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Something nobody's mentioned yet - make sure the IRA is set up in your spouse's name, not yours! It sounds obvious, but my friend tried to claim a deduction for a "spousal IRA" that was actually just additional contributions to his own IRA. That's not how it works. You need two separate IRAs - one in your name and one in your spouse's name. Each person can contribute up to the annual limit ($7,000 for 2025 if under 50). The fact that you file jointly allows you to make the contribution to your spouse's IRA despite her not having earned income herself.
AstroAce
•Thanks for pointing this out! I had actually been wondering about this detail. So I need to open a completely separate account in her name, not just designate contributions within my existing account. Makes sense now! Do you know if there's any specific documentation I need for tax filing to show that the contribution to her IRA came from my income?
You're welcome! Yes, it needs to be a completely separate account in her name. Think of IRAs as being tied to a person's Social Security Number, not to a household. For tax filing, you don't need any special documentation showing the money came from your income. The IRS doesn't track or care about the source of the funds going into the IRA - they only care that when filing jointly, the total earned income between both spouses is at least equal to the total IRA contributions made. So with your $47k income, you're more than covered for both IRAs. You'll just report the contributions on your joint tax return.
One thing to consider is whether traditional or Roth is better for your spouse's IRA. With your household MAGI at $47k, you're in a relatively low tax bracket now. It might make more sense to pay the tax now (go with Roth) rather than deduct it (traditional). The benefit would be tax-free growth and withdrawals in retirement when you might be in a higher tax bracket. Just something to think about!
This is really good advice. We're in a similar situation and went with Roth for both IRAs. The tax deduction now would be nice, but the long-term tax-free growth seems more valuable, especially if tax rates go up in the future.
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Miguel Ortiz
Don't forget to look into penalty abatement! If this is your first time having tax issues (sounds like it is), you can request what's called "First-Time Penalty Abatement" which can reduce your total by removing the failure-to-pay penalties. This won't eliminate your tax debt, but it could knock off a significant chunk of what you owe. You'll still need to pay the actual tax amount and interest, but removing penalties helps a lot. Also, make sure you've fixed your W-4 with your employer immediately so you don't keep digging a deeper hole!
I haven't heard about the penalty abatement before! That would be amazing if I could reduce the amount at all. And yes, I fixed my W-4 immediately when I discovered the issue - now they're withholding the correct amount (actually a bit extra to try to make up some ground). Is the penalty abatement something I can apply for myself or do I need to hire someone?
Miguel Ortiz
•You can absolutely request penalty abatement yourself! Call the IRS (or use that Claimyr service someone mentioned if you're having trouble getting through) and specifically ask for "First-Time Penalty Abatement." Explain that you've had a good compliance history before this mistake, and that you've already fixed your W-4 to prevent it from happening again. Be polite and straightforward with the IRS agent. They can often approve this over the phone. If they do deny you for some reason, you can also submit a written request. Just make sure you're specific about requesting the First-Time Abatement provision - sometimes less experienced agents aren't familiar with it.
Just wanted to add that I went through almost this exact situation last year! I accidentally claimed exempt when I started a new job and ended up owing around $10K. I panicked too. I ended up calling the IRS directly and setting up a payment plan. My monthly payment is $178 for 72 months. They were actually really understanding about the whole thing. The person I spoke with explained that this happens WAY more often than you'd think. Don't waste your money on one of those tax relief companies you see advertising on TV. Most of them charge thousands of dollars to do exactly what you can do yourself for free.
QuantumQuest
•Did you get hit with a lot of penalties and interest? I'm curious how much extra you ended up paying because of the mistake.
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Don't forget you can also use Form 4852 (Substitute for W-2) if you absolutely cannot get your W-2s in time! You'll need to estimate your income and withholding based on paystubs or other records. I had to do this one year when a small startup I worked for went under suddenly.
Zainab Yusuf
•Does using Form 4852 cause any red flags with the IRS? I'm always paranoid about doing anything unusual on my taxes that might trigger an audit.
Using Form 4852 by itself doesn't automatically trigger an audit or create red flags. It's an officially recognized form specifically created for situations like this. However, it's important to be as accurate as possible with your estimates to avoid discrepancies. The key is documenting how you arrived at your figures - keep copies of your paystubs or any other records you used to calculate the amounts. If your employer eventually provides a W-2 that differs significantly from your estimates, you should file an amended return. The IRS understands that you're doing your best with the information available to you when your employer fails to fulfill their legal obligation.
Late to this thread but if ur still looking for those W2s u should try checking the IRS website directly. The IRS actually gets copies of W2s from employers and sometimes u can access them through the "Get Transcript" feature on irs.gov if your employer actually submitted them to the IRS. Saved me last year when my W2 got lost in the mail!!
Yara Khoury
•Just be aware the Get Transcript feature on irs.gov won't have your W-2 info until several weeks after employers submit them to the IRS. And if your employer is generally disorganized enough to not send your W-2 to you, they may not have submitted it to the IRS either.
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One thing nobody's mentioned yet - if you itemize and claim charitable deductions, keep all your documentation for at least 3 years after filing! IRS loves to audit charitable deductions, especially large ones without proper documentation. Also, remember that you can only deduct charitable contributions if you itemize deductions on Schedule A. If you take the standard deduction (which most people do now with the higher standard deduction amounts), you won't benefit from charitable contribution deductions.
Thank you for bringing that up! I was planning to itemize this year because I have some other significant deductions as well. Do you know if there's any special forms I need for non-cash donations besides Schedule A?
Yes, for non-cash donations over $500 (which yours definitely are), you'll need to complete Form 8283 and attach it to your return. If the total exceeds $5,000, you might need a qualified appraisal, but you're under that threshold. Make sure you describe the donated items in detail on the form. For multiple similar items (like your craft packages), you can group them together with a good description. Keep good records of how you determined the fair market value - printed screenshots of similar items for sale can help substantiate your valuation if questioned.
Mia Alvarez
Been through this before! Quick tip: most charities will happily provide a donation receipt after the fact. They want you to be able to deduct your donations so you'll keep giving! Just call and explain - most have standard forms they'll fill out for tax purposes.
This is so true! I volunteered at a homeless shelter and we would provide receipts months later. We actually kept a log of all donations even when people didn't ask for receipts initially.
Levi Parker
I completed a voluntary disclosure in Pennsylvania last year. I did it myself without a CPA or lawyer, but I'm not sure I'd recommend that approach to everyone. The process took about 4 months from start to finish. They required me to provide: - Explanation letter detailing why I hadn't filed previously - Completed tax returns for the lookback period (3 years) - Profit and loss statements for my business - Calculation worksheet showing how I determined the tax, interest, and penalties I didn't send a check with my initial application - that came later after we agreed on the final amount. The state actually adjusted my calculations slightly before accepting my offer.
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Libby Hassan
•Did you do the anonymous inquiry first or did you just identify yourself from the beginning? I'm worried about revealing my info if they might reject me.
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Levi Parker
•I went straight to identifying myself, which was probably my biggest mistake. If I could do it over, I would have either used a representative for an anonymous inquiry or at least called anonymously to discuss my situation before revealing my identity. The state was reasonable in my case, but I've heard stories where the disclosure was rejected and then the taxpayer was fully exposed. So approaching it anonymously first is definitely the safer route if you have any concerns about eligibility.
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Hunter Hampton
Just wanted to add that the state actually matters A LOT for voluntary disclosure programs. California's is totally different from like Texas or Florida. What state are you dealing with? That would help us give more specific advice.
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KingKongZilla
•Sorry for not mentioning it! I'm dealing with Illinois. Anyone have experience with their program specifically?
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Sofia Peña
•Illinois has a pretty straightforward VDA program compared to some states. I went through it about 2 years ago. They required 4 years of back filings, and they were pretty reasonable about accepting my calculations as long as I showed my methodology. The key with Illinois is to be extremely clear about why you failed to file previously - they want to see that it wasn't intentional tax avoidance. They also responded much more quickly than I expected - the whole process took about 10 weeks from submission to acceptance.
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