Just to add to what others have said - I made the exact same mistake when I started filing for my S-Corp. One thing that helped me was looking at the language at the top of Schedule B which specifically says "Report Your Tax Liability for Each Pay Date..." not your gross wages. I use a simple spreadsheet now where I track: 1) Pay date 2) Federal income tax withheld 3) Social Security (both parts) 4) Medicare (both parts) 5) Total (which goes on Schedule B) Makes it super easy to keep everything straight.

I went through this exact same confusion last year with my S-Corp! The key thing that finally clicked for me was understanding that Schedule B is specifically about your TAX LIABILITY, not your payroll amounts. Here's what I learned the hard way: For each pay date, you need to add up: - Federal income tax you withheld from employees - Employee portion of Social Security tax (6.2%) - Employer portion of Social Security tax (6.2%) - Employee portion of Medicare tax (1.45%) - Employer portion of Medicare tax (1.45%) That total is what goes on Schedule B for each pay date. So if you paid $10,000 in wages on March 15th, you're not putting $10,000 on Schedule B - you're putting the total tax liability that resulted from that $10,000 payroll. The IRS agent who told you that you were doing it wrong probably saw that you were listing gross wages instead of tax liabilities. It's a super common mistake that almost everyone makes initially. Once you switch to tracking the actual tax amounts, it becomes much clearer.

I had the same issue back in January. Turns out they mailed a check even tho I put direct deposit info. Keep an eye on your mailbox

That "return has been paid" message is confusing wording but it usually means your refund has been processed and issued. Since you filed so early (January 6th), you're probably in the first wave of refunds. Check both your bank account AND mailbox - sometimes the IRS switches to paper check if there's any issue with direct deposit info. If it's been more than 21 days since that status appeared, definitely call them using the early morning trick someone mentioned above!

Has anyone considered the state tax implications? I'm in California and found that the S-Corp comes with an $800 minimum franchise tax PLUS a 1.5% tax on net income. My CPA showed me that when factoring in these state-specific costs, the S-Corp advantage was much smaller than I initially calculated. Might be worth checking your state's rules - some states don't recognize S-Corps or treat them differently than the federal government does.

Great discussion everyone! As someone who made the S-Corp election last year for my web development LLC, I wanted to share some real numbers to help with the decision. I was making around $180k and after consulting with my CPA, we set my reasonable salary at $125k. This saved me about $4,200 in self-employment taxes annually. However, the additional costs were significant - $600/year for payroll service, $1,200 extra in accounting fees, and about 4-5 hours of my time quarterly dealing with payroll filings. The net benefit was still positive at around $2,400/year, but it wasn't the massive savings I initially expected. The sweet spot seems to be when you're consistently earning $200k+ where the tax savings really start to outweigh the hassle and costs. One thing I wish I'd known earlier: you can always revoke the S-Corp election if your income drops or circumstances change, but you have to wait 5 years to elect it again. So make sure you're committed to the income level that makes it worthwhile before making the switch. Also, don't forget about estimated quarterly payments - they become more complex with an S-Corp since you need to account for both payroll taxes and the pass-through income from distributions.

Don't forget you need to have a written accounting policy in place at the beginning of the tax year to use the de minimis safe harbor! It's a simple document but needs to exist. My tax person rejected some of my deductions last year because I didn't have this policy.

Great question about the written policy requirement! The IRS requires you to have a written accounting policy that states you'll treat items costing less than a certain dollar amount (up to $2,500 for businesses without applicable financial statements) as expenses rather than capital expenditures. The policy doesn't need to be complicated - it can be as simple as: "Items with a cost of $2,500 or less per item will be expensed in the year of purchase rather than capitalized and depreciated." You need to have this policy in place at the beginning of the tax year, not when you file your return. You can find sample policies in IRS Publication 946 or many accounting websites have templates. The key is dating it properly and keeping it with your tax records. I learned this lesson after my CPA had to amend some returns - definitely worth getting this simple document in place!

I'm not entirely sure, but you might want to consider contacting your local Taxpayer Advocate Service. They typically won't intervene until after the normal processing time has passed, which in your case it has. I believe they can sometimes help when there's a financial hardship involved, which it sounds like there might be with your childcare and car repair needs. It's possibly worth a try, though they're also facing backlogs of their own.

Wow, 10 weeks with no hold time is definitely a miracle! I'm currently at week 8 in errors myself and have been getting the busy signal for three days straight. One thing that might help while you wait - if you're facing financial hardship with the childcare and car repairs, you should definitely look into the Taxpayer Advocate Service like Amara mentioned. They have a specific hardship criteria and can sometimes expedite cases when there's a legitimate financial need. I'd also recommend documenting everything - dates you called, what representatives told you, your financial situation - just in case you need it later. The referral the agent sent is actually a good sign though, it means your case is getting some attention rather than just sitting in a queue. Fingers crossed you see movement before that May 28th date!