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If I could give 10 stars I would If I could give 10 stars I would Such an amazing service so needed during the times when EDD almost never picks up Claimyr gets me on the phone with EDD every time without fail faster. A much needed service without Claimyr I would have never received the payment I needed to support me during my postpartum recovery. Thank you so much Claimyr!
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An incredibly helpful service! Got me connected to a CA EDD agent without major hassle (outside of EDD's agents dropping calls ā which Claimyr has free protection for). If you need to file a new claim and can't do it online, pay the $ to Claimyr to get the process started. Absolutely worth it!
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Used this service a couple times now. Before I'd call 200 times in less than a weak frustrated as can be. But using claimyr with a couple hours of waiting i was on the line with an representative or on hold. Dropped a couple times but each reconnected not long after and was mission accomplished, thanks to Claimyr.
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For self-employment income, I actually recommend checking out FreeTaxUSA. I've used it for the past 4 years with my consulting business and it handles Schedule C perfectly well. The federal return is free and state is only like $15. TurboTax wanted to charge me $170 for basically the same thing! The interface isn't quite as slick as TurboTax, but it's totally functional and asks all the right questions about business expenses, home office, etc. Plus they have decent customer support if you get stuck on something.
StarStrider
ā¢Does FreeTaxUSA handle multiple 1099s well? I have like 8 different clients who sent me 1099-NECs this year.
Absolutely! I had 12 different 1099-NECs last year and FreeTaxUSA handled them with no problem. You can enter them all individually or combine them on your Schedule C - it gives you both options. The software also lets you categorize different types of income if you have multiple business activities, which was really helpful for me since I do both consulting and some product sales.
Ravi Gupta
has anyone compared the accuracy between different software options? i did a test last year where i input identical info into turbotax and hr block and got different refund amounts which freaked me out!!! eventually figured out hr block missed a self employment deduction that turbotax caught.
I've actually tested three different options side by side the last two years (TurboTax, FreeTaxUSA, and TaxAct). The federal refund/amount owed was identical in all three when I entered everything correctly. But I noticed TurboTax was much better at prompting me for deductions I might have missed.
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Zara Rashid
Quick tip that nobody mentioned yet - if you use any of the major banks like Chase, Bank of America, etc., many of them have a direct link to IRS Free File in their online banking portals now. I found it under "Tax Services" in my online banking menu. Made submitting my 4868 super easy and I didn't have to create a separate account.
Oh really? I have Chase but never noticed that option. Is it something I can find on the mobile app or do I need to login through the website? Also, does it cost anything extra to use it through the bank portal?
Zara Rashid
ā¢You'll need to login through the website, not the mobile app (at least that was my experience). Look under "Tax Services" or sometimes "Additional Services" in the menu. It doesn't cost anything extra - it's basically just a link that takes you to the IRS Free File service, but it sometimes will auto-fill some of your basic info which saves a step.
Luca Romano
Important reminder that Form 4868 only extends your TIME TO FILE, not your TIME TO PAY!! If you owe money, you still need to pay by the original deadline or you'll get hit with penalties and interest. I learned this the hard way last year and ended up owing an extra $320 in penalties. š
Nia Jackson
ā¢How do you even estimate what you owe if you haven't done your taxes yet? That's what's confusing me about the whole extension process.
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Ethan Clark
One important thing to consider that nobody's mentioned yet - if you're planning to contribute the maximum, make sure you set up your retirement plan BEFORE the end of the calendar year. I made this mistake with my S-Corp last year. I waited until tax time in March to decide on a retirement plan, thinking I could make retroactive contributions. While SEP IRAs allow this (contributions can be made until tax filing), 401k plans must be established before year-end to make contributions for that tax year. Also, don't forget that your S-Corp salary needs to be "reasonable" for your industry and role. If it's too low compared to your distributions, the IRS might reclassify some of your distributions as salary (subject to employment taxes).
Noah Lee
ā¢Do you know if there's a specific deadline to establish the 401k? Is December 31st the cutoff? I'm already in October and want to make sure I have enough time to get everything set up properly.
Ethan Clark
ā¢Yes, December 31st is the hard deadline to establish a 401k plan for the current tax year. However, I strongly recommend not waiting until the last minute. The actual setup process can take several weeks depending on which provider you use. If you start now in October, you should have plenty of time. You'll need to complete plan documents, set up the account, and potentially establish procedures for contributions. Most providers can help you through the process, but again - don't wait until December 15th to start this. The end of the year is their busiest time and things can get delayed.
Mila Walker
Has anyone used Vanguard for their small business 401k? We're considering them for our S-Corp (just me and my husband), but their website isn't super clear about the fees for small plans.
Logan Scott
ā¢We use Fidelity for our S-Corp 401k and have been really happy with them. No account fees for basic plans and their customer service has been excellent when we've had questions about contribution limits and timing. Their website is also much more user-friendly than some of the other options we looked at.
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Another thing to check - did you have any large bonuses this year? Companies often withhold bonuses at a flat 22% rate, which is WAY too low if you're in a higher tax bracket. When I got a $30K bonus last year, they only withheld $6,600, but my actual tax rate on that money was closer to 35%. You might also want to look at your state withholding. Some states have their own W-4 equivalent forms, and underwithholding can happen at both federal and state levels.
Sarah Ali
ā¢YES! I did get a $40K signing bonus with my promotion that they withheld at exactly 22%! I had no idea that wasn't enough. How do you handle bonus withholding? Can you request that they take out more?
You definitely can request additional withholding on bonuses! Most payroll departments will accommodate this if you ask before the bonus is processed. For future bonuses, I recommend calculating roughly what your marginal tax rate is (federal + state + local if applicable) and requesting that percentage instead. For example, if you're in the 32% federal bracket plus 6% state, you might request 38% withholding on the bonus. This still might not cover it perfectly because of how tax brackets work, but it'll get you much closer than the default 22%.
One thing nobody's mentioned - check if you and your husband both selected "Married Filing Jointly" on your W-4 forms without additional adjustments. This is a super common mistake that causes major underwithholding for two-income households! The W-4 assumes that one spouse is the only income earner when you check "Married" without adjustments. So both your employers are withholding as if each of you is the sole breadwinner for the household, effectively giving you double the standard deduction and lower bracket calculations.
This happened to me and my wife! We were both claiming married and ended up owing $8k. The fix is pretty simple - either check the "withhold at higher single rate" box, or complete Step 2 of the new W-4 form where it asks about multiple jobs/spouses.
Lourdes Fox
Don't forget to check if you need to file a FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) if you had foreign bank accounts! If the aggregate value of all your foreign accounts exceeded $10,000 at any point during the calendar year, you need to report them. This is separate from your tax return and has hefty penalties if you don't file. Also, depending on your specific situation, you might need to file Form 8938 (Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets) if your foreign assets exceed certain thresholds. The thresholds for Form 8938 are higher than for FBAR and depend on your filing status and whether you live in the US or abroad.
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Nolan Carter
ā¢Oh no, I didn't even think about reporting my Japanese bank accounts! I had about $15,000 in my account before I moved everything to the US. Is there a deadline for filing this FBAR form? Is it the same as the tax return deadline?
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Lourdes Fox
ā¢The FBAR deadline is April 15, but it automatically gets extended to October 15 if you miss the April deadline. You don't need to request the extension specifically for the FBAR. The form is filed electronically through the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network's BSA E-Filing System, not with your tax return. It's fairly straightforward - you just need to provide information about each account, including the maximum value during the year, account number, and the financial institution's information.
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Bruno Simmons
One word of caution from someone who's been through this: if you're planning to claim the Foreign Tax Credit, be prepared for potential delays in your refund. When I filed with Form 1116 (Foreign Tax Credit) for the first time, my return got flagged for review and my refund was delayed by almost 3 months. Not saying this will happen to everyone, but international tax situations do tend to get more scrutiny. Make sure you have all your documentation organized and ready in case they request additional information.
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Aileen Rodriguez
ā¢Adding to this - I had the same experience but also found that e-filing with the Foreign Tax Credit form went much smoother than paper filing. Paper filing with international forms seems to trigger more manual reviews and longer delays.
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