This is such a helpful thread! I'm dealing with a similar situation where I live in Oregon but work remotely for a company in New York. My 1099-NEC has New York listed in Box 6, but I've never even been to New York - all my work is done from my home office in Oregon. From what I'm reading here, it sounds like I should report this income to Oregon since that's where I physically performed the work, regardless of what Box 6 says. But I'm worried about getting audited if I don't follow what's printed on the form. Has anyone had experience with state audits over this kind of discrepancy? Should I reach out to my client to get a corrected 1099-NEC, or is it safe to just allocate the income to Oregon when I file?

Great discussion here! As someone who's been dealing with multi-state remote work tax issues for years, I want to emphasize a key point that might get lost in all the details: the "convenience of the employer" rule that some states have. While most states follow the physical presence rule (you're taxed where you physically work), a few states like New York have this "convenience rule" where they can still tax remote workers if the remote work is for the employee's convenience rather than the employer's necessity. This can override the normal Box 6 logic. Before assuming you only need to file in your home state, check if any of the states where your clients are located have convenience rules. It's not common, but it can create tax obligations even for true remote workers who never set foot in that state. The documentation everyone's mentioning becomes even more important in these cases - you need to show the remote work arrangement was required by the employer, not just your preference. Most remote workers won't hit this issue, but it's worth being aware of, especially if you're working for companies in NY, DE, PA, or CT.

Don't forget to consider harvesting more losses strategically each year! If you have investments that are temporarily down but you still believe in long-term, you can sell them to capture the loss, wait 31 days (to avoid wash sale rules), and rebuy. This gives you more losses to offset any gains and potentially increase your $3k deduction against ordinary income.

One additional tip that's saved me headaches - create a simple spreadsheet or document each year that lists your starting carryover balance, any gains/losses for that year, and ending carryover balance. Even though the tax software tracks this automatically, having your own record helps if you ever need to switch software or if there's a discrepancy. I also recommend keeping detailed records of which specific investments generated your original losses. While it doesn't affect the tax calculation, it's helpful context when making future investment decisions. For a $27k loss, you'll want to be extra careful about wash sale rules if you're tempted to buy back into similar positions. The good news is that even at $3k per year, you're getting a meaningful tax benefit - that's potentially $600-900+ in tax savings annually depending on your marginal rate. Think of it as a silver lining to an unfortunate investment outcome.

I just wanted to chime in as someone who's been through this exact scenario multiple times. Code "B" is absolutely the right choice for your situation - when your 1099-B shows that cost basis wasn't reported to the IRS, that's exactly what Code "B" is designed for. One thing that might help ease your mind: this is actually a very common situation, especially with certain brokers who don't report cost basis for all types of transactions. The IRS is completely used to seeing Code "B" on Form 8949, and as long as you have your purchase records to support the cost basis you're reporting, you're in good shape. I'd also recommend double-checking your math before submitting - make sure the gain/loss you calculate by subtracting your cost basis (column e) from the proceeds (column d) makes sense based on what you remember about those trades. It's an easy way to catch any data entry errors before filing. You're doing everything correctly by selecting Box B at the top and using Code "B" for each transaction. Don't let the complexity of the instructions psych you out - your situation is straightforward and you've got all the information you need to file accurately.

I've been dealing with this same issue and wanted to share what I learned from my tax preparer. When your 1099-B shows "basis not reported to IRS," you're absolutely on the right track with Code "B" in column (f). One thing that helped me understand this better: the reason your broker didn't report the cost basis to the IRS is often because they don't have complete records of when you originally purchased the stock (maybe you transferred it from another broker, or it was gifted/inherited, etc.). But since YOU have the purchase information, you're required to report it yourself on Form 8949. The key is making sure you have documentation to back up the cost basis you're reporting. Keep your purchase confirmations, transfer statements, or whatever records show how you arrived at that cost basis number. Also, just a heads up - if any of these transactions resulted in losses and you have similar stocks, double-check that you're not dealing with wash sale rules. That would require a different code and adjustments in column (g). But for straightforward unreported basis situations like yours, Code "B" is definitely the way to go.

This thread has been incredibly eye-opening! I had no idea about the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act eliminating unreimbursed employee expense deductions for W-2 employees. I've been working as a commission stylist for three years and have been incorrectly assuming I could deduct my supplies and professional expenses. Reading through everyone's experiences with employment classification has me wondering if I need to have a serious conversation with my salon owner. I purchase all my own color, tools, and products, set my own schedule, and essentially run my own book of clients within their space. Based on what @09257794d4f0 and others have described, it sounds like I might be misclassified as well. The documentation strategies that @e25bcdc944e7 shared for tracking appearance-related expenses are really smart - the 60/40 split approach for nail expenses with proper documentation makes way more sense than trying to justify 100% as a business expense. I think my next step is going to be getting a consultation with a tax professional who understands the beauty industry before making any decisions. Better to invest in proper advice upfront than potentially face audit issues later. Has anyone else here made the switch from W-2 to booth rental recently? I'd love to hear more about how those conversations with salon owners went.

As a tax professional who's worked with hundreds of beauty industry professionals, I want to add some perspective on the manicure deduction question and the broader employment classification issues being discussed here. First, regarding your specific manicure expense - while it's theoretically possible to deduct appearance-related costs that are "ordinary and necessary" for your business, the bar is extremely high for hairdressers. The IRS would need to see that your nail maintenance goes significantly beyond normal personal grooming and directly enhances your service delivery in a measurable way. Even then, you'd likely only be able to deduct the portion that exceeds what you'd spend on basic nail care. More importantly, as others have correctly pointed out, if you're a W-2 employee, these deductions aren't available to you anyway under current tax law (through 2025). The bigger issue is whether you're properly classified as an employee versus an independent contractor. Based on your description - you're commission-based, purchase your own supplies, and seem to have significant control over your client relationships - you might indeed be misclassified. This is incredibly common in the beauty industry and can have major tax implications. My recommendation: Before focusing on specific deductions like manicures, get a professional review of your employment status. If you should be classified as an independent contractor, that opens up all business deductions AND gives you more control over your career. The potential tax savings from proper classification will dwarf any individual expense deduction. Happy to answer any follow-up questions about the classification criteria or documentation requirements!

I went through this exact same situation last year and I know how stressful it is! That "processing delayed beyond normal timeframe" message with the question marks is basically the IRS's way of putting your return into a black hole while giving you zero useful information. Here's what I learned from my experience: **Get your transcript ASAP** - The Where's My Refund tool is basically useless compared to your actual tax transcript. Look for these key codes: • 570 = Hold on your account • 971 = Notice issued (check your mail!) • 846 = Refund date scheduled **Common causes for your situation:** • Income verification (W2/1099 discrepancies) • Child Tax Credit verification (since you mentioned claiming it) • Random compliance reviews • Simple math errors they're correcting **What actually worked for me:** I was stuck for 4 months with the same message until I used a callback service to get through to an actual IRS agent. Turns out there was a tiny discrepancy with one of my W2s that was holding everything up. The agent resolved it in 10 minutes and I had my refund 2 weeks later. The fact that we have to become code-breakers and pay third parties just to understand our own tax situation is honestly ridiculous, but that's the reality of dealing with the IRS right now. Don't panic though - almost everyone eventually gets their refund, it just takes way longer than it should. Hang in there! 💪

I'm dealing with this exact same situation right now! Filed my 2023 return back in March and have been stuck with that "processing delayed beyond normal timeframe" message for over 2 months. The question marks on all three status bars are absolutely maddening. After reading through everyone's experiences here, it's clear that this message is just the IRS's way of saying "something's happening but we're not telling you what." The lack of transparency is honestly insulting - we shouldn't have to become amateur detectives just to understand our own tax returns. I finally managed to access my transcript last week and found a 570 code (account hold) along with some other cryptic numbers that might as well be written in ancient Greek. My return was super straightforward too - just W2 income and standard deduction, nothing that should trigger months of delays. Based on all the success stories in this thread about Claimyr and other callback services, I'm seriously considering trying one. The regular IRS phone system is completely broken - I've called probably 30+ times and never gotten through to a human. At this point paying someone to actually get me real answers seems worth it compared to months more of this limbo. The worst part is the uncertainty. Some people here waited 5+ months which is absolutely terrifying. We deserve way better communication than generic website messages and cryptic codes. This whole system desperately needs reform! Hoping we all get movement on our refunds soon because this stress is brutal! 😤