Your friend needs to act fast - the longer he waits, the worse this gets. I've seen similar cases where foreign LLC owners thought they could just ignore US tax obligations, and it rarely ends well. First, he absolutely needs to find out his current status. The IRS transcript request is the fastest way - he can get it online or by fax. If penalties have already been assessed, interest is accruing daily at around 8% annually. Regarding just walking away - this is a terrible idea. Even if he's not planning to return to the US, the IRS has increasing cooperation with foreign tax authorities. Argentina has tax information exchange agreements with the US. Plus, if he ever wants to do business with US entities again or travel here, unpaid tax debts will follow him. The smart move is voluntary disclosure with a reasonable cause statement. For a first-time filer who genuinely didn't understand the requirements, there's a good chance of getting significant penalty relief. But he needs professional help - this isn't a DIY situation given the amounts involved. Don't let him panic into making a decision he'll regret for decades. The IRS would rather have someone in compliance than chase uncollectable debt overseas.

I went through something very similar with my French business partner's LLC last year. The $25k per year penalties are no joke, but there are definitely options before considering just walking away. For checking penalty status without physical mail access, your friend should immediately request IRS transcripts online at irs.gov. He'll need to verify his identity, but this will show exactly what's been assessed against the LLC. The transcript will include any penalties, notices, and payment history. Regarding just not paying - this is really risky even for foreign nationals. The IRS has been getting much more aggressive about international collections, especially with LLCs that have US bank accounts or assets. They can freeze those accounts, file liens, and as others mentioned, tax treaties mean this could follow him internationally. The better path is definitely voluntary disclosure with a strong reasonable cause statement. I've seen cases where penalties were reduced by 70-90% when the taxpayer came forward proactively. Key factors that helped: demonstrating good faith effort to comply, showing it was due to unfamiliarity with US tax law rather than willful neglect, and having a clear plan for future compliance. He should also consider whether the LLC actually had reportable transactions - sometimes the penalties can be challenged if there were truly no reportable events, though this is fact-specific. Get professional help ASAP - the interest meter is running and early action makes all the difference in penalty abatement requests.

This is definitely unemployment fraud and you should absolutely not do this. I work in tax preparation and see the aftermath of these situations regularly. The IRS and state unemployment offices have sophisticated cross-referencing systems that will catch discrepancies between your unemployment claims and tax filings. When you file your 2025 taxes claiming a newborn dependent born in December, but also received unemployment benefits during that same period for being "laid off," that's going to trigger automatic flags in the system. The timeline will be obvious - you can't be actively seeking work while in the hospital giving birth and caring for a newborn. Beyond the fraud issue, there are legitimate options you should explore first. Many people don't realize that short-term disability insurance often covers pregnancy and childbirth recovery. Check your employee benefits package - you might already have this coverage. Also, some states have temporary disability insurance programs that provide partial wage replacement during recovery from childbirth. If your employer is genuinely experiencing financial hardship and can't provide paid leave, they should be honest about that rather than suggesting illegal workarounds. There may be legitimate ways to structure unpaid leave with partial income replacement through proper channels. Document everything about these conversations and consult with an employment attorney if needed. Your employer putting you in this position is problematic on multiple levels.

As someone who's dealt with similar employer pressure in the past, I want to emphasize how important it is to trust your instincts here. You already know this feels wrong, and you're absolutely right to be concerned. What your employer is suggesting isn't just risky - it's a federal crime. Unemployment fraud can result in criminal charges, hefty fines, and having to repay benefits with penalties and interest. The fact that they're explicitly telling you to lie about your pregnancy makes this even more serious. I'd recommend taking these steps immediately: 1. Document everything - follow up any verbal conversations with emails "confirming what we discussed" 2. Review your employee handbook and benefits package for any short-term disability coverage 3. Research your state's pregnancy/disability benefits programs 4. Consider consulting with an employment attorney, especially since your employer is pressuring you to commit fraud Remember, a good employer should be helping you find legitimate solutions, not asking you to break the law. The fact that they've suggested this before shows a pattern of problematic behavior that could put other employees at risk too. Your financial needs during maternity leave are valid and important, but there are legal ways to address them. Don't let your employer's "solution" jeopardize your future financial security and legal standing.

Has anyone used TurboTax Self-Employed for this kind of situation? I'm wondering if it handles food trucks properly or if I need something more specialized.

Great question! I went through this exact situation with my food truck last year. Since your truck is stationary and functions as a kitchen rather than transportation, it should definitely be classified as business equipment, not a vehicle. For the $54k total cost, here's what I learned: You can separate the truck base ($29k) from the kitchen equipment ($25k) for depreciation purposes. The kitchen equipment might qualify for faster depreciation schedules than the truck itself. Section 179 vs. regular depreciation really depends on your business income this year. If your food truck business is profitable enough to absorb the full $54k deduction, Section 179 gives you the biggest immediate tax benefit. But if your business income is lower, regular depreciation might be smarter since it spreads the benefit over multiple years when you might be more profitable. Don't forget to keep detailed records of those 15k business miles on your personal vehicle - that's a separate deduction using the standard mileage rate. One tip: Consider consulting with a tax professional who specializes in small food businesses. The classification rules can be tricky, and getting it right the first time will save you headaches later!

I just wanted to add another perspective to this discussion - if you're still having trouble getting your employer to cooperate, you might also want to document the financial impact this has had on you as an F-1 student. When I was dealing with a similar FICA withholding issue, I calculated not just the $2,100 that was incorrectly taken from my paychecks, but also the opportunity cost of that money (like interest I could have earned, or how it affected my ability to pay for textbooks and living expenses). I included this in my formal request to HR, emphasizing that as an international student with limited income sources, these incorrect deductions created genuine financial hardship. Sometimes framing it in terms of the real-world impact on your education and living situation helps HR understand the urgency beyond just the technical compliance issues. They realized that holding onto money that was never legally theirs in the first place was causing actual harm to a student's academic experience. Also, don't forget to keep detailed records of all your communications about this issue - dates, names of people you spoke with, and their responses. If you do end up having to file Form 843 directly with the IRS, having a clear timeline of your attempts to resolve this with your employer will strengthen your case significantly. Good luck with getting this resolved! The combination of proper legal citations, escalation to the right people, and clear documentation of the impact should get you that $2,300 back.

I went through almost the exact same situation about two years ago - F-1 student with CPT, employer incorrectly withholding FICA taxes for nearly a year, and payroll initially refusing to fix it. The advice here is spot-on, but I wanted to add one more strategy that really helped me get results. After escalating to HR with all the proper documentation (Form 941-X references, IRS Publication 519, Treasury Regulation citations), I also requested a meeting with both HR and a representative from their legal/compliance team. I framed it as wanting to ensure the company was fully compliant with IRS regulations regarding international employees. During that meeting, I presented a one-page summary showing: 1. The specific IRS regulations requiring FICA exemption for F-1 CPT students 2. The company's legal obligation to correct withholding errors once discovered 3. The potential compliance risks of not correcting known errors 4. The straightforward solution (Form 941-X filings) Having their legal team in the room made all the difference - they immediately understood the compliance implications and directed payroll to process the corrections within two weeks. I think sometimes payroll departments don't realize that refusing to correct known tax errors could expose the company to regulatory scrutiny. The total process took about a month from escalation to receiving my $1,950 refund, but having that legal/compliance perspective really accelerated things. If your company has a legal department or compliance officer, definitely try to get them involved in the conversation.

Just to add a potentially useful resource - publication 556 "Examination of Returns, Appeal Rights, and Claims for Refund" has detailed information about the limitations on refund claims. The key section for your case would be the "Time for Filing a Claim for Refund" portion. Also look into "protective claims" which are sometimes allowed even after limitations periods have passed if there were special circumstances. Not sure if your situation qualifies, but worth investigating. If you filed during COVID, there were also special extensions to some filing deadlines that might potentially apply to your situation. The IRS issued several notices extending various deadlines.

I'm really sorry you're going through this - $75K is an enormous amount to lose to a technicality. While the statute of limitations rules are unfortunately strict, there might be some avenues worth exploring given the amount involved. One thing that stands out to me is that you consistently elected to keep overpayments with the IRS rather than taking refunds - this shows a clear pattern of intending to maintain credit balances for future tax obligations. Some courts have distinguished between different types of payments and credits in similar cases. Have you looked into whether any of the COVID-related relief provisions might apply to your timeline? The IRS issued numerous deadline extensions and special procedures during 2020-2021 that could potentially affect limitation periods. Also, consider whether there were any IRS processing delays or errors that contributed to this situation. If you can document that the IRS failed to properly process your returns or apply your payments in a timely manner, that might provide grounds for an exception. Given the amount involved, I'd strongly recommend consulting with a tax attorney who specializes in statute of limitations cases before accepting this outcome. Many offer free consultations and could quickly assess whether you have viable options for recovery. Don't give up yet - $75K is worth fighting for, and there are specialized advocates who deal with exactly these types of IRS disputes.