Whoa, I had no idea about the sunset provision! That could be a huge deal for my uncle. He's in Massachusetts if that makes a difference for state-level taxes. Would you recommend he talk to a specialized estate planning attorney rather than his regular attorney who handles his other legal matters?

Massachusetts has a state estate tax threshold of only $1 million with tax rates ranging from 0.8% to 16%, so yes, this is definitely something your uncle needs to address regardless of federal exemption amounts. Absolutely recommend a specialized estate planning attorney rather than a general practitioner. Estate planning, particularly with estates approaching the federal exemption and in states with their own estate taxes, requires specific expertise. The right attorney can potentially save your uncle's estate hundreds of thousands or even millions in taxes with proper planning. The fee for specialized advice will be well worth it given the potential tax savings.

This is such an important point. My mother did something similar and it was a nightmare. Are there any types of trusts that offer tax benefits but still maintain some flexibility?

Thanks for the suggestions! I definitely used TurboTax last year so SBTPG sounds familiar. I'll check that out first. Do you happen to know the actual website URL? And I didn't know about the IRS2Go app - is it actually reliable or just another way to see the same "processing" status for weeks?

The SBTPG website is https://taxpayer.sbtpg.com/ - you'll need to create an account with some basic info from your return. I've found the IRS2Go app to be slightly more up-to-date than the website version of Where's My Refund. Not dramatically better, but it sometimes shows status changes a few hours earlier. The app also lets you set up notifications for when your status changes, which is convenient rather than checking manually all the time.

This is the best advice! Transcripts show everything going on with your return. Where's My Refund is useless compared to transcript info. I can see exactly when they received my return, when they processed it, and the 846 code shows exactly when the money will be sent.

Thanks for confirming! One thing to note is that the date next to the 846 code is when the IRS releases the payment, so your bank might take another 1-2 business days to actually post it to your account. But it's still much more specific than the vague "refund approved" message.

What happens if the amount on the W2 doesn't match what's on my 1095-A? My employer says they paid $4800 for my insurance but my 1095-A shows different numbers for the monthly premiums.

The W-2 and 1095-A show different information and won't necessarily match. Your W-2 shows what your employer paid toward your health insurance premiums, while Form 1095-A shows information about your Marketplace coverage, including total premiums and any advance premium tax credits. These forms serve different purposes in your tax return. The employer contribution on your W-2 represents their share of your health insurance cost, while the 1095-A helps you claim or reconcile premium tax credits. TurboTax will ask for both forms and guide you through entering the information correctly for each purpose.

This is really helpful thx! One question - do you happen to know if there's any income limit for this exemption? Like if you make over a certain amount does it become taxable?

Wait seriously? You can actually write off pedicures as a business expense for feet pics? That seems too good to be true lol

Absolutely! If the pedicures are specifically for your photoshoots and business purposes, they're a legitimate business expense. Think of it like this - if a hand model gets manicures for photo shoots, that's a business expense. Same principle applies to foot modeling/pics. Just make sure you're being honest about the business purpose and keep good records. I keep a separate calendar where I note when I got pedicures specifically for photo sessions versus personal ones. Same with any special foot care products or accessories I buy exclusively for shoots. The key is that these expenses must be "ordinary and necessary" for your specific business - which in the case of foot content, professional foot care definitely qualifies!

Are the costs for copyright registration and protection software tax deductible? Seems like they would be but just checking.

I don't think I received any special credits last year - I don't have kids and didn't qualify for most of those pandemic-related things. My income did go up slightly (about $1,500 more than last year), but I didn't think that would make such a big difference. One thing I'm wondering about - I did start contributing to my company's 401k this past September. Would that affect my refund in any way? I'm putting in about 4% of my paycheck.

Your 401k contributions actually should have helped your tax situation, not hurt it. Those contributions reduce your taxable income, which typically means less tax overall. Since you started in September, you might not see the full annual benefit, but it definitely wouldn't cause your refund to decrease. Given all the information you've shared, it really does sound like the withholding change is the primary factor. The good news is that you didn't actually lose money - you just received it gradually throughout the year instead of in one lump sum. For next year, definitely submit a new W-4 requesting additional withholding if you prefer the larger refund approach to saving.

This is exactly right. A tax refund is just the government giving back money they took too much of during the year. Ideally, your refund should be close to zero - that means you paid exactly what you owed, no more no less.