One thing I haven't seen mentioned here - you should also get your financial situation in order ASAP. You'll likely end up on a payment plan with the IRS, and they'll want to see your current finances. Start gathering bank statements, credit card statements, loan documents, etc. Figure out your current income, expenses, assets, and debts. The IRS will use this information to determine what you can reasonably pay each month. Also, if you have any ability to start setting aside money now for the eventual tax bill, do it. Even if it's not enough to cover everything, showing good faith by having some payment ready can sometimes help negotiations. Depending on your situation, you might want to look into tax relief options like an Offer in Compromise, but your attorney will guide you on that.

PLEASE don't admit to fraud directly!!! I made this exact mistake and it turned a simple audit into a criminal investigation. Let your attorney do the talking. The language you use matters enormously. There's a huge difference between "I can't find documentation for these deductions" and "I made up these deductions." One is a documentation problem, the other is admission of a crime. Your attorney will know how to navigate this, but whatever you do, don't contact the auditor before speaking with an attorney, and don't volunteer information about intent. Let the attorney handle all communications - that's literally what you're paying them for.

For the TurboTax specific question - I had the same issue with a Filipino contractor. Here's exactly what I did: Select "Yes" to that contractor question, then on the next screens, when it asks for the contractor's info, there's an option near the bottom that says something like "This contractor is not a US person" or "Foreign contractor" - click that. Then TurboTax will let you deduct the expense without requiring 1099 info. It's easy to miss that option but it's definitely there!

Don't TurboTax and other software make everything so complicated? I miss the days of paper filing lol. Anyway - one thing to remember is that payments to foreign contractors for services performed entirely outside the US are generally exempt from reporting on 1042-S if there's no US-source income. You still deduct it as a business expense, but without the paperwork headache.

Make sure to double check if you actually exceeded the wage base for Social Security. The letter is probably saying that while you had more than $9,114 WITHHELD in SS tax, you might not have had more than $160,200 in SS WAGES between both jobs. For example, if Job 1 paid you $70,000 and Job 2 paid you $75,000, your total SS wages were $145,000 - which is under the limit, so you wouldn't be entitled to any excess SS tax refund, even though both employers withheld at the 6.2% rate. The only way you're eligible for the refund is if your combined SS wages exceeded $160,200.

I'm confused about something. If the FICA wage limit is $160,200 for 2023, and 6.2% of that is $9,932.40, then why would both employers withhold more than that? Shouldn't they each be checking if you've hit the limit?

As someone who does this regularly, here's my practical advice: only deduct expenses that are DIRECTLY related to your business activities. Don't try to deduct your flight to Italy or your entire accommodation. If you rent a workspace for a day, deduct that. If you take a taxi specifically to a client meeting, deduct that. If you have a business lunch, deduct 50% of that. Keep a separate credit card for business expenses and detailed logs of ALL business activities. Note start/end times, who you met with, and business purpose. Take photos of yourself at business meetings or workspaces as additional documentation. I've been doing this for years with no issues. The problems happen when people try to write off their entire vacation by having one "business meeting.

Don't overthink this! The IRS rules on business expenses apply the same way whether you're in Kansas or Kyoto. What matters is if the expense is ordinary and necessary for your business, not what country you're in or what visa you have. I write a travel blog and deduct parts of my trips all the time. The key is DOCUMENTATION and PRORATION. If 3 days of your 21-day trip are for business, you can deduct those specific expenses, but not the other 18 days or your flights. And seriously, stop worrying about the tourist visa thing. The IRS cares about proper reporting of income and expenses, not whether you technically violated another country's visa rules.

OP, one thing to be aware of - your age matters here. Since you're 17, this might be the last year you can be claimed as a dependent (unless you're a full-time student next year). Your 14-year-old brother will still be a dependent for several more years. The parent who claims you also gets other potential benefits like education credits if you're in college soon. Sometimes parents agree to split the kids (each claims one) or alternate years. But without an agreement, custody percentage is what matters most.

this happened to us and my dad claimed me and my sister even tho we lived with mom most of the time. the irs ended up auditing both of them and it was a huge mess. mom had to get old school records and doctor visit forms to prove we lived w/ her. dad got hit with a penalty for filing wrong and had to pay back the refund he got. it took like 8 months to sort out and made everything between them way worse. tell ur mom to document everything!! keep school records showing ur address at her place, medical stuff, anything official that shows u guys live with her.