Can't reach IRS? Claimyr calls for you, so you don't have to wait on hold.
Claimyr is a pay-as-you-go service. We do not charge a recurring subscription.
Using Claimyr will:
- Connect you to a human agent at the IRS
- Skip the long phone menu
- Call the correct department
- Redial until on hold
- Forward a call to your phone with reduced hold time
- Give you free callbacks if the IRS drops your call
Ask the community...
- DO post questions about your issues.
- DO answer questions and support each other.
- DO post tips & tricks to help folks.
- DO NOT post call problems here - there is a support tab at the top for that :)
Join the conversation
Join the conversation
I think everyone here is missing something important - if your mom receives benefits like Section 8 and food stamps, be careful about claiming her as a dependent because it might affect her eligibility for those programs! Some benefit programs have rules about being claimed as a dependent on someone else's taxes. Also, don't forget that you can include the value of housing, utilities, medical expenses, and transportation in your support calculation. If you're paying for someone to take her shopping, those expenses count too!
Ethan Taylor
ā¢Wait, this is super important - will claiming my mom as a dependent actually impact her Section 8 or SNAP benefits? I definitely don't want to mess up her housing or food situation just to get a tax credit. Has anyone here actually experienced this happening?
It depends on the specific program and state regulations. Generally, Section 8 eligibility is based on the household's income and composition, not tax filing status. So claiming your mom on your taxes shouldn't directly affect her Section 8 benefits since you don't live together. For SNAP (food stamps), the rules focus on who purchases and prepares food together, not tax dependency. Since your mom lives separately and handles her own food preparation, claiming her shouldn't impact her SNAP benefits. However, if you're concerned, your mom should check with her benefits caseworker to confirm the specific rules in her state. Some states have different policies or additional requirements.
Has anyone successfully claimed ODC without a paper trail? I support my grandfather who lives in Mexico, sending him money through Western Union, but I'm worried about audit risk since I can't document all his expenses from here.
NebulaNinja
ā¢I claim my mother who lives in the Philippines! Keep ALL your transfer receipts. I use Xoom and it creates a perfect record. Also, have your grandfather send you pictures of rent receipts and major purchases if possible. The IRS understands foreign situations are different.
Join the conversation
Mei Liu
For your tutoring situation, make sure you also track your mileage if you drove to tutoring sessions! I tutor for three different companies and track everything in a simple spreadsheet - date, student, amount paid, and miles driven. The standard mileage deduction is pretty generous (62.5 cents per mile for 2022) and can really add up even if you're not driving far. Just tracking my 5-mile drives to the library twice a week saved me almost $200 in taxes last year.
Oh that's super helpful - I didn't even think about mileage! I was taking the campus shuttle to most sessions but sometimes I did drive to off-campus locations. Do you need any special documentation for mileage or just a log?
Mei Liu
ā¢A simple log is enough! Just note the date, starting location, ending location, purpose of trip (tutoring), and miles driven. I keep mine in a notes app on my phone so I can update it right after each session. You don't need anything fancy - just enough detail that you could explain it if questioned. Only track the miles specifically for tutoring though, not your regular commute to campus or personal trips.
Don't forget that as an independent contractor, you'll also need to pay self-employment tax (15.3%) on your tutoring income if you made more than $400, even though you won't get a 1099! I made this mistake my first year tutoring and got hit with an unexpected tax bill.
Amara Chukwu
ā¢Yep, that self-employment tax is brutal! But remember you can deduct half of it on your 1040, which helps a little bit. Schedule SE calculates this automatically.
Join the conversation
One thing nobody's mentioned - your kids need to have tax liability to get the full benefit of AOC. Only $1,000 of the $2,500 credit is refundable. So if they don't have jobs with income that generates at least $1,500 in tax liability, they won't get the full benefit of the credit. Also remember that if you don't claim them as dependents, you lose other potential benefits like the dependent care credit (if applicable) and the possibility of head of household filing status if you're single.
Luca Conti
ā¢Thanks for bringing this up! My kids actually both work part-time while in school. One made about $14,000 last year and the other around $12,500. Would that be enough income to take full advantage of the non-refundable portion of the AOC?
With those income levels, they should have enough tax liability to take advantage of most if not all of the non-refundable portion of the AOC. At approximately $12,500-$14,000 of income, they would have roughly $1,250-$1,400 in federal tax liability (depending on other factors), which means they could utilize most of the non-refundable portion. They'd definitely get the full $1,000 refundable portion, plus be able to offset most of their tax liability with the remaining credit. This makes your strategy even more viable since they have enough income to benefit substantially from claiming the credit themselves.
Don't forget to have a written agreement with your kids if they're going to claim their own education credits! Last year I did this with my daughter, and she agreed to give me the tax savings since I paid her tuition. Without that agreement, she might have kept the refund even though I paid the qualifying expenses. Also make sure they understand they need to keep all the tuition statements and expense records for their tax files, not yours, since they're claiming the credits.
Is that agreement really legally required? I never thought about needing documentation between family members.
Join the conversation
Emma Garcia
I'm a bit late to this discussion but wanted to add something important that others haven't mentioned. The new bill also increases the refundable portion of the CTC, not just the lookback provision. Starting in 2024 (but NOT retroactive to 2023), the refundable portion will be calculated per child rather than per family. So for 2023 returns, a family with no income still won't benefit from the CTC. But in 2024, a parent could potentially use their 2023 income to qualify if they had income then but not in 2024. And the per-child calculation means families with multiple children will see a bigger benefit. The bill also gradually increases the maximum refundable amount from $1,600 per child to $1,800 in 2025, $1,900 in 2026, and $2,000 by 2027. Just wanted to add this since it affects the long-term planning aspect for families.
Ava Kim
ā¢Do you know if the age requirements are changing too? Currently it's under 17, but I've heard rumors they might extend it for older dependents like they did during COVID.
Emma Garcia
ā¢The age requirement is staying the same under the current proposal - children must be under 17 at the end of the tax year to qualify for the Child Tax Credit. The temporary expansion during COVID that included 17-year-olds is not part of this new legislation. What's staying consistent is the income phase-out thresholds - $200,000 for single filers and $400,000 for married filing jointly. The credit begins to reduce by $50 for each $1,000 of income above these thresholds.
Has anyone actually read the bill text? I'm looking at it now and it specifically states that the lookback provision (using prior year income) applies "beginning with taxable years beginning after December 31, 2023." That means it starts with 2024 tax year. There's no language in the bill making anything retroactive to 2023. So if you're filing 2023 taxes in the next few months, the old rules still apply - need earned income to get the refundable portion. I think the confusion comes because sometimes we mix up tax years with filing years. The 2023 tax year (which we file in early 2024) is different from the 2024 tax year (which we'll file in early 2025).
Carmen Diaz
ā¢Thank you! This is exactly what I was trying to figure out. So my ex who didn't work in 2023 won't be able to claim the CTC for the kids for the 2023 tax year, even with these new changes coming? But potentially for 2024 taxes she could use her 2023 income (if she had any) to qualify?
That's exactly right. For the 2023 tax return that your ex will file in the coming months, she would need earned income in 2023 to benefit from the refundable portion of the CTC. The new changes won't help for this coming tax season. For the 2024 tax year (which will be filed in early 2025), the new rules would take effect. At that point, she could potentially use either her 2023 income OR her 2024 income to qualify for the CTC, whichever is more beneficial. But for the return she's about to file for 2023, the current rules still apply.
Chloe Martin
Just wanna add something important that ppl often forget - registering a vehicle in a business name might affect your insurance requirements! Most personal auto policies won't cover a business-registered vehicle, so youll need commercial auto insurance which can be a lot more expensive. Make sure to factor that into ur costs when deciding if the tax benefit is worth it. My commercial policy for my business truck costs almost 2x what my personal vehicle costs.
0 coins
Diego Rojas
ā¢Good point about insurance! Also worth noting that some states charge higher registration fees for business vehicles vs personal ones. In my state, the business registration was about 25% higher. Something else to factor into the total cost equation.
0 coins
Anastasia Sokolov
To answer ur question about LLC on the title - I did this last year for my business. The title will say "Your LLC Name" rather than your personal name. But heads up - some finance companies make it harder to get loans for business-owned vehicles and might require additional documentation or personal guarantees. This was easier for me when I went through a credit union that already had my business accounts rather than dealer financing.
0 coins
Natasha Volkova
ā¢That's super helpful! Did you need to provide any specific documents to the DMV to register it under your LLC? And did you run into any issues with insurance coverage when the vehicle was titled to your business instead of personally?
0 coins
Anastasia Sokolov
ā¢I had to bring my LLC formation documents and EIN letter from the IRS to the DMV. Some states also want to see your business license. The process was actually pretty straightforward - just took a little longer than a personal registration. Insurance was definitely different. My personal auto insurer wouldn't cover a business-titled vehicle, so I had to get a commercial auto policy. It was about 30% more expensive, but the good news is that commercial insurance is a legitimate business expense you can deduct. The insurance company wanted to know the percentage of business vs personal use, and they based some of their rates on that information. Make sure to shop around because the rates varied a lot between different insurance companies for the exact same coverage.
0 coins