Just FYI, for 2025 the Social Security wage cap is $168,600 (someone above mentioned this), but wanted to clarify that the Medicare portion of FICA (1.45%) applies to ALL of your income no matter how high. Then there's that additional 0.9% Medicare tax that kicks in after $200k if ur single. I earn about 230k and the Medicare tax is the one that surprises ppl when they get to higher income levels. U never stop paying it no matter how much u make!

Something that helped me when I was in a similar situation (around $250k) was understanding that FICA taxes are actually handled quite differently if you have multiple employers during the year. If you switch jobs mid-year like I did, each employer withholds Social Security tax separately up to the wage cap. So you might end up overpaying Social Security tax if your combined wages from both employers exceed $168,600. The good news is you can claim the excess as a credit on your tax return - you don't have to wait for the IRS to process a separate refund. This was a nice surprise when I filed my taxes after switching jobs halfway through 2024. I got back about $1,200 in excess Social Security tax that had been withheld. Just something to keep in mind if your career situation changes during the tax year!

Just be prepared for your ex to potentially file incorrectly anyway. My ex filed as married filing separately even though we were divorced by year-end and it caused my return to be rejected when I tried to e-file as single. It was a nightmare to fix. Maybe reach out to your ex proactively and explain the December 31st rule, or have your tax preparer do it. Might save you both a headache later.

This is such a common source of confusion! I went through almost the exact same situation two years ago. The key thing to remember is that the IRS doesn't care how long you were married to your ex during the year - only your marital status on December 31st matters for filing purposes. Since you were legally married to your new husband on December 31st, you can absolutely file jointly with him. Your ex will need to file as single, not married filing separately, because he was divorced on December 31st. The "married filing separately" status only applies to people who are actually married to each other on the last day of the tax year. I'd suggest getting this information directly from the IRS or a tax professional to share with your ex, since he seems confused about the rules. It might help avoid any filing errors that could cause problems for both of you later. Good luck!

3 Another thing to consider - your son should definitely start making quarterly estimated tax payments for his self-employment income. The deadline for Q1 2025 payments is April 15th. This spreads out the tax burden throughout the year AND helps avoid underpayment penalties that the IRS can charge! For a rough estimate, he should set aside about 30% of his self-employment profit for taxes (15.3% for self-employment tax plus income tax). The IRS Form 1040-ES has worksheets to calculate this more precisely.

4 Your son might also qualify for the Qualified Business Income (QBI) deduction, which could reduce his taxable income by up to 20% of his net business profit. This only applies to income tax though, not self-employment tax. Make sure your tax software is calculating this - it can make a significant difference!

Careful with the "under $5,000" automatic exemption that some people mentioned. That only applies if you're ALWAYS going to stay under $5,000 in annual gross receipts. If you think you might exceed that amount in the future, you should file for formal exemption within 27 months of formation to have it apply retroactively. Also, don't forget to check if your state has separate requirements for nonprofit status! Federal 501(c)(3) status doesn't automatically exempt you from state taxes in all states.

As someone who went through this exact situation with my campus volunteer organization last year, I'd strongly recommend starting with your university's student activities office. Most schools have streamlined processes for recognized student groups to operate under the university's tax-exempt umbrella. Here's what worked for us: We got official recognition from the school (sounds like you already have this), then applied for our own EIN using Form SS-4, clearly stating we were a student organization affiliated with [University Name]. We included documentation from student activities confirming our official status and charitable purpose. This allowed us to open a bank account without paying the $600 filing fee, and we operate tax-exempt through the university's status. We still file basic reports with the school annually, but no federal tax returns required. If that doesn't work out, definitely look into Form 1023-EZ ($275) as others mentioned, but try the university route first - it's often the simplest and cheapest option for legitimate student service organizations.

Just wanted to add some practical advice from someone who's been through this process. Make sure you understand the income limits for these credits too - the AOTC starts phasing out at $80k for single filers ($160k for married filing jointly) and completely phases out at $90k/$180k. Also, since you mentioned you're military, double-check how your housing allowance (BAH) and other military pay affects your adjusted gross income calculation. Some military benefits are tax-free and won't count toward those income limits, but your base pay will. One more thing - if you're using the GI Bill in addition to Tuition Assistance, that can complicate things further since GI Bill payments are generally tax-free. You can't claim credits for expenses that were paid with tax-free education benefits. Keep detailed records of everything: your laptop receipt, program requirements stating a computer is needed, documentation of which expenses were covered by military benefits versus out-of-pocket, and any correspondence with your school about technology requirements. The IRS loves documentation if they ever question your claim.

One thing I want to emphasize from my experience as a tax professional - be very conservative with your laptop purchase amount if you're claiming it as an educational expense. The IRS has been scrutinizing expensive technology purchases more closely in recent years. For a computer science program, a laptop in the $1,200-$2,000 range is much easier to defend than a $5,300 gaming laptop. Even if your program requires specific software, the IRS will look at whether the specs you chose were reasonable for educational purposes or if you went overboard for personal use. Also, keep a usage log for the first few months showing how you use the laptop for coursework. If you're audited, being able to demonstrate that 80%+ of your usage was for required school activities strengthens your case significantly. The education credits are legitimate and valuable, but they're also frequently audited precisely because people try to push the boundaries on what qualifies as "required" educational expenses.