This might not stop the current garnishment but could prevent future tax consequences if some of your debt gets discharged. Also, many states have homestead exemptions or wildcard exemptions that protect certain amounts of your assets and income from creditors, even after a judgment. These vary dramatically by state though - where are you located? Might be able to point you to specific state resources.

Curious what tax software people recommend for filing the partial year returns after conversion? I'm going through this exact scenario and usually use TurboTax Business but not sure if it handles this situation well.

I appreciate everyone sharing their experiences here. Just want to add a few additional considerations that might help with your decision timing: 1. **Quarterly estimated taxes** - If you're making quarterly payments as a C Corp, converting mid-year will complicate your Q3 and Q4 estimates since you'll need to calculate them based on your new entity structure. 2. **Employee benefits** - If you have employees or provide yourself benefits through the C Corp (health insurance, retirement plans), these will need to be restructured. Some benefits that were tax-deductible for the C Corp might not be for an LLC. 3. **State franchise taxes** - Many states charge annual franchise taxes for C Corps that are calculated differently than LLC fees. Converting mid-year might still leave you liable for the full year's C Corp franchise tax in some states. The timing really depends on your specific situation, but given the complexity everyone's outlined here, waiting until your accountant returns might be worth the delay. Two weeks could save you from making a costly mistake, especially since you'll need professional help with those dual tax filings anyway.

Great question! This is actually a pretty common scenario for people with mixed income sources. The answer depends on how your employer handles your health insurance premiums. If your $420 is deducted pre-tax from your paycheck (which is most common), you've already received the tax benefit and can't deduct it again for your 1099 income. However, if it's deducted post-tax, you may be able to claim a partial self-employed health insurance deduction on Schedule 1 of your 1040 (not Schedule C). The deduction would be proportional to your self-employment income vs. total income. To check: Look at your pay stub - if the health insurance comes out before taxes are calculated, it's pre-tax. If it comes out after, it's post-tax. You can also verify by checking if your W-2 Box 1 (taxable wages) is lower than your gross pay by more than just the health insurance amount. Even if you can't deduct the health insurance, make sure you're tracking all your other legitimate business expenses for your consulting work - they add up quickly!

I had this exact same situation when I started doing freelance graphic design while working my regular job! The confusion about health insurance deductions with mixed income sources is so real. What really helped me was creating a simple spreadsheet to track everything - not just the health insurance question, but all my freelance expenses. I was surprised how much I could legitimately deduct once I started paying attention: software subscriptions, equipment depreciation, client meeting costs, even a portion of my home office space. For the health insurance specifically, I ended up working with a CPA who explained that since my employer premiums were pre-tax, I couldn't double-dip. But she helped me identify so many other deductions I was missing that it more than made up for it. The key thing I learned is to keep meticulous records from day one of your freelance work. Even small expenses add up over the year, and come tax time you'll be glad you tracked everything properly!

Has anyone had luck with state efiling for prior years? I know the IRS doesn't allow it, but I'm wondering if some states might have different rules? I'm in California if that matters.

I went through this exact same situation last year! Unfortunately, as others have mentioned, you really can't efile prior year returns through any service - it's just not allowed by the IRS regardless of who prepares them. What I ended up doing was printing my completed TurboTax returns and sending them via USPS Priority Mail with tracking. It actually wasn't as slow as I expected - my returns were processed within about 6-8 weeks, which is pretty standard for paper filing. One tip that helped me: I called the IRS processing center for my area about 3 weeks after mailing to confirm they received my returns. You can find the right number on the IRS website based on where you're mailing your returns. It gave me peace of mind knowing they actually got them and were in the system. The certified mail route that Connor mentioned is also a good option if you want extra proof of delivery, though it does cost a bit more than regular Priority Mail.

In addition to what others have said, make sure you're tracking ALL your expenses, not just mileage! I do all these delivery apps too and was leaving money on the table my first year. Deductible expenses: - Phone bill (% used for gig work) - Phone holder/mount for car - Hot bags (if you bought your own) - Portion of car insurance - Parking fees while waiting for orders - Dashcams (safety equipment) - Cleaning supplies for your car - Masks, hand sanitizer, etc. If you use the actual expense method instead of standard mileage rate, you can also deduct gas, maintenance, repairs, etc., but usually the standard mileage rate is better.

Great thread! I went through this exact same confusion last year with DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Postmates. One thing I learned the hard way is to make sure you reconcile your bank deposits with what the platforms report. DoorDash's 1099-NEC was straightforward, but Uber's tax summary sometimes includes tips and other payments that might not match exactly with your bank records due to timing differences. I had to go through my statements month by month to make sure I wasn't missing any income or double-counting anything. Also, even though you can combine everything on one Schedule C, I'd suggest keeping a simple spreadsheet that breaks down your income by platform just for your own records. It helps you see which apps are actually worth your time and makes it easier if you ever need to answer questions about your income sources. The business code 492000 that Anastasia mentioned is spot on - that's what I used and had no issues with the IRS.