3 has anyone dealt with the 1098-T form in this situation? my daughter's school sent her the form with HER ssn on it since she's the student, but if i'm claiming her and the education credit, do i need to somehow get that form reissued to me? how does this work with electronic filing?

This is such a helpful thread! I'm in a similar situation with my college sophomore who paid about $12,000 in tuition from her summer job earnings. One thing I learned from my tax preparer last year is to keep really detailed records of what you're paying for your kids' support - not just the big things like housing and health insurance, but also groceries, phone bills, car insurance, etc. The IRS "more than half support" test includes ALL living expenses for the year. I created a simple spreadsheet tracking what I pay vs what she pays, and it was eye-opening. Even though she paid her own tuition, I was still covering about 65% of her total support costs. This documentation gave me confidence to claim her as a dependent and take the American Opportunity Credit on my return. The key is looking at TOTAL support for the year, not just who paid the biggest single expense. Tuition might be the largest line item, but when you add up housing, food, insurance, transportation, etc., parents often still provide the majority of support even for working college students.

Just wanted to chime in with my recent experience - I sold my rental condo last year after owning it for 6 years and had about $22K in suspended passive losses. The key thing I learned is that you need to make absolutely sure you're tracking the suspended losses correctly from year to year. I found discrepancies between what my tax software was showing and what was actually on my filed returns. Turns out my software wasn't properly carrying forward some of the losses from 2020. When I sold the property, I was able to claim all the accumulated passive losses against my regular income - not just against the gain from the sale. This was a huge tax benefit that I almost missed because I didn't understand the rules initially. My advice: Go back through your actual filed returns (not just what your software shows) and manually track your suspended losses year by year. Make sure the amounts match up. The IRS has all your filed returns on record, so you want to make sure you're claiming the right amount when you dispose of the property. Also, don't forget that if you had any years where you used some of the passive losses (maybe you had other passive income), those amounts reduce your suspended loss carryforward. It's easy to overlook this when calculating your total accumulated losses.

I've been dealing with a similar situation with my rental property that I'm planning to sell next year. One thing that's been really helpful is keeping a separate spreadsheet to track my suspended passive losses year by year, outside of whatever my tax software shows. I noticed that some tax software doesn't clearly show the suspended loss carryforward amounts on the actual forms, even though they're tracking them internally. This can make it confusing when you're trying to figure out exactly how much you have accumulated. For your situation with line 1c being empty, this is actually pretty common. Many tax software programs track the suspended losses in their internal calculations but don't always populate line 1c explicitly. The losses are still being carried forward properly - they're just not displayed in that specific line. When you do sell the property, make sure to keep good documentation of your total suspended losses. I've heard stories of people missing out on thousands in deductions because they couldn't properly document their accumulated losses from prior years. The IRS will have your filed returns on record, so you want to make sure your calculations match what was actually filed. One more tip - if you're getting conflicting advice, it might be worth getting a consultation with a CPA who specializes in rental properties. The passive loss rules can be tricky, and you don't want to leave money on the table or make mistakes that could trigger an audit.

Quick question - has anyone used TurboTax to file with an EIDL grant? Is there a specific place where you enter this or do you just not include it as income? Don't want to mess this up!

Great question! As others have mentioned, the EIDL grant portion is generally not taxable at the federal level under Section 139 of the Internal Revenue Code. However, I want to emphasize something that's been touched on but is really important - make sure you keep detailed records of exactly how you used those grant funds. Even though the grant isn't taxable income, the IRS still wants to see proper documentation if you're ever audited. I'd recommend creating a simple spreadsheet showing the grant amount, the date received, and specifically what business expenses you paid with those funds (rent, utilities, payroll, etc.). Also, since you mentioned you're between accountants, when you do find a new one, make sure they're familiar with EIDL grant treatment. Some preparers who don't deal with small business clients regularly might not be up to speed on the current rules. Good luck with your filing!

Has anyone talked about the deadline aspect? You mentioned having an extension, but those military extensions only last so long. Are you using a tax professional or filing yourself? With this complexity, it might be worth getting a CPA who specializes in military transitions.

I went through something very similar when I separated from the Air Force in 2022. The key thing that helped me was getting everything documented in writing from DFAS before filing my taxes. Here's what I'd recommend based on my experience: 1. **File with your W-2 as is** - Your payroll contact is correct that the W-2 reflects the proper reporting to the IRS. The overpayments aren't taxable income since they're considered debt. 2. **Get a debt collection statement** - Request written documentation from DFAS showing the overpayment amount and confirming it's being treated as debt, not income. This protects you if there's ever an audit. 3. **Understand your repayment options** - When you repay, you'll likely only need to repay the net amount (what hit your bank account after taxes). The withholdings stay with the IRS as credits on your return. 4. **Don't wait for DFAS to contact you** - They can be incredibly slow. Proactively starting the debt collection process will give you more control over timing and payment options. The good news is this situation is more common than you think, and the IRS understands how military pay works. Your extension gives you time to get the documentation you need, but don't stress too much about filing "incorrectly" - you're filing with the W-2 as provided, which is exactly what you're supposed to do.

One important thing nobody's mentioned - if you file on time but your return gets rejected after the deadline, make sure you keep proof of your original filing attempt! Screenshot the confirmation page showing you submitted before the deadline. This has saved me from penalties twice when dealing with rejections. The IRS system timestamps your submission attempt, not just the final acceptance.

Great question about payment timing! As others have mentioned, you should always make your payment by the filing deadline regardless of acceptance status. I learned this the hard way a few years ago when I waited for acceptance and ended up paying interest on late payments. One thing to add - if you're ever unsure about your exact tax liability close to the deadline, it's better to overpay slightly than underpay. The IRS will send you a refund for overpayments (though it takes time), but underpayments start accruing interest and penalties immediately after the deadline. Also, for future reference, you can make payments online through IRS Direct Pay or EFTPS even if your return hasn't been accepted yet. Just make sure to include your SSN and tax year so the payment gets properly credited to your account when your return is eventually processed. Glad your return got accepted! The 1095-A forms can definitely cause processing delays, especially when combined with dependent status questions.