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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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Amina Toure
Has your friend checked if they qualify for any tax credits? Sometimes the issue isn't just withholding but missing opportunities to reduce the tax bill. Since you mentioned they have an ex who claims their child, they might qualify for some credits even if they don't claim the child as a dependent. Also, if they're contributing to a traditional 401k, they might consider looking into whether a Roth 401k would be better for their tax situation in the long run. Won't help with the immediate withholding issue but could be better tax-wise over time.
StarSailor}
ā¢That's a really interesting point about tax credits! I don't think we've explored that angle. He pays child support but doesn't have custody, so I'm not sure what credits might apply in his situation. Are there specific ones you know of that might help? And good point about the Roth 401k - I'm pretty sure he's in the traditional one but I'll definitely mention that option to him.
Amina Toure
ā¢If he pays child support, he should look into whether he qualifies for the noncustodial parent earned income credit in his state (some states offer this). While he won't qualify for the federal EIC without claiming the child, he might be eligible for other adjustments. For the 401k, Traditional reduces his taxable income now but taxes later, while Roth is taxed now but tax-free later. If he's in a lower tax bracket now than he expects to be in retirement, Roth often makes more sense. Either way, remind him that his 401k contribution percentage might need to be adjusted if he switches types to maintain the same take-home pay.
Has anyone noticed that the W4 calculator on the IRS website is actually terrible at calculating the right withholding? I tried using it for 2 years straight and still ended up owing!
The IRS calculator is definitely hit or miss. It works okay for people with very standard situations (one job, no deductions beyond standard, no credits) but fails for anything remotely complex. I've had better luck with some of the calculators built into tax software like TurboTax's W4 helper, but even those aren't perfect.
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My wife and I file separately too (also because of student loans), and we had this exact issue last year. Your tax preparer is definitely making a mistake. The Dependent Care FSA contributions are pre-tax regardless of filing status. Make sure they're completing Part III of Form 2441 correctly. Even though you can't claim the dependent care credit when filing separately, you still need to complete the form to properly account for the FSA benefits. If done correctly, those FSA contributions will remain non-taxable. Don't let your preparer tell you otherwise! I had to actually print out the IRS instructions and highlight the relevant sections before my preparer finally got it right.
Emma Morales
ā¢Can you explain what exactly needs to be filled out on Form 2441? My preparer is insisting I don't even need to file this form since I'm not eligible for the credit. Should I be concerned?
Your preparer is definitely wrong. If you have a Dependent Care FSA, you MUST file Form 2441 regardless of your filing status or eligibility for the credit. For Form 2441, you need to complete Part III specifically. Line 12 should show your FSA contributions (this amount is often shown in Box 10 of your W-2). You'll work through the form, and even though you won't qualify for the credit as an MFS filer, completing Part III correctly ensures your FSA contributions remain pre-tax. Lines 18 through 24 are critical for properly accounting for the benefits. If your preparer skips Form 2441 entirely, your FSA benefits could incorrectly become taxable income.
Just want to mention - if you contributed to a Dependent Care FSA and your preparer doesn't know how to handle it properly with MFS status, you might want to consider finding a new preparer. This is actually a pretty basic situation that competent tax pros should understand.
Lucas Parker
ā¢Is there a specific certification or experience level I should look for? My current guy has been doing taxes for 20+ years but still got confused by my FSA situation when filing separately.
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If your taxes are just W2s, mortgage, and kids, you can ABSOLUTELY do them yourself. I've been using FreeTaxUSA for 3 years now and it costs me $15 for state filing (federal is free). With three kids you probably qualify for some credits too that the software will walk you through. H&R Block is wildly overpriced for simple tax situations. They charge $350+ for what amounts to data entry that you can do yourself in an hour. They don't do anything magical - they use software very similar to what you can buy/use yourself.
Do you need to know all the tax forms and which ones to fill out when using the software? That's what intimidates me - not knowing which forms I need.
You don't need to know any of the tax forms beforehand! That's the beauty of tax software. It asks you simple questions like "Did you own a home?" or "How many dependents do you have?" and then determines all the necessary forms for you automatically. The software fills out all the right forms behind the scenes based on your answers. You'll never need to decide "do I need Schedule A or Schedule C?" - it handles all of that. You just answer questions about your life situation and it does the technical part. It's designed for regular people, not tax experts.
I'm surprised no one's mentioned Credit Karma Tax (now called Cash App Taxes). It's completely FREE for federal AND state, even with mortgage and kids. I switched from paying $200+ to literally $0. Just as easy as the paid options in my experience.
Julia Hall
ā¢I tried Cash App Taxes last year and it messed up my mortgage interest deduction somehow. Ended up having to file an amendment. Maybe they've fixed it for this year?
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Mei Lin
Just wanted to add that I work with household employees too and Schedule H can be tricky. If the rejection is specifically code SH-F1040-520-01, there's one other thing to try before calling the IRS. Check if your software is properly linking your Schedule H with Form W-3. Sometimes the rejection happens because the software is pulling the wrong info from W-3 to Schedule H. In TurboTax desktop, go to Tax Tools > Tools > View/Print W-3 and make sure the name there matches what's on your Schedule H. If it doesn't, there might be a way to override it in the W-3 section rather than Schedule H.
Thanks for this suggestion! I just checked and the names do match on both forms in the software. It seems like the issue is definitely with the IRS database having my old name linked to the EIN. I think I'm going to try contacting them directly as suggested and see if I can get this fixed. Just curious - have you ever encountered this specific rejection code before?
Mei Lin
ā¢I've seen this rejection code several times with clients who had name changes. It's specifically related to the EIN registration in the IRS system not matching what's on your current tax return. The W-3 tip sometimes helps, but in your case it does sound like an IRS database issue. The good news is that it's usually a quick fix once you get someone on the phone. Just be sure to have your EIN handy when you call, along with your SSN and your previous name. They might ask for verification of the name change too (marriage certificate), though usually just confirming your identity is enough for them to update the system.
You could also consider temporarily filing as Married Filing Separately instead of jointly. That would allow you to file under your previous name (matching the EIN records) for this year while you get the name change processed with the IRS for next year. Not ideal from a tax perspective but might be easier than dealing with the IRS phone system right now.
GalacticGuru
ā¢This is terrible advice. MFS usually results in a much higher tax bill and you lose a bunch of credits. Just paper file if you have to - it's annoying but better than paying hundreds or thousands more in taxes.
Gabriel Graham
21 I used expressextensions last year for my 7004 and it was completely fine. Basic interface but it got the job done and I received my confirmation pretty quickly. Nothing fancy but reliable. They charge about $25 if I remember correctly.
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Gabriel Graham
ā¢7 Did they send you any kind of notification when the IRS actually accepted it? Or just confirmation that you submitted?
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Gabriel Graham
ā¢21 Yes, they sent two emails. The first was immediate confirmation that my form was submitted through their system. The second email came about 24 hours later confirming the IRS had accepted my extension. They also had a status tracker on their website where I could log in and check if anything had changed.
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Gabriel Graham
4 I'd just use your regular tax software if you already have it. Most of the major ones like TurboTax Business, TaxAct, or H&R Block Premium can e-file 7004 extensions. Why pay for a separate service?
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Gabriel Graham
ā¢11 Not all tax software includes Form 7004 in their basic packages though. I tried using TaxAct last year and discovered I needed to upgrade to their business package just to file an extension, which was like $70+ more than I wanted to spend just for the extension form.
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