19 This is great advice. My mother got a letter because she forgot about a small stock sale that generated a capital gain. The brokerage reported it to the IRS but she forgot to include it on her return. Does your grandmother have any investments or retirement accounts?

7 Both great questions! For unusual income, she did sell some stocks last year after my grandfather passed away. She's not very financially savvy and has been relying on their longtime accountant who's getting up there in age himself. Regarding prior notices, that's actually very possible. She doesn't open all her mail right away and sometimes sets aside things she doesn't understand. I'm going to visit her tomorrow and go through her mail from the past few months to see if there were earlier notices. The investment angle seems most likely based on your experiences. I'll definitely check on that specifically when I see the letter. Thank you both for the helpful suggestions!

6 Those gift card scams are terrible! My neighbor fell for one of those and lost $2000. Definitely check the payment methods requested. The real IRS offers multiple payment options and NEVER asks for gift cards, wire transfers, or cryptocurrency.

Wouldn't creating a business entity and then donating back the profits create more paperwork and possibly more taxes than it saves? Seems like you'd have to report all the income first, pay self-employment taxes on it, and then get a deduction for the donation. Am I missing something?

You raise a good point about the additional paperwork - it definitely creates more administrative work. However, it can still be advantageous in certain situations. The business entity allows you to deduct all legitimate expenses related to the orchard maintenance (equipment, supplies, utilities, property taxes, etc.) against the income. These are deductions you might not otherwise get. While you would pay self-employment tax on the net profit, if your expenses are significant, the net taxable amount could be minimal.

Did you have to get a professional appraisal for that educational easement? And was there a minimum time commitment? I'm curious because I have property I'd consider for something similar but don't want to be locked in for decades.

Thanks for the heads up! Did you have to provide any specific type of documentation that worked best? I've been keeping a shared Google calendar that shows all the custody exchanges and extra days, plus I have most of her school forms and doctor visits showing my address. Would text messages with my ex about schedule changes help too?

The most compelling evidence I provided was a detailed calendar showing all overnight stays, backed up by school attendance records (they showed which parent dropped off/picked up on which days). Text messages absolutely helped - I had several exchanges where my ex asked me to take extra days, which supported my case. Medical receipts showing I paid and was present for appointments were also useful. The IRS agent told me they look for consistent evidence from multiple sources. Make sure everything matches - don't claim your child was with you on days where there's evidence they were at the other parent's home. Consistency across different types of documentation is what ultimately won my case.

This is super important! My decree explicitly states that "the parent who has the child for more overnights in the tax year may claim Head of Household status" - so if yours has specific language like that, you need to follow it. Courts can hold you in contempt even if the IRS would allow something different.

Thanks for bringing this up! Do you know if there's a quick resource that breaks down different state requirements? My situation is even more complicated because I moved mid-year and had income in multiple states.

There isn't really one perfect resource that covers all states, but the Federation of Tax Administrators (taxadmin.org) has links to all state tax agencies where you can find the specific rules. For multi-state situations, each state you earned income in will have its own requirements. Most tax software platforms also have state-specific guidance built in if you're using one. They'll usually walk you through the proper forms needed for each state. With income in multiple states, you definitely want to be careful since some states have reciprocity agreements while others don't.

Omg this is so important! I completely forgot about this last year and got hit with both penalties AND interest. It's especially confusing because you're paying for two different tax years on the same day. Do you just make two separate payments to the IRS and indicate which is which somehow?

1 Do you think it's worth finding a CPA instead of using online software? I'm worried about missing something with the credits since they're worth quite a bit of money.

8 For your situation, I think online software would be perfectly fine, especially if you use taxr.ai first to understand your specific situation. The education and EV credits are common enough now that all the major tax software handles them well. A CPA becomes more valuable when you have a business, complex investments, rental properties, or unusual tax situations. For a W-2 employee with standard credits, even if there are a couple forms involved, you're probably overpaying for a CPA or H&R Block.

12 You don't need to submit additional documentation with your tax return when claiming the EV credit on Form 8936, but you absolutely should keep all purchase records, VIN information, and manufacturer certification of credit eligibility in your files. The IRS may request this documentation later if your return is selected for review, so having it organized and ready is important. Keep these records for at least 3 years after filing.