What you're experiencing is textbook employee misclassification, and it's costing you real money every month. The fact that you completed W-4 and I-9 forms is the biggest red flag - these are exclusively for employees, never independent contractors. Here's what's happening: you're currently paying both the employee AND employer portions of Social Security/Medicare taxes (15.3% total) when you should only be paying the employee portion (7.65%). Your employer is essentially transferring their tax burden to you while maintaining full control over your work. The IRS looks at three main factors for classification: behavioral control (they set your schedule and methods), financial control (they provide equipment and workspace), and the relationship type (you were hired for a "full-time position" with promised benefits). You clearly meet all the criteria for employee status. Beyond taxes, you're missing out on overtime pay (which is required for employees), workers' compensation coverage, and unemployment benefit eligibility. The late paychecks add another layer of potential state labor law violations. Document everything immediately - save job postings, interview communications, emails about your status, screenshots of that payroll system, and detailed records of hours worked. Then consider filing with both your state's Department of Labor (for the late payments and misclassification) and Form SS-8 with the IRS for an official status determination. Don't let them exploit your new graduate status - this practice is illegal and you have strong grounds to challenge it.

This situation is unfortunately very common and represents clear employee misclassification. The fact that you completed W-4 and I-9 forms is the strongest evidence you have - these documents are exclusively for employees, never independent contractors (who use W-9 forms instead). What's happening is your employer is avoiding their legal obligations while maintaining full control over your work. You're currently paying both employee AND employer portions of Social Security/Medicare taxes (15.3% instead of 7.65%), effectively subsidizing their tax avoidance. Plus you're missing out on overtime pay, workers' compensation, and other employee protections. The late paychecks compound this into potential state labor law violations too. This isn't just about taxes - it's about fundamental worker rights. Here's what I'd recommend: 1) Document everything immediately - save those job postings, interview emails, payroll screenshots, and hour records; 2) File complaints with both your state Department of Labor (faster for wage issues) and IRS Form SS-8 (definitive classification ruling); 3) Calculate your overtime back wages - you should be getting time-and-a-half for hours over 40/week. Don't let them exploit your new graduate status. This practice is costing you thousands annually and violating multiple labor laws. You have strong grounds to challenge this and recover what you're owed. The sooner you act, the sooner you can stop subsidizing their illegal cost-cutting scheme.

Any good resources to learn about partnership tax? I've been using Becker but their partnership stuff isn't very thorough. Have an interview next month and need to study up.

As someone who struggled with partnership tax concepts during my own CPA studies, I'd recommend starting with the fundamentals and building up. Here's what helped me: First, master the basic flow: Partnership income/losses flow through to partners based on their ownership percentages, but partners are taxed on their allocated share whether or not they receive distributions. This is key to understanding everything else. For guaranteed payments vs distributions, think of it this way: Guaranteed payments are like paying an employee (deductible expense, subject to SE tax), while distributions are like paying dividends to shareholders (not deductible, generally no SE tax). The Section 754 election is all about fairness when someone buys into an existing partnership. Without it, new partners can get stuck paying tax on appreciation that happened before they joined. Practice with real numbers - work through examples where you calculate the tax impact on both the partnership and individual partners. This will make the concepts stick much better than just reading about them. Good luck with your interview! The fact that you're preparing this thoroughly shows you're taking it seriously, which will definitely come across to the interviewers.

Has anyone had this issue with H&R Block software specifically? Mine keeps giving me an error when I try to enter both companies, saying the name doesn't match the EIN in their database. I'm wondering if I should just go with a tax professional at this point.

I went through this exact same situation with my PEO W-2 from Insperity last year. The key thing to remember is that the IRS matching system is looking for the EIN to match the primary employer name listed first on the W-2. In your case, "PEO Services LP" should go in the employer name field exactly as shown, because that's what matches their EIN in the IRS database. Your actual workplace "Acme Industries LLC" is listed underneath as additional information, but it's not what the IRS system uses for verification. I made the mistake of trying to "correct" it the first time and got a rejection notice. Once I re-filed with the PEO as the primary employer name (exactly matching the W-2), it went through without any issues. The tax software warnings are there for a reason - they're trying to prevent mismatches with the IRS database. Don't overthink it - just enter it exactly as it appears on your W-2 and you'll be fine!

Just to add another data point, I paid $65 total this year to file through TaxSlayer with 3 W-2s and student loan interest. That included federal AND state filing. No "processing fees" whatsoever because, as others have mentioned, the IRS doesn't charge for that. Liberty Tax was definitely misleading you.

This is a perfect example of why it's so important to understand what you're actually paying for when using tax preparation services. As everyone has confirmed, the IRS absolutely does NOT charge processing fees for W-2 forms or any other standard tax documents. What Liberty Tax charged you as a "$289 federal filing fee" is purely their own preparation fee structure, which they've misleadingly presented as an IRS charge. This is not only unethical but potentially fraudulent business practice. For your simple tax situation (2 W-2s and education credits), you have several much more affordable options: - IRS Free File (completely free if you qualify by income) - Online tax software like FreeTaxUSA, TaxAct, or TaxSlayer (typically $15-65 total) - VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) programs for free preparation I'd strongly recommend filing a complaint with your state's attorney general office and the Better Business Bureau about this misrepresentation. Other taxpayers shouldn't be misled the same way you were.

One thing I'd add from my experience working with international tax compliance is that the classification often depends on how your games are structured from a business model perspective. For example, if you're selling a complete game as a one-time purchase, it's almost always treated the same as other software. But if you have ongoing services like multiplayer servers, regular content updates, or social features, some jurisdictions might classify portions of your revenue as "digital services" rather than software sales, which can have different VAT treatment. Also worth noting - some countries have started implementing digital services taxes (DST) that specifically target large tech companies, but these typically have revenue thresholds that might not affect smaller game developers. However, if you're distributing through major platforms, you might indirectly be affected by how those platforms handle DST compliance. The key is to document your game's features and revenue streams clearly, as tax authorities are increasingly looking at the substance of digital products rather than just broad categories.

This is such a relevant question! I've been dealing with similar challenges in my role handling tax compliance for digital products. One thing I've learned is that while games and software often fall under the same broad "digital goods" category for VAT/GST purposes, the devil is really in the details of how your specific products are structured. For instance, if you're selling games that include ongoing services (like cloud saves, multiplayer infrastructure, or regular content updates), some jurisdictions might treat portions of that as "digital services" rather than a one-time software purchase. I'd also recommend checking if any of your games include user-generated content marketplaces or trading features, as these can sometimes trigger different tax treatments - particularly in jurisdictions that are cracking down on digital asset transactions. Have you run into any specific jurisdictions where you're seeing conflicting guidance, or are you trying to get ahead of this before expanding to new markets? The approach might be different depending on whether you're dealing with existing compliance issues or planning for future expansion.