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Have you considered that your Form 2553 might have been filed late originally? There's a specific rule that Form 2553 must be filed either within 2 months and 15 days of the beginning of the tax year the election is to take effect, OR at any time during the tax year preceding the tax year it is to take effect. If you missed this deadline, you might need to request relief under Revenue Procedure 2013-30, which allows for late S corporation elections. This involves attaching a statement explaining why you had "reasonable cause" for filing late.
This is actually really important. Many accountants don't realize how strict the S-corp election timing requirements are. I've seen so many businesses get caught by this technicality. The form requires a specific effective date and if that date doesn't comply with the timing rules, the IRS will reject it or process it for a future year.
I'm dealing with a very similar situation right now with my 2022 return. The IRS initially accepted my 1120-S but then sent a rejection letter months later claiming they had no record of my S-corp election. What's frustrating is that I filed Form 2553 well within the deadline and have the certified mail receipt. One thing that helped me understand what happened was requesting my Entity Control Document (ECD) from the IRS Business Master File. This shows exactly how they have your business classified in their internal system versus what your actual filings indicate. You can request this by calling the Business & Specialty Tax Line or including it in your written correspondence. In my case, the ECD showed that someone had manually entered my business as a "disregarded entity" (single-member LLC) even though my formation documents clearly established a corporation. This was purely a data entry error on their end. I'm now working with a tax attorney to file a formal protest of the rejection along with all supporting documentation. The key seems to be proving that any classification error originated from IRS processing mistakes rather than incorrect filings on your part. Since your business is dissolved, you might want to act quickly as there are time limits on how long you can dispute these issues. Have you tried requesting your complete business file from the IRS to see exactly what they have on record?
Navy Fed member here. I've tracked my deposits over the last three years. Here's what happens: 1) IRS assigns your DDD on transcript with code 846. 2) IRS initiates ACH transfer 1-2 days before DDD. 3) Navy Fed posts it as soon as they receive it, not on the official date. 4) Most people see it 1-2 days early, but not always. Drives me crazy when people say they always get it early because it's not guaranteed!
Navy Fed member for 3 years here! Can confirm they do release early sometimes, but like @Anastasia Sokolov said, it's not guaranteed. What I've noticed is it seems to depend on what day of the week your DDD falls on. When my DDD was on a Friday last year, I got it Wednesday. But when it was on a Tuesday, I only got it one day early on Monday. The ACH system doesn't run on weekends, so that might explain the pattern. Also worth noting - make sure your account info is exactly right because any mismatch can delay things significantly!
The form you need is Form 4797 Part III for this situation. You'll report the business percentage of the car, the sale price, and your adjusted basis. The key is calculating that adjusted basis correctly by subtracting all the depreciation you took (or were deemed to have taken with standard mileage). The IRS Publication 463 has charts showing the depreciation portion of the standard mileage rate for each year. For example, it was 26 cents per mile in 2022, 25 cents in 2021, etc. Multiply your business miles each year by that year's rate to get your total depreciation.
Thank you! This really helped me understand what's happening. I looked up those depreciation rates and did the math - turns out I claimed about 35k business miles over 3 years, which works out to roughly $8,750 in "depreciation" through the standard mileage rate (averaging about 25 cents/mile). No wonder the software thinks I had a gain - according to the IRS, I've already written off MORE than my original $7k purchase price through my mileage deductions. I guess that makes sense from their perspective, even though it feels weird to pay taxes on selling a car for way less than I bought it for. I'll use Form 4797 as you suggested.
This is a perfect example of why keeping detailed records is so important for rideshare drivers! What you're experiencing is completely normal but definitely confusing the first time you encounter it. The key insight that others have mentioned is that the standard mileage rate isn't just covering gas and maintenance - it includes depreciation too. So every year you claimed those business miles, the IRS was essentially saying "okay, we'll let you deduct this amount, but we're also going to reduce what you 'own' in this car by the depreciation portion." One tip for the future: if you do rideshare driving again, consider keeping a simple spreadsheet tracking your total business miles each year and the depreciation rates. That way when you eventually sell your next vehicle, you won't be surprised by the tax implications. You can find the historical depreciation rates in IRS Publication 463. Also, remember this "gain" will likely be taxed as ordinary income (depreciation recapture) rather than capital gains, so factor that into your tax planning!
One thing nobody's mentioned - be careful about how this affects your estimated tax payments! If you were paying quarterly estimated taxes as a sole prop and then switched to S-Corp mid-year, the calculation gets tricky. When I converted, I underpaid my estimated taxes and got hit with a penalty. Make sure your accountant helps you figure out the right amounts for each business structure during the respective periods.
That's a really good point about estimated taxes. Would you end up needing to make separate estimated payments for the sole proprietorship portion versus the S-Corp portion of the year?
You're absolutely right to be concerned about that second accountant's advice. Filing S-Corp returns for periods when you weren't actually operating as an S-Corp is risky and could cause serious issues down the road. The incorporation date error needs to be corrected properly. Here's what I'd recommend: 1. File Form 8822-B to correct the business information with the IRS. Include a detailed letter explaining the error and attach documentation showing your actual incorporation date. 2. For 2024 taxes, file as a sole proprietor (Schedule C) for January through June, then file a short-year S-Corp return (Form 1120-S) for July through December when you were actually operating as an S-Corp. 3. Don't worry about "drawing attention" to yourself - correcting errors is normal and expected. The IRS processes these corrections regularly. The key issue is that S-Corp status comes with specific requirements like taking reasonable salary, maintaining separate accounts, and following corporate formalities. If you claim S-Corp status retroactively for periods when you weren't meeting these requirements, you could lose your liability protection and face problems in an audit. Better to take a few extra steps now to fix this properly than to deal with much bigger headaches later. Find a new accountant who understands the importance of getting this right!
This is really helpful advice! I'm dealing with a similar situation where my accountant made an error on my election date. One question though - when you file the short-year S-Corp return for July-December, do you need to do anything special to indicate it's a partial year return? I want to make sure the IRS understands why I'm only filing for 6 months instead of the full year. Also, has anyone had experience with how long the Form 8822-B correction typically takes to process? I'm worried about filing my 2024 returns before the correction goes through.
Xan Dae
According to the IRS website (https://www.irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript), the different transcript types update on different schedules. The Account Transcript is typically the most up-to-date and accurate reflection of your return status. If that shows your return was filed, you should be good. The Wage & Income Transcript can lag behind by several weeks during busy filing seasons.
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Genevieve Cavalier
I experienced this exact same issue last year! It's actually pretty normal - the IRS has multiple database systems that don't sync up in real time. Your account transcript is the authoritative source, so if that shows your return was filed, you're all set. The wage transcript system runs on a different update cycle and can take 2-6 weeks to catch up, especially during peak filing season. Since you mentioned needing the refund for your husband's PCS move, I'd recommend checking your account transcript for processing codes like TC 150 (return posted) and TC 846 (refund issued). If you see those, your return is definitely in the system and processing normally despite what the wage transcript shows.
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