Just FYI - there's a $2,500 threshold for Form 943. If you pay less than $2,500 in wages to agricultural employees during the year, you might be exempt from filing. But since you mentioned running regular payroll, sounds like you'll be over that. And if you're using a payroll service they should handle the deposits and everything for you!

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm in a similar situation with our small vineyard. One thing I wanted to add that might help others - make sure you also understand the difference in Social Security and Medicare tax treatment for agricultural employees. Agricultural workers are subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes, but the timing of when you need to pay these can be different from regular employees. For agricultural employees, you generally don't owe Social Security and Medicare taxes until you either pay them $150 or more in cash wages during the year, OR they work for you on 20 or more days during the year for cash wages computed on a time basis (rather than piecework). This is different from the income tax withholding rules, so you could have a situation where you're withholding income tax but not yet owing Social Security/Medicare taxes, or vice versa. Your payroll provider should know this, but it's worth double-checking since agricultural payroll has so many special rules that even experienced providers sometimes miss!

I'm a GC and I can tell you there's NO WAY to legally pay zero taxes unless you're either: 1) Making so little money that you fall below taxable thresholds 2) Having business losses that offset any income 3) Lying Even if he's writing off every possible business expense, self-employment taxes ALONE would be 15.3% of net income. There's basically no way around that unless he's incorporated in a specific way, but then he'd be paying corporate taxes.

Your neighbor is almost certainly either exaggerating or breaking the law. As someone who's worked in tax compliance for years, I can tell you that the IRS has gotten very sophisticated at catching unreported income, especially in cash-heavy industries like construction. Even if he's legitimately maximizing every business deduction available - vehicle expenses, tools, materials, home office, etc. - there are still minimum tax obligations he can't avoid. Self-employment tax alone is 15.3% on net earnings, and that applies regardless of how many deductions he takes. The lifestyle you're describing (new truck, vacations, pool) while claiming zero tax liability is exactly the kind of red flag that triggers IRS scrutiny. They have algorithms that compare reported income to spending patterns, and auditors are specifically trained to spot these discrepancies. If he's really bragging about this to neighbors, he's being incredibly reckless. The IRS takes tax evasion seriously, and the penalties can be devastating - not just back taxes, but interest, fines, and potentially criminal charges. I'd stay far away from whatever "system" he thinks he's using.

Has anyone here dealt with selling a Treaty of Amity company? I'm considering buying one from another American, and wondering about tax implications of the purchase/sale transaction.

This is such a helpful thread! I'm in a similar situation - American looking to start a business in Thailand under the Treaty of Amity. Reading through all these responses, it sounds like the key takeaways are: 1) It's a Thai company with special ownership privileges, not a US company 2) Form 5471 is definitely required for CFC reporting 3) FBAR and Form 8938 likely needed for bank accounts 4) GILTI and Subpart F rules can apply 5) FEIE is still possible but gets complicated with company ownership One question I haven't seen addressed - does the type of business matter for these reporting requirements? I'm looking at starting a consulting business vs. my friend who wants to do e-commerce. Would both have the same IRS filing obligations, or do certain business types trigger additional requirements under the Treaty of Amity structure? Also, has anyone worked with a US tax professional who specializes in Treaty of Amity businesses? It seems like regular expat tax preparers might not be familiar with this specific structure.

Have you tried the "Two Earners/Multiple Jobs" worksheet that comes with the W-4 form? It's specifically designed for couples where both spouses work. It helps you figure out the additional withholding needed to cover the combined income.

You're definitely being smart to check this now! I went through something similar when my wife and I both got promotions mid-year. The key thing to remember is that the safe harbor rule can help you avoid penalties - if you pay at least 100% of last year's tax liability (or 110% if your prior year AGI was over $150k), you won't owe penalties even if you end up owing money. Since you mentioned you're around $115k combined, I'd suggest running the IRS withholding calculator first to get a baseline. Then consider whether you want to be conservative and slightly overwithhold to avoid any surprises, or try to get it exactly right. One thing that caught many people off guard this year - if either of you got sign-on bonuses or other lump sum payments with your job changes, those are often under-withheld because they're treated as supplemental income. That could be contributing to your shortfall. The good news is you caught this in April with plenty of time to adjust! Much better than discovering it in January when filing.

Has anybody used TaxAct or TurboTax for nonprofit returns? I'm wondering if they handle these kinds of special situations or if I need specialized nonprofit tax software.

Just want to echo what others have said about documenting everything, even for that short initial period. I went through something similar with my nonprofit - we incorporated in late 2022 but didn't really start operations until 2023. For your situation, since you had zero revenue in 2023 and minimal expenses, the 990-N (e-Postcard) is probably your best bet for that first partial year (11/15/23-12/31/23). It's much simpler and you can file it online in about 10 minutes. The key eligibility factor is that your gross receipts were under $50K for that period, which they clearly were. Regarding penalties - yes, there can be late filing penalties ($20 per day up to $10K for small organizations), but the IRS is generally reasonable about waiving them for new organizations with legitimate reasons. When you file, include a statement explaining you were a newly formed organization waiting for 501(c)(3) determination and had no significant financial activity. I did this for our late first filing and never heard anything about penalties. One thing to keep in mind - make sure your fiscal year is properly established with the IRS. Since you're doing calendar year (Jan 1 - Dec 31), that should be straightforward, but double-check that it matches what you indicated in your 1023 application.