Thank you for sharing your experience! I'm pretty sure I didn't take the advance after thinking about it more. So Monday is most likely then? That would be awesome if so!

Based on my experience with Venmo, Monday is most likely. They're pretty consistent with the 2-day early deposit for government payments. I've noticed they usually process them in the morning too, so you might even wake up to it on Monday. Just keep in mind that in very rare cases, the IRS might have delays on their end that can push things back, but with a confirmed DDD, you're usually good to go for that 2-day early timeline.

You can tell by looking at how you paid for your tax preparation. If you chose to have the fees taken out of your refund, that's usually a sign you took some kind of advance or refund transfer product. Also check your tax prep receipt - it should list if you took an advance.

Thanks so much for this reassurance! I'm still a bit nervous about taking the deduction without photos. For the documentation you mentioned - would a detailed written description with measurements and a hand-drawn floor plan be sufficient? Or should I try to find other proof like emails sent from that workspace?

A detailed written description with measurements and a hand-drawn floor plan is absolutely sufficient documentation. Date it and keep it with your tax records. Including details about the built-in desk, the three walls forming the alcove, and how you used the space for specific business activities strengthens your case. Adding some supporting evidence like business emails, client invoices you created there, or phone records showing client calls would be helpful supplementary documentation, but not strictly necessary. The IRS understands that people move and may not have photographs of previous spaces. Your contemporaneous written records are considered valid documentation, especially when they're detailed and consistent with your business activities.

TurboTax Self-Employed version handles home office deductions pretty well. It walks you through all the questions and helps calculate both the regular and simplified methods. I've used it for the past 3 years with no problems. Just make sure you get the Self-Employed version, not the regular one.

16 Do you know if these adjustments are something we should actively check for? Like, should I be contacting the IRS to see if they missed something on my old returns, or do they just find these things themselves?

3 The IRS typically finds these issues themselves during their normal processing and reviews. You don't need to contact them specifically about potential missed refunds. They have automated systems that flag discrepancies and potential adjustments. That said, if you think there was a specific error or missed credit on your return, you can file an amended return (Form 1040-X) within 3 years of the original filing date. But in most cases like these surprise checks, it's the IRS catching things during their normal review processes.

9 That's really good advice! I've heard those replacement requests can take forever to process. Is there any way to tell from the check itself what triggered the refund? Mine just says "tax refund" but doesn't give details.

Thank you so much! This breakdown is super helpful. Quick follow-up though - for the actual amount of withholding, should I be using what was initially withheld ($78k) or the net amount after they already got that partial refund through the T2062 process?

You should use the net amount after the partial refund. So if $78k was initially withheld but $22k was already refunded based on the T2062 adjustment, you'd report $56k on line 43700 as the withholding tax amount. The CRA system should already have a record of both the initial withholding and the T2062 adjustment, but I always recommend including a brief note with the return explaining these amounts to avoid any confusion during processing.

For non-residents, you don't need to file a separate provincial tax return. The federal T1-NR handles both federal and provincial taxation. Non-residents pay a flat 25% federal tax on taxable Canadian property, with no separate provincial component. Just make sure you're correctly identifying the property's location on the return since this affects CRA's internal processing, but you won't need to complete any provincial-specific forms for a non-resident property sale.

That's really practical advice, thank you! Do you happen to have a link to these donation value guides? And what level of detail do you go into for categories? Like do you just say "men's shirts" or do you break it down further into "men's t-shirts" vs "men's dress shirts"?

Salvation Army's valuation guide is here: https://satruck.org/Home/DonationValueGuide and Goodwill has one but it varies slightly by region. I definitely recommend breaking categories down to a reasonable level - not just "men's shirts" but "men's t-shirts" vs "men's dress shirts" vs "men's polos" since they have different values. Same with women's clothing, children's items, etc. For household goods, I separate by room (kitchen, bathroom, decor). The key is finding the balance between being thorough without making it impossibly detailed. Taking photos of sorted piles with your phone works great as backup documentation. I've been through two minor IRS inquiries about my donations over the years and this system held up both times.

This is why I barely claim any donations anymore. The documentation requirements are insane and it's not worth the risk. I donate tons of stuff but usually just claim a token amount like $500 for the year. Peace of mind is worth more than the tax savings to me.