My tax accountant told me that the "closer connection" rule is only one piece of the puzzle. If ur a non-US citizen who lived in the US, you also need to consider tax treaties between the US and your new country. Some treaties have specific residency tiebreaker rules that might override the standard IRS rules.

I went through a very similar situation when I moved to the UK for work. Your tax residency end date is when you physically left the US two weeks ago, not after your November visit. The key factors the IRS looks at are: (1) where your tax home is now located, (2) your closer connection to the foreign country, and (3) the temporary nature of any US visits. Since you've relocated permanently for work and have closer ties to your new country, a 6-day wedding visit won't change your residency status. Make sure you keep documentation of your move - employment contract, lease agreement, bank accounts in your new country, etc. For your foreign bank, you'll likely need to provide a statement of your non-US tax resident status. Some banks accept a simple declaration, while others may want Form W-8BEN. The important thing is that your residency ended when you established your new life abroad, not when you temporarily return to visit. Your 2022 return will indeed be dual status - you'll file as a resident for the portion of the year before you left, then as a non-resident for the remainder. Just make sure to clearly document your departure date for the IRS.

Great question about balancing 401(k) vs HYSA! I'm in a similar boat - started late on retirement planning and had to figure out the optimal strategy. Here's what I learned: First, definitely prioritize getting that full employer match in your 401(k) - that's an immediate 50% return you can't get anywhere else. At your income level, the tax deduction will also provide meaningful savings. For the emergency fund piece, financial advisors typically recommend 3-6 months of expenses in easily accessible accounts like your HYSA. Once you hit that target, I'd focus on maxing out retirement contributions. One strategy that worked well for me was to calculate exactly how much I needed for emergencies (rent, utilities, food, etc. for 4-6 months), keep that amount in the HYSA, then redirect everything else to retirement accounts for the tax advantages. The peace of mind from having an adequate emergency fund actually made me more comfortable being aggressive with retirement contributions. Also consider if your employer offers Roth 401(k) options - having some tax diversification between traditional and Roth can be valuable for withdrawal flexibility in retirement.

At 42, you're actually in a great position to make some serious progress on retirement savings! I'd suggest a hybrid approach based on your numbers: First priority: Get that full employer match in your 401(k) - that's $2,340 in free money annually (50% of 6% of $78k). Then build your emergency fund to about $20,000-25,000 (3-4 months of expenses assuming your monthly costs are around $5,000-6,000). Once you hit that emergency fund target, I'd aggressively ramp up 401(k) contributions. At your income level, the tax savings are substantial - every $1,000 you contribute saves you about $220-240 in federal taxes (22% bracket), plus state taxes if applicable. Don't forget about catch-up contributions either - once you hit 50, you can contribute an additional $7,500 annually to your 401(k) beyond the standard limit. That will be crucial for making up lost time. The key is finding the right balance where you have adequate liquidity for emergencies but aren't leaving tax-advantaged growth on the table. Your HYSA earning 4.2% is decent, but tax-deferred compound growth in your 401(k) over 20+ years will likely far outpace that, especially with the employer match.

Has anyone here dealt with converting a farm property from an LLC back to individual ownership before a parent's passing? We did this with my grandfather's farm last year to ensure we got the stepped-up basis, but now I'm worried about potential gift tax implications since the LLC was originally in our names (the kids).

The missing LLC documentation is a red flag that needs immediate attention, especially with BOI reporting deadlines approaching. I'd recommend starting with your state's Secretary of State office - they should have the Articles of Organization on file that will show who signed as the organizer and initial members. For the stepped-up basis question, the key factor is who actually owns the LLC membership interests at the time of your father's death. If he retained ownership (making it a single-member LLC), the property gets stepped-up basis. If you kids already own the LLC, no step-up occurs since you technically already own the property. Given the Medicaid planning aspect, I suspect the LLC ownership was likely transferred to you children to protect the asset, which would unfortunately eliminate the stepped-up basis benefit. However, if your father retained even a small percentage of ownership, that portion would qualify for step-up. You might want to consider having the LLC dissolve and distribute the property back to your father if he's still healthy and the goal is to maximize the stepped-up basis for your family. Just be mindful of the Medicaid lookback period implications that others have mentioned.

This is such a helpful thread! I'm dealing with a similar situation where I won about $12,000 but lost around $15,000 throughout the year. Reading through everyone's experiences, it sounds like the key is creating the best documentation possible with what you have, even if it's not perfect. A few things I'm taking away from this discussion: 1. Those ATM receipts and credit card statements are more valuable than I thought 2. Player's club statements from casinos can be requested retroactively 3. The standard deduction vs itemizing calculation is crucial - need to run those numbers first 4. Being conservative with loss estimates is better than being aggressive One question I have - for those who've been through audits, how far back did the IRS ask you to provide documentation? I'm wondering if I should start keeping better records now for future years, or if they typically only look at the current tax year being examined. Also, has anyone had experience with online gambling losses? I do some sports betting through legal apps and I'm wondering if the documentation requirements are different since everything is tracked digitally by the platform.

Great thread everyone! As someone who works in tax preparation, I wanted to add a few practical tips that might help: 1. **Casino host relationships** - If you're a regular player, your casino host can often provide additional documentation of your play history beyond what the player's club automatically tracks. They sometimes have access to more detailed records. 2. **State tax implications** - Don't forget that some states have different rules for gambling income and losses. Make sure you're considering both federal and state requirements when documenting everything. 3. **Professional gamblers vs recreational** - The IRS treats these very differently. If gambling is your primary income source, you may qualify as a professional gambler with different deduction rules (can deduct losses as business expenses rather than itemized deductions). But this comes with much stricter documentation requirements. 4. **Timing of documentation** - If you're scrambling to put together records for this year, start a simple system NOW for next year. Even a basic smartphone app or Excel spreadsheet updated after each session will save you major headaches. The most important thing is consistency and reasonableness. The IRS knows people gamble and lose money - they just want to see that you made a good faith effort to track it accurately.

This is such a relief to read! I've been stressing about this exact same issue. I have boxes of stuff I want to donate that I've accumulated over the years, and I was convinced I needed to dig up old receipts from purchases I made 5+ years ago. One thing I learned from my tax preparer is to also keep a simple log or spreadsheet tracking your donations throughout the year. Include the date, organization name, general description of items, and estimated value. This makes it so much easier when tax time comes around instead of trying to remember everything you donated months earlier. Also, if you're donating items that might be worth more than typical thrift store values (like electronics, jewelry, or artwork), consider getting them appraised before donating. I made the mistake of donating a vintage guitar without getting it appraised first, and I probably undervalued it significantly on my taxes.

Great thread! I've been through this donation documentation process several times and wanted to add a few practical tips that have helped me: 1. **Take photos BEFORE you load items in your car** - I learned this the hard way when I got to Goodwill and realized I forgot to document a box of books. Having photos of everything laid out makes it easier to create detailed donation lists later. 2. **Download the charity's app if they have one** - Many Goodwill locations now have apps that let you track donations and generate receipts digitally. Much easier than keeping paper receipts organized. 3. **Be conservative with valuations** - I always err on the lower side of value ranges. A $5 shirt claim is much less likely to raise red flags than claiming $15 for the same item, and the audit risk isn't worth the extra few dollars in deduction. 4. **Keep a "donation box" year-round** - Instead of doing one big cleanout, I keep a box in my closet and add items throughout the year. When it's full, I donate and start a new box. This spreads out the work and makes documentation more manageable. The key thing to remember is that the IRS is mainly looking for reasonable documentation and honest valuations. You don't need to be perfect, just thorough and realistic!