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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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PixelWarrior
You should really consider using QuickBooks or Xero instead of Google Sheets for your accounting. They have specific expense categories for international contractors and make it easy to generate reports for tax time. Plus, they integrate with Wise so your transactions import automatically.
Ethan Davis
ā¢I've been thinking about switching to actual accounting software. Does QuickBooks handle the international aspects well? Like tracking payments by country and segregating international contractor expenses? My concern is the learning curve since I'm already familiar with my spreadsheet system.
PixelWarrior
ā¢QuickBooks handles international aspects really well. You can create custom fields to track payments by country and set up specific expense accounts for each international region if needed. It also makes year-end tax preparation much easier. The learning curve isn't as steep as you might think. They have templates specifically for businesses with international contractors, and the Wise integration saves tons of time since you won't have to manually enter those transactions. Most users can get comfortable with the basics in a weekend, especially if you're already familiar with tracking expenses in spreadsheets.
On the classification thing - make absolutely sure youre treating them as independent contractors not employees!! My friend got hit with huge penalties for misclassifying his international team. The key factors are control and independence - if your setting their hours and how they do the work they might be considered employees which is a whole different tax situation
This is so important! The IRS looks at behavioral control, financial control, and relationship type. I recommend documenting that your contractors set their own hours, use their own equipment, and can work for other clients.
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Ethan Scott
Just to add some practical advice from someone who's been through the AMT credit process: KEEP DETAILED RECORDS! I exercised ISOs in 2016, paid AMT, then had issues claiming my credit in 2018 because I couldn't properly document everything. Make sure you keep: 1. Copy of Form 6251 from the year(s) you paid AMT 2. Documentation of your ISO exercise (statements from your company/broker) 3. Records of when you sell the shares (this matters for when credits become available) 4. Copies of any Form 8801 you file in subsequent years
Lola Perez
ā¢How long did it take you to actually get your AMT credit back? I paid a huge AMT bill in 2020 and I'm wondering if I'll ever see that money again.
Ethan Scott
ā¢It took me about three years to get most of it back. The first year after paying AMT, my regular tax wasn't high enough to use the full credit. The second year I got about 40% of it back, and the third year I was able to use the remaining credit. How quickly you recover the AMT depends entirely on your regular tax liability in future years. If you have high regular tax, you can potentially use the full credit in one year. Many people take several years to fully recover their AMT payments.
Has anyone here used TurboTax to handle the AMT credit from ISOs? I'm having a hard time figuring out if it's tracking my credits properly.
Riya Sharma
ā¢I've used TurboTax for this situation and it works fine if you use the same software each year. It carries forward your AMT info automatically. But if you switch between tax software or preparers, that's where things get messy because you need to manually enter previous year information.
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Vera Visnjic
Don't forget to track ALL your business expenses to offset some of that self-employment income! As a teacher doing curriculum work, you can likely deduct: - Home office space (if used regularly and exclusively for work) - Office supplies - Professional development materials - Reference books - Software subscriptions - Portion of internet bills - Mileage for any work-related drives (not to your teaching job) - Professional organization memberships I learned this the hard way by paying way too much my first year as a 1099 worker.
Can you really deduct home internet? I've been working as a freelancer for 2 years and my tax guy never mentioned this! How do you calculate what percentage to deduct?
Vera Visnjic
ā¢You can absolutely deduct a portion of your home internet if you use it for your freelance work! The key is determining what percentage of your internet use is for business versus personal. A reasonable approach is to estimate the percentage of time you use the internet for work purposes. If you use your home internet 60% for business and 40% for personal, you can deduct 60% of the cost. Just make sure you can justify this percentage if questioned. Keep good records showing your work patterns and be prepared to explain your calculation method. Some people also base it on the number of devices in the home and how many are used for business.
Has anyone used a SEP IRA to reduce their self-employment tax burden? I'm teaching part time and doing consulting work, making about the same as you ($42K from 1099s) and my accountant suggested I open one to shelter some income.
Honorah King
ā¢SEP IRAs are amazing for self-employed people! You can contribute up to 25% of your net self-employment income up to $66,000 (for 2023). It directly reduces your taxable income. I've been using one for years for my tutoring business alongside my teaching job.
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One thing nobody has mentioned yet - make sure you're tracking the currency conversion rates for each payment! The IRS wants all amounts reported in USD, so you need to use the conversion rate from the date each payment was made. I learned this the hard way when I was audited for my Schedule C with international contractor expenses. I had just used an average conversion rate for the year, and that was a big no-no. Had to recalculate everything and ended up owing more due to conversion rate fluctuations.
Maya Patel
ā¢Oh wow, I hadn't even thought about the currency conversion documentation! Most of my payments have been through PayPal - do you know if their conversion rates are acceptable for IRS purposes? Or should I be using some official government conversion rate?
PayPal conversion rates should be fine as long as you have the documentation showing the actual USD amount that was charged to your account. The key is having records showing the exact USD amount paid on specific dates. If PayPal doesn't clearly show this (sometimes their reporting can be confusing), you can use the Treasury Department's official exchange rates or another reputable source like OANDA or XE. Just be consistent with whichever source you choose and keep documentation of the rates you used along with the dates of payment.
I disagree with some advice here. I've been commissioning international artists for years for my business, and I've never collected W-8BENs from them. My accountant told me it's only necessary if you're withholding taxes, which typically isn't required for services performed entirely outside the US. I just categorize them under "Contract Labor" on Schedule C and keep detailed payment records. No issues with audits so far.
Dangerous advice! The W-8BEN requirement isn't just about withholding - it's about properly documenting the status of who you're paying. Without it, you technically can't verify they're foreign persons exempt from US reporting requirements. Your accountant is taking a risk that might have worked out so far, but the IRS is increasing scrutiny of international payments. Just because you haven't been audited doesn't mean the approach is compliant.
Ella Lewis
Random tax tip that might help others: Always round UP to the nearest dollar when making tax payments. The IRS allows this on forms, and it ensures you're never underpaid by cents. I've been doing this for 15 years and never had an underpayment issue.
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Andrew Pinnock
ā¢Does this actually work for electronic payments too? I always pay exact amounts when I do direct debit through tax software.
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Brianna Schmidt
What's even more ridiculous is that it probably cost the IRS more than $85 in employee time and resources to process this notice and handle your call. Talk about government inefficiency!
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