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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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Sofia Perez
One important thing I learned when I had this same issue - keep really good documentation of everything. When I tried to correct an accidental non-qualified HSA expense, my HSA administrator wanted: 1. Original receipts 2. Letter explaining the mistake 3. Proof I returned the funds 4. Confirmation for tax purposes Keep all emails, confirmation numbers, and names of representatives you speak with. My HSA provider initially "lost" my correction paperwork and tried to report it as a distribution anyway. Having everything documented saved me a huge headache.
Thanks for this advice! Did you end up having to pay any penalties or just return the funds?
Sofia Perez
ā¢I caught mine and corrected it within the same tax year, so I just had to return the funds to my HSA account. No penalties or taxes since I fixed it before filing. Since some of your charges go back to last year, you might have a different situation. If you already filed taxes claiming those as qualified expenses, you'll likely need to file an amended return and potentially pay the 20% penalty on those specific amounts.
Did your husband see a licensed psychiatrist or just a therapist? That can make a difference. A psychiatrist's services are more likely to be considered qualifying even without a specific diagnosis. Also, check if any of the sessions resulted in a diagnosis code eventually - sometimes they don't diagnose right away but do add a code later.
This is actually incorrect information. The type of provider (psychiatrist vs therapist) doesn't automatically make the expense qualified. What matters is whether the service is for medical care as defined by the IRS. Mental health treatment IS covered, but general wellness counseling is not considered "medical care" regardless of who provides it.
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Omar Fawaz
Something important that nobody mentioned yet: You can deduct half of your self-employment tax on your income tax return! So while the SE tax itself might be high, you do get some relief when calculating your income tax. Also, don't forget to look into the Qualified Business Income deduction (Section 199A). Depending on your income level and business type, you might be able to deduct up to 20% of your qualified business income, which can significantly reduce your income tax (though not your SE tax).
Can you explain more about this Qualified Business Income deduction? Is that something I can claim as a freelance consultant, or is it only for certain types of businesses?
Omar Fawaz
ā¢The Qualified Business Income (QBI) deduction is definitely available to freelance consultants in most cases. It allows you to deduct up to 20% of your qualified business income from your taxable income for federal income tax purposes. There are income limitations that begin to phase out the deduction if your taxable income exceeds $170,050 for single filers or $340,100 for joint filers (for 2025). If your income is below those thresholds, you should qualify for the full deduction regardless of your business type. This can be a huge tax saver - potentially reducing your income tax by thousands.
Has anyone tried setting up an S-Corp instead of staying as a sole proprietor? I've heard it can save on SE taxes since you only pay them on your "reasonable salary" rather than all profits.
Diego Vargas
ā¢I switched to an S-Corp two years ago when my net income hit about $80k. It's saved me roughly $4-5k per year in SE taxes. You pay yourself a "reasonable salary" that's subject to FICA (social security/medicare), but the rest can be taken as distributions that aren't hit with SE tax.
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Sasha Reese
Former IRS employee here... wanted to add to the tax lawyer vs CPA discussion. One MAJOR difference not mentioned yet: a tax lawyer can claim attorney-client privilege, which means communications with them generally can't be used against you. CPAs don't have the same level of privilege (there's a limited accountant privilege but it's not as strong). So if you've got something potentially problematic in your tax situation, a tax attorney gives you more protection. For routine tax planning and preparation, a CPA is usually fine and often more affordable.
Is the attorney-client privilege only for criminal tax issues or does it apply to civil tax problems too? I'm dealing with some back taxes but nothing criminal.
Sasha Reese
ā¢Attorney-client privilege applies to both civil and criminal tax matters. Even in civil tax disputes, the privilege protects your communications with your attorney from being disclosed. This can be particularly important if you're discussing strategies, weaknesses in your position, or settlement options with your attorney. With a CPA, those conversations could potentially be discoverable by the IRS in certain situations.
why not both?? my family uses both a CPA and tax attorney and they work together. CPA handles all the regular tax filings and planning stuff throughout the year and when something complicated comes up (we had an offshore inheritance issue last year) the tax attorney steps in for the legal aspects. best of both worlds tbh
Diez Ellis
ā¢Isn't that super expensive to have both? I'm trying to figure out which one I need without breaking the bank.
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AstroAlpha
Just to add another perspective - even if you don't technically have to file for such a small amount, there are advantages to filing Schedule C anyway. You can establish a pattern of business expenses that can help if you're ever audited in future years when you make more money. Plus, those business losses can sometimes offset other income. I've been running my small woodworking business for years and always file even in low income years.
Yara Khoury
ā¢How many years can you show losses before the IRS considers your business a hobby though? I heard they get suspicious if you're always operating at a loss.
AstroAlpha
ā¢The IRS generally expects you to show a profit in at least 3 of the last 5 tax years to be considered a legitimate business rather than a hobby. If you consistently show losses year after year, that's when they might question whether you have a profit motive. However, for a new business like yours, it's completely normal to have losses or very small profits in the beginning years. They understand businesses take time to become profitable. Just make sure you're operating in a businesslike manner - keep good records, have a separate business bank account, and be working toward profitability.
Has anyone used TurboTax for filing Schedule C for a tiny business like this? Is it worth the extra cost for the self-employed version?
Paolo Longo
ā¢I've used TurboTax Self-Employed for my small Etsy shop and it works fine, but honestly it's overkill if you just have a few transactions. You might be better off with FreeTaxUSA which is a lot cheaper and handles Schedule C just fine for simple situations.
Connor Richards
Just my 2 cents - if your income is 103k and your wife only made $655, filing jointly is a no-brainer. When I was in a similar situation, we saved almost $3k by filing jointly vs separately because: 1. Higher standard deduction 2. Better tax brackets 3. Full child tax credit (which phases out at higher incomes for separate filers) 4. Access to other credits like child care credits Unless you have some specific reason like keeping finances legally separate or student loan concerns, filing separately is probably costing you serious money every year.
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Max Knight
ā¢Thanks for breaking it down like that. I had no idea we might be leaving thousands on the table! Can we still file jointly if we have separate bank accounts and generally keep our finances separate day-to-day? That's partly why we've always filed separately.
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Connor Richards
ā¢Absolutely! How you manage your daily finances has nothing to do with your tax filing status. Many couples file jointly while maintaining completely separate bank accounts and financial systems. The IRS doesn't care if you keep separate accounts or split bills 50/50 or any other arrangement. Your tax filing status is completely independent from how you handle your money in daily life. You can file jointly and still keep everything else separate if that works better for your relationship.
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Grace Durand
Be careful with Georgia state taxes! When I lived there, they had some weird interaction between federal and state filing status. If you file jointly federal, you MUST file jointly for Georgia too. But the state credits work differently. The Georgia child tax credit situation is different from federal - make sure whatever tax software you're using handles state-specific rules correctly.
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Steven Adams
ā¢Georgia tax rules confused me too. When I filed last year, I found that the software I was using (wont name names) calculated the GA credits wrong and I had to manually override it. Always double check the state calculations!
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