Everyone saying "report all your cash tips" must not work in the industry 😂 nobody reports 100% of cash tips and we all know it. But definitely report your credit card tips since those are tracked. For real tho, all my server friends have been talking about this no-tax tip thing and nobody seems to know what's actually happening. Thanks for clearing it up that it's not a thing yet.

As someone who's been working in restaurants for over 8 years, I can confirm what others have said - there is NO current law that makes tips tax-free. The confusion is understandable because politicians have been talking about it a lot, but talking about something and actually passing it into law are very different things. Here's what you need to know RIGHT NOW for your 2024 taxes: - ALL tips (cash and credit card) are taxable income - You must report them on your tax return - Your employer already reports your credit card tips to the IRS - Not reporting tips can result in penalties, interest, and potential audit I know it sucks because tips are such a huge part of our income, but the current law is clear. Keep doing what you're doing and report everything properly. If any tip tax law does pass in the future, it will be widely announced through official channels, not just workplace rumors. Stay safe and file correctly!

Has anyone here dealt with an audit where you had a small amount of earnings between the time you made the nondeductible contribution and when you converted it? I contributed $6k to a traditional IRA in January and it grew to $6,250 before I converted it to Roth in March. The IRS is saying I owe taxes on the full $6,250 instead of just the $250 earnings.

I went through almost the exact same situation last year with my backdoor Roth conversion audit. The IRS flagged my 2021 return for the same reason - they treated my conversion as an early withdrawal despite proper Form 8606 filing. What really helped me was organizing a complete timeline of the transactions with all supporting documents. I created a simple table showing: 1) Date of nondeductible contribution to traditional IRA, 2) Form 5498 showing the contribution, 3) Date of conversion to Roth IRA, 4) Form 1099-R showing the distribution, and 5) Form 5498 showing the Roth conversion deposit. I also included a cover letter explaining that this was a legitimate backdoor Roth IRA conversion, not an early withdrawal, and referenced IRC Section 408A(d)(3) which governs IRA-to-Roth conversions. The key was showing the IRS that every dollar distributed from the traditional IRA was immediately deposited into the Roth IRA. My audit was resolved in about 6 weeks with no additional taxes or penalties. The IRS auditor even mentioned that these cases are becoming more common as more people do backdoor Roth conversions, but their computer systems don't always recognize the transaction pattern correctly. Don't panic - you did everything right, it's just a documentation issue that can be cleared up!

I want to warn you about something I experienced that could save you some stress. When my amended return was processed last year, here's what happened: 1. Tax Advocate told my senator's office it was processed (similar to your situation) 2. I checked WMR tool daily - no updates for 2 weeks 3. I called IRS directly and they confirmed payment was scheduled 4. The refund was sent BUT to my old address despite having updated it 5. Had to wait for it to be returned to IRS 6. Then had to request a trace on the payment 7. Finally received it 6 weeks later than expected Make sure your address and direct deposit info are correct in the system! The processing and payment systems are separate, and sometimes address updates don't transfer between them. Double-check everything now to avoid delays later.

This sounds really promising! When the Tax Advocate confirms processing is complete but mentions the "payment update hasn't hit the system yet," you're essentially in the final queue. I went through this exact process two years ago with my amended return after getting my representative involved. From my experience, once TAS confirms processing completion, you're typically looking at 1-2 weeks max before the refund date appears in the Where's My Amended Return tool. The key thing to remember is that the IRS processing system and the Treasury payment system operate somewhat independently - think of it like your return has cleared customs but is waiting for the final shipping label. One tip: keep checking the WMR tool every few days rather than daily (I know it's tempting!). The system usually updates overnight on Wednesdays and Fridays. Also, make absolutely sure your direct deposit information and address are current in the system - sometimes the payment processing pulls from older records than the processing system uses. You should be able to start making those home improvement plans soon! The congressional inquiry route typically expedites things significantly once you reach this stage.

I verified by phone on February 20th. My transcript updated with code 846 on March 9th. Deposit hit my account March 14th. Total of 23 days from verification to money in account. Not great, not terrible. One thing - if you're using the money for visa fees, plan for delays. The IRS doesn't care about your deadlines. Have a backup plan for the money just in case.

I went through this exact situation last month as a non-resident! I verified online on March 15th and got my 846 code on March 28th - exactly 13 days later. The refund hit my account 3 days after that. Here's what I learned: Online is definitely faster, but make sure you have backup documents ready. The system asked me questions about previous addresses going back 5 years, which was tricky since I've moved internationally. I had to have my old lease agreements and bank statements handy. For your May 20th deadline, if you verify this week, you should be cutting it close but likely okay based on the timelines people are sharing here. Just don't wait - every day counts when you're working with IRS processing times. And honestly, have a backup funding plan for those visa fees just in case there are unexpected delays. The IRS doesn't adjust their timeline for our life events, unfortunately. Good luck with the verification process!

Ok maybe I'm crazy but try checking your transcript REALLY early in the morning like 3-4am EST. For some reason I could never see updates during regular hours but middle of the night I could see everything. IRS systems are weird.

I'm going through the exact same thing! Filed March 8th, verified identity March 14th, and it's been radio silence ever since. My transcript is completely blank and WMR just says "still being processed" with no progress bars. Called twice and both reps told me the same thing - verification shows complete but to just wait longer. It's so frustrating not knowing if something is actually wrong or if this is just normal now. Really hoping we see some movement soon because I'm starting to stress that my return got lost somewhere in their system.