Has anyone else noticed that the 1098T is often wrong for international students? My university messed up mine last year and included my TA stipend as a "scholarship" even though it was actually employment income reported on a W-2. Double check everything on your form!

I went through something very similar my first year as an international student! One thing that really helped me was creating a detailed spreadsheet tracking ALL my educational expenses - not just tuition. Things like mandatory student fees, required textbooks, lab equipment, and even technology fees can count as qualified educational expenses to offset that scholarship income. Also, definitely document your sponsor arrangement properly. Since you're repaying them the exact amount, this sounds more like an interest-free loan than a scholarship. If you can get something in writing from your sponsor confirming this is a repayment arrangement (even a simple letter), it could change your tax situation significantly. The university might have incorrectly categorized this on your 1098T. One last tip - make sure you're checking if your home country has a tax treaty with the US that might provide benefits for scholarship income. Many international students miss this and end up overpaying. Good luck with your filing!

Has anyone successfully gotten their overwithholding refunded without getting corrected W-2s? My employer admitted they messed up but said they "can't" issue new W-2s because they already filed with the IRS. They offered to just cut me a check directly.

I'm dealing with this exact same issue right now! My employer also overwitheld Social Security tax because I hit the wage cap partway through the year, but they kept deducting from my paychecks anyway. One thing that helped me was calculating the exact amount they owe me and putting it in writing. For 2024, the Social Security wage base is $168,600, so any SS tax withheld on wages above that amount should be refunded. I made a simple spreadsheet showing my cumulative wages by pay period and highlighted exactly when I hit the cap and how much was incorrectly withheld after that point. I also found it helpful to reference IRS Publication 15 (Employer's Tax Guide) when talking to HR. Section 5 specifically covers the Social Security wage base and employer responsibilities. Having that official IRS publication number to cite made them take me more seriously. Don't let them drag this out - you're absolutely right that it's their legal responsibility to fix this, not yours. Keep escalating until you get to someone with actual authority to process the correction. Good luck!

This thread has been incredibly helpful - thank you all for sharing your real experiences! I'm in a similar position with a property sale and have been getting pitched on DSTs left and right. What really stands out to me from reading through everyone's comments is that the legitimate DST arrangements seem to require giving up immediate access to most of your proceeds (like Maya's 30% upfront structure), while the sketchy ones promise you can have your cake and eat it too (90%+ upfront with full tax deferral). I think I'm going to follow Emma's advice and run a proper financial analysis including all fees before getting swept up in the tax deferral excitement. The 3.5% upfront fee that Ava mentioned would cost me over $50K on my transaction - that's a lot of capital gains tax I could pay instead! Has anyone here worked with a fee-only financial planner (not someone selling DSTs) to evaluate whether these arrangements actually make sense? I'm thinking an independent analysis might be worth the cost before I commit to anything.

This entire discussion has been eye-opening! As someone who works in tax preparation, I see clients getting pitched on DSTs constantly, and the sales tactics are often quite aggressive. What concerns me most is that many promoters are targeting people who aren't sophisticated enough to understand the risks. A few red flags I tell my clients to watch for: 1) Any promoter who guarantees the arrangement will never be challenged by the IRS, 2) Promises of getting 80%+ of proceeds upfront while deferring all taxes, 3) High-pressure tactics claiming "this opportunity won't last," and 4) Reluctance to provide detailed documentation for independent review. The legitimate DST arrangements I've seen typically involve substantial genuine deferrals of proceeds (not just token amounts), have real economic substance beyond tax avoidance, and are structured by attorneys who specialize specifically in this area - not general tax preparers or financial advisors trying to earn commissions. If you're considering this route, I'd strongly echo the advice about getting multiple independent opinions. The IRS has significantly increased enforcement in this area, and the penalties for getting it wrong can be severe. Sometimes the most expensive advice is the "free" consultation from someone trying to sell you something.

This is such a helpful thread! As someone just starting out with a BC-based online business, I'm saving all these resources. One question I haven't seen addressed yet - what happens if you accidentally charge the wrong tax rates to customers? I'm worried I might mess up the provincial rates since they seem to change and I have clients scattered across Canada. Is there a way to correct this after the fact, or do you just have to eat the difference? Also, if you overcharged a customer on taxes, do you refund them directly or does it go through some official process with CRA/BC? The taxr.ai tool mentioned earlier sounds promising for preventing these mistakes, but I'm curious about the cleanup process if you've already been doing it wrong for a few months.

This thread has been incredibly informative! I'm a freelance graphic designer in BC and was completely lost on the tax requirements. Based on what everyone's shared, it sounds like I need to: 1. Register for GST/HST if my total revenue (including US clients) exceeds $30k 2. Register for BC PST regardless of revenue since design services are taxable in BC 3. Not charge any taxes to my US clients (zero-rated exports) 4. Charge appropriate GST/HST rates for Canadian clients based on their province 5. Only charge BC PST to BC clients The mention of taxr.ai and Claimyr is really helpful - I've been dreading calling CRA but knowing there are tools to help navigate this makes it feel less overwhelming. I think I'll start with the tax calculation tool to make sure I understand what I should be charging, then use the CRA callback service to confirm my specific situation. One follow-up question: for creative services like graphic design, are there any special considerations for determining where the "place of supply" is? Some of my clients are corporations with offices in multiple provinces, and I'm not sure which address to use for tax purposes.

I completely understand your stress about this - FBAR errors can feel overwhelming, especially on your first filing! The good news is that selecting the wrong "Type of Filer" box is definitely something you should and can easily fix with an amended filing. Since all your actual account information and financial data are correct, this falls into the category of a non-material error that you're voluntarily correcting. The IRS and FinCEN much prefer when taxpayers proactively fix mistakes rather than hoping they won't be noticed. Here's what I'd recommend: log back into the BSA E-Filing System and prepare an amended FBAR. When you get to the filing type section, select "Amended" and briefly explain in the text field something like "Correcting Type of Filer selection in Box 2." Make sure to reference your original BSA ID number so they can link the filings. The sooner you file the amendment, the better - there's no benefit to waiting. This type of voluntary correction of a form error (as opposed to hiding unreported accounts) is exactly the kind of compliance behavior they want to see. You're doing the right thing by fixing it!

I can relate to the anxiety you're feeling about this FBAR mistake - it's completely normal to be nervous about getting everything right, especially on your first filing! The consensus from everyone here is spot on: filing an amended FBAR is definitely the right approach for correcting the "Type of Filer" error. What might help ease your mind is knowing that the BSA E-Filing System is designed to handle these exact situations. When you log in to file the amendment, the system will guide you through indicating it's a correction to your previous filing. The fact that all your account information and financial data are accurate is the most important part - that shows you're making a good faith effort to comply properly. One small addition to the great advice already given: when you do file the amendment, you might want to save a copy of the confirmation screen or any reference numbers for your records. Having documentation that you proactively corrected the error can be helpful if any questions ever arise down the road. You're handling this exactly the right way by addressing it promptly rather than ignoring it. Take a deep breath - this is a very fixable situation!