I'm a tax preparer and see this situation frequently. You absolutely cannot report 2021 income on your 2025 return - this would be incorrect reporting that could trigger penalties for both years. The IRS requires income to be reported in the tax year it was earned. Here's what you need to do: File Form 1040X (Amended Return) for tax year 2021 to properly report that $1,900. Yes, you'll face penalties and interest for late filing, but this is much better than the alternative of incorrect reporting which could be viewed as fraudulent. The good news is that you're coming forward voluntarily, which the IRS views favorably. You might also qualify for penalty relief if you can show reasonable cause for not filing originally. Additionally, check if that extra income might qualify you for credits you missed in 2021 - sometimes the credits can actually offset much of the penalty. Don't let the penalties scare you into making a bigger mistake. File the amended return properly and you'll have this resolved correctly.

As someone who went through a very similar situation recently, I want to echo what everyone else has said - definitely file the amended return for 2021, don't try to report it on your current year return. I had about $2,200 in freelance income from 2020 that I discovered in 2023, and I was tempted to take the "easy" route too. What really convinced me to do it properly was learning about the IRS Computer Matching Program. They literally have copies of every 1099 and will eventually match them to your returns. When they find discrepancies, it triggers automatic notices and potential audits. The penalties for incorrect reporting can be much worse than just filing late. I ended up using a combination of the resources mentioned here - used one of the AI tax tools to calculate my expected penalties upfront, then used the IRS callback service to speak with an agent who confirmed my approach. The whole process took about 6 weeks total, and while I did pay some penalties and interest, it was way less stressful than I expected. One tip: when you file Form 1040X, include a detailed explanation of why you're filing late. I wrote that I had genuinely overlooked the 1099 during a chaotic year, and the IRS agent told me this helped show good faith rather than intentional avoidance. You might even qualify for first-time penalty relief if you have a clean filing history. Don't let the fear of penalties push you into making a bigger mistake. Handle it correctly now and you'll have peace of mind going forward.

Don't panic - you're in a much better position than you think! I went through something very similar when I started my tax internship three years ago. I had taken maybe two accounting classes and retained almost nothing from them. Here's the reality: tax preparation firms hire interns specifically because they expect to train you from the ground up. They're not looking for someone who already knows everything - they want someone who's trainable, detail-oriented, and willing to learn. My recommendation for immediate prep: Start with the IRS's Interactive Tax Assistant (ITA) online tool. It walks you through basic tax concepts in plain English. Then download Form 1040 and its instructions - don't try to memorize it, just get familiar with the flow and terminology. But honestly? The most valuable thing you can do is practice your soft skills. Learn how to ask good clarifying questions, take detailed notes, and admit when you don't understand something. Those skills will serve you way better than cramming tax knowledge you'll probably learn incorrectly on your own anyway. Your firm will have training protocols, reference materials, and (hopefully) patient supervisors. Focus on being the intern who asks thoughtful questions, follows instructions carefully, and shows genuine interest in learning. That attitude will take you much further than trying to fake expertise you don't have. You've got this! The fact that you're already thinking about how to prepare shows you have the right mindset for success.

I completely understand your situation - I felt the exact same way when I started my first tax season! The good news is that most firms genuinely expect interns to start with minimal knowledge, so you're not as behind as you think. Here's what I wish someone had told me: focus on learning the "interview process" more than memorizing forms. Most of your time will be spent asking clients questions about their tax situation and knowing which documents you need from them. Practice questions like "Did you receive any 1099 forms this year?" or "Do you want to itemize or take the standard deduction?" Understanding what these questions mean and why you're asking them is more valuable than knowing every line of the 1040. Also, download the IRS Publication 17 (Your Federal Income Tax) - it's written for taxpayers but explains concepts in plain English that textbooks often overcomplicate. Start with Chapter 1 (Filing Information) and Chapter 12 (How to Figure Your Tax). One practical tip: create a simple cheat sheet of common tax documents and what they mean (W-2 = wages, 1099-INT = interest income, etc.). Keep it handy during your first few weeks - it'll boost your confidence when reviewing client paperwork. Most importantly, embrace being a beginner! The partners and senior staff were all in your shoes once. Show curiosity, ask questions, and take detailed notes. That attitude will impress them way more than pretending you know things you don't. You're going to do great - the fact that you're preparing ahead of time already shows you have the right work ethic for this field!

Just wanted to add my experience with the ADP mobile app navigation since I struggled with this too. The menu structure can be confusing, but here's the exact path I used: 1. Open ADP mobile app 2. Tap "Myself" at the bottom 3. Scroll down to "Pay & Taxes" section 4. Tap "Tax Withholdings" 5. Look for "Federal" or "Update W-4" 6. Tap "Update" or "Edit" The key thing I learned (the hard way) is that maximizing your take-home pay doesn't necessarily mean claiming full exemption. You can increase your allowances or use the "Additional amount to withhold" field in reverse by putting a negative number if your payroll system allows it. Also, keep detailed records of whatever you do. If you're going through financial hardship, consider speaking with a tax professional about estimated tax payments so you don't get hit with a huge bill next April. Sometimes paying a small amount quarterly is better than owing thousands later with penalties and interest.

I've been through this exact situation and wanted to share what worked for me. First, be really careful about claiming full exemption - the IRS has strict rules about this and you could face penalties if you don't qualify. You can only claim exempt if you had zero tax liability last year AND expect zero this year. For the ADP mobile app, here's the path that worked for me: Go to "Myself" → "Pay & Taxes" → "Tax Withholdings" → "Federal" → "Update." The interface isn't super intuitive but it's there. Instead of full exemption, consider maximizing your allowances or claiming "Married" filing status even if you're single (this reduces withholding). You can also look into adjusting the values in Step 4 of the W4 form within ADP. One thing that really helped me was understanding that I could significantly reduce my withholding without going fully exempt. I went from having $400+ taken out per paycheck to only about $50 by adjusting my filing status and allowances properly. Still kept me compliant but gave me the cash flow I needed during my tough financial period. Just remember - whatever you reduce now, you might owe later, so try to set aside something if you can for next tax season. Good luck getting through this rough patch!

I'm also dealing with a similar situation with my freelance music production work! Been making around $200-400 monthly from beats and mixing services, mostly through PayPal and CashApp, and completely ignored the tax implications until now. This thread has been incredibly valuable - especially learning about the CSV export feature for tracking payments. I had no idea that was even possible and was dreading having to manually go through years of transactions. One thing I wanted to add that might help others: if you're using multiple payment platforms like I am (PayPal, Venmo, CashApp), make sure to export from ALL of them when you're reconstructing your income records. I almost forgot about some smaller payments that came through CashApp and that could have caused issues if the IRS ever cross-referenced payment platform data. Also, for anyone doing music production or audio work, don't forget you can deduct software like Pro Tools, Ableton Live, plugin purchases, studio monitors, audio interfaces, and even soundproofing materials if you have a dedicated workspace. These expenses can really add up and significantly reduce what you'll owe. The peace of mind aspect that everyone's mentioned is so real. I've been losing sleep over this for weeks, but seeing all these success stories has me feeling much more confident about tackling those amended returns. Thanks everyone for sharing - this community is amazing!

I'm jumping in here as someone who went through almost this exact situation with my freelance writing work! Made around $100-250 monthly for about 2 years before realizing I needed to report it as income. The relief I felt after getting everything sorted out was incredible. Here's what worked for me: I used the CSV export from Venmo (didn't know this existed until someone mentioned it!) and cross-referenced it with my email confirmations from clients. Filed amended returns for the past two years using TurboTax's self-employment section - it really does walk you through everything step by step. Total back taxes ended up being around $520 including interest, but zero penalties since I was voluntarily correcting it. The IRS processed everything within about 10 weeks without any follow-up questions. One thing that really helped was setting up a simple spreadsheet going forward: Date | Client | Service | Amount | Payment Method. Takes 30 seconds to update after each payment but saves hours during tax season. Don't let the fear paralyze you - this is way more common than you think, and the IRS is surprisingly reasonable when you're being proactive about compliance. You've got this!

Great question! As others have mentioned, S corps are pass-through entities, so the corporation itself doesn't pay federal income tax on profits. However, you'll still need to make quarterly estimated tax payments on your personal return (Form 1040-ES) based on your expected income from the S corp. One thing to keep in mind is that if you're actively working in the business, you're required to pay yourself a reasonable salary through payroll. This salary is subject to payroll taxes (Social Security and Medicare), and you'll need to make regular payroll tax deposits. The remaining profits can then be distributed to you as distributions, which aren't subject to payroll taxes but are still taxable income on your personal return. Also don't forget that your S corp still needs to file Form 1120-S annually by March 15th, even though it doesn't pay federal income tax. This generates your Schedule K-1, which you'll need for your personal tax return. Since this is your first year with an S corp, I'd recommend working with a tax professional to make sure you're handling the reasonable salary requirement correctly - the IRS scrutinizes this closely.

One thing that caught me off guard my first year was the self-employment tax savings aspect of S corps. Unlike sole proprietorships where you pay self-employment tax on all business income, with an S corp you only pay payroll taxes (Social Security/Medicare) on your salary, not on distributions. This can result in significant tax savings, but only if you're paying yourself that "reasonable salary" everyone's mentioned. For quarterly estimated taxes, I use Form 1040-ES and base my payments on my expected total income for the year - both the salary from my S corp and the anticipated distributions. Don't forget to account for any tax withholdings from your S corp salary when calculating how much you need to pay in estimates. Also, since you mentioned this is your first year, make sure you understand the different deadlines: your S corp payroll tax deposits (if you have employees), quarterly personal estimated taxes (4/15, 6/15, 9/15, 1/15), and the annual S corp return (Form 1120-S due 3/15). It can feel overwhelming at first, but once you get into the rhythm it becomes much more manageable!