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Just want to emphasize that if you can pay the full amount within 180 days, definitely go with the short-term payment plan! No setup fee and you can do it all online at IRS.gov. I did this last year and it was surprisingly easy. Also, don't forget that if you're getting a state refund, you might want to wait and see how much that is before deciding how much to pay upfront. My state refund covered about 1/3 of what I owed to the feds.
Thanks for the tip about the state refund! I didn't even think about that. I'm expecting about $700 back from my state, so that would definitely help reduce what I need to finance. Based on everyone's advice, I think I'll make a payment now of whatever I can afford and then set up a short-term payment plan. Seems like the consensus is not to wait until April 15th!
You're welcome! Yes, using your state refund toward your federal tax debt is a smart move. And definitely don't wait until April - not only will the phone lines be jammed, but you'll be accruing interest on the full amount in the meantime. One more tip: if you set up a payment plan but then find you can pay it off faster than expected, there's no penalty for paying early. I ended up getting a small bonus at work and was able to clear my tax debt in 3 months instead of the 6 I had planned for.
Has anyone here had experience with requesting a reduced amount through an Offer in Compromise? I've heard the IRS will sometimes accept less than the full amount if you can prove financial hardship.
Offers in Compromise are pretty hard to get approved. The IRS only accepts them if they genuinely believe they cannot collect the full amount from you either now or in the foreseeable future. You have to provide extensive documentation of your assets, income, expenses, etc. For a tax debt of $7,420 like the OP has, it's unlikely to be worth pursuing unless they're facing severe financial hardship. The application fee alone is $205 (though it can be waived for low-income taxpayers), and you have to submit a significant payment with your offer.
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About the refund advance loans - I used one last year through H&R Block and had a pretty negative experience. The marketing made it sound like it was free money while waiting for my refund, but I ended up paying about $150 in tax prep fees that I could have avoided by filing myself online. They also only approved me for about 25% of my expected refund amount ($500 on a $2000 refund), which didn't really help much with my immediate needs. Then when my actual refund came through, it was delayed another week because of how they process the advance repayment. If you're truly desperate for cash immediately it might help, but I'd honestly recommend looking into other short-term options first. Maybe even a low-interest credit card could be better depending on your situation.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Did they tell you upfront how much of your refund you'd get as an advance? I'm trying to figure out if I can count on getting a specific amount or if it's just whatever they decide to give you.
They didn't tell me the advance amount until after they'd prepared my taxes and I was basically ready to file. That's part of what felt deceptive - by that point I'd already spent an hour in their office and felt pressured to just go with it. From what I've gathered since then, most of these companies only advance between 25-50% of your expected refund. The exact amount seems to depend on your refund size, filing status, and probably some internal risk assessment they do. Definitely ask upfront about their typical advance percentages before committing to anything.
Some free tax filing options like FreeTaxUSA and Credit Karma Tax (now Cash App Taxes) sometimes offer their own versions of refund advances without the high fees of places like H&R Block. Worth checking those out before going to a storefront preparer. As for the dependent question - I believe the expanded child tax credit they're discussing would be for 2023 taxes (filed in 2024), not for this current filing season. So waiting probably won't help for this year's taxes. Generally, tax changes don't apply retroactively to already-completed tax years.
Credit Karma Tax (Cash App Taxes) isn't offering refund advances this year from what I can see on their website. I think TurboTax still has one though. Has anyone used TurboTax's refund advance?
You're right - I just checked and it seems Cash App Taxes discontinued their advance program. TurboTax is still offering advances through a partnership with First Century Bank, but you have to pay for one of their paid versions to qualify. Another option worth considering is filing early without taking an advance, then setting up direct deposit for your refund. The IRS typically processes e-filed returns with direct deposit within 21 days, sometimes faster. While not as immediate as an advance, it's free and you get your full refund amount without fees.
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3 I found my tax attorney through my regular CPA. They often have networks of specialists they refer to for specific tax issues. Also check with the Tax Law Association in your state - they usually have directories of members with their specialties listed. For innocent spouse claims specifically, look for attorneys who have experience with the IRS Appeals process since many of these cases end up there. Former IRS attorneys sometimes specialize in this area after leaving government service.
19 I second this. I found a great tax attorney through my accountant. One thing I'd add is to make sure they have experience specifically with the type of issue you're dealing with. My first attorney was good with business tax but not so much with innocent spouse relief, which is what I needed.
3 Absolutely true. Tax attorneys often develop niche specialties within tax law. Some focus primarily on offshore reporting issues, others on employment tax, and some specifically on innocent spouse relief or offer in compromise cases. When interviewing potential attorneys, ask them what percentage of their practice involves innocent spouse cases specifically. If it's less than 15-20%, keep looking. Also, ask if they've handled cases with the specific IRS service center that will be processing your case, as procedures can vary slightly between locations.
21 Has anyone tried those tax resolution companies that advertise on the radio all the time? They keep talking about "pennies on the dollar" settlements and I'm wondering if they're legitimate or just scams.
4 Most of those national tax resolution firms that advertise heavily make unrealistic promises. The "pennies on the dollar" settlements (called Offers in Compromise) are quite rare and have very specific qualifying criteria - most people don't qualify. These companies often charge large upfront fees ($5,000+) and then do very little actual work. Many employ salespeople rather than tax professionals for initial consultations, and they're incentivized to tell you what you want to hear. I've had many clients come to me after wasting thousands with these services.
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Here's a useful tip I learned when dealing with Roth conversions: you should always get a statement from your 401k plan administrator before doing a mega backdoor Roth that clearly shows your after-tax contributions separate from earnings. Makes this whole process so much easier. If anyone's wondering, the reason the 1099-R shows "taxable amount not determined" is because the IRA custodian has no way of knowing your basis in the original 401k. They're essentially telling the IRS "we don't know what portion of this was already taxed.
What if my plan administrator doesn't provide that kind of detailed statement? My quarterly statements don't clearly separate the after-tax contributions from the growth. Is there another way to figure out my basis?
You can request a specialized basis statement from your 401k administrator - most have a specific form for this purpose. If they truly can't provide it (which would be unusual), you can reconstruct your basis by adding up all the after-tax contributions from your pay stubs or by looking at your W-2s. Box 12 of your W-2s won't include after-tax contributions (only pre-tax), so the difference between your total contributions and what's reported in Box 12 can help establish your after-tax amount. I'd also recommend calling the administrator directly. Sometimes the regular customer service reps don't know about these specialized reports, but if you ask specifically for a "basis statement" or "after-tax contribution history," they'll direct you to the right department.
Anybody else think it's ridiculous that we have to jump through all these hoops just to correctly report something the IRS and financial institutions should be tracking properly? If I'm missing a field or form, I get penalized, but they can just stamp "taxable amount not determined" and make it our problem 🙄
100% agree!! I spent like 6 hours trying to figure this out for my mega backdoor last year. And then my tax software wanted to charge me an extra $50 just to unlock the forms I needed to do it right. The whole system is designed to make us mess up so they can collect penalties.
Leila Haddad
The 401k overcontribution issue happened to me too! The way I handled it in TurboTax was: 1. Enter the 1099-R you received for the returned excess 2. Make sure you check that it was a "return of excess contributions" 3. The earnings portion (if any) is taxable in the year you receive it TurboTax has a specific workflow for this but their "experts" apparently don't know about it. Try searching "excess contribution" in the TurboTax help section instead of asking their live people.
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Connor O'Brien
•Thanks for this! Where exactly is that option? I searched around but couldn't find the specific "return of excess contributions" checkbox.
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Leila Haddad
•When you enter the 1099-R information, there should be a question about the type of distribution. One of the options is "return of excess contributions." It's in the section where you're entering the distribution code from Box 7. If you've already entered it differently, you can go back and edit the 1099-R entry. Look for "Your Income" in the left sidebar, then find the 1099-R entry and click on it to edit. The option should appear during the workflow.
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Emma Johnson
Pro tip: Skip TurboTax's live help and just call the IRS directly with questions like these. Despite what people think, the IRS phone representatives are actually pretty helpful and give correct information (when you can actually get through). For the 1099-R rollover question, that's literally their job to answer correctly, unlike some random TurboTax contractor who might be in their first tax season.
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Ravi Patel
•Call the IRS directly? Lol good luck with that. I tried calling 8 times this season and either got disconnected or told the wait time was 2+ hours. Never actually spoke to anyone.
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