Just to add another perspective - if you're planning ahead for 2024 taxes, don't forget that you can also get a "Return Transcript" which shows what you actually filed, versus the "Wage and Income Transcript" which shows what was reported to the IRS about you. Sometimes it's helpful to compare both to make sure everything matches up. The Return Transcript is usually available much sooner (typically by late summer after you file), while the Wage and Income Transcript takes longer as others have mentioned. If you're doing financial planning that involves knowing your exact AGI or specific line items from your return, the Return Transcript might be more useful than waiting for the Wage and Income version.

Great question! I've been through this process several times and can confirm that the July timeframe is pretty accurate. Just want to add a few practical tips from my experience: 1. If you're doing financial planning that requires knowing your exact previous year income, consider requesting your Return Transcript first (as someone mentioned above) - it's available much sooner and shows what you actually filed. 2. For 2024 planning specifically, remember that if you need the Wage and Income Transcript for loan applications or income verification, many lenders will accept your filed tax return or Return Transcript instead, so you might not need to wait until July 2025. 3. One thing that caught me off guard the first time - even when the transcript becomes available, double-check it against your records. I've found small discrepancies (like a 1099 that was corrected after the initial submission) that didn't show up until later updates. The IRS Get Transcript online tool is definitely the fastest way once they're available, assuming you can get through their identity verification process. Just be patient with the system - it can be finicky but saves a lot of phone time!

Paolo, you've gotten great advice here! I went through this exact same confusion with my single member LLC just six months ago. "Sole Proprietor" on line 9a is absolutely the correct choice - don't second guess yourself on this one. What helped me understand it was realizing that the LLC formation (state level) and tax treatment (federal level) are two completely separate things. Your LLC gives you liability protection at the state level, but the IRS defaults to treating single-member LLCs as sole proprietorships for tax purposes unless you actively elect otherwise. The S-Corp election your friends mentioned happens later via Form 2553, and honestly, it's not something most new businesses need to worry about initially. I've been tracking my numbers, and I'm nowhere near the profit level where S-Corp treatment would make sense given the additional costs and complexity. My recommendation: fill out that SS-4 with "Sole Proprietor" selected, get your EIN, open a business bank account, and focus on actually making money with your LLC. The advanced tax planning can wait until you have some real income to optimize!

Paolo, you're getting excellent advice here! As someone who just went through this exact same process with my single member LLC a couple months ago, I can confirm that "Sole Proprietor" is definitely the right choice for line 9a on Form SS-4. I had the same confusion initially because it feels weird selecting "Sole Proprietor" when you just formed an LLC, but that's exactly how the IRS wants it done. The single-member LLC is considered a "disregarded entity" for federal tax purposes, so even though you have the legal protections of an LLC, you're taxed as if you were a sole proprietor. What really helped me was understanding that this initial choice doesn't lock you in forever. I was overthinking it just like you are now, worried I'd mess something up and cause problems later. But once I realized that the S-Corp election your friends mentioned is a completely separate process that happens AFTER you get your EIN (using Form 2553), it took all the pressure off. My advice: select "Sole Proprietor," submit your SS-4, get your EIN, and then focus on building your business. You can always explore more complex tax structures later when your income justifies the additional complexity. For now, you're making the right choice to keep things simple!

Just to add some clarity on the Form 8606 sequencing for your situation: For your wife: - Form 8606 Part I: Report $6,500 contribution (line 1), then report $6,503 on line 8 - The $3 earnings will flow to line 18 and be taxable For you: - One Form 8606 for the $2,700 old money conversion (Parts I and II) - For the 2023 contribution made in 2024 that was recharacterized and converted, you'll report the contribution on your 2023 Form 8606 but the conversion goes on 2024 The most common mistake people make is not filing Form 8606 in the year they make nondeductible contributions, even if they don't convert until later. This causes all kinds of basis tracking problems down the road.

Honestly, the backdoor Roth process is unnecessarily complicated. I've been doing them for years and here's my simplified approach: For each person: 1. Contribute to traditional IRA 2. Convert to Roth 3. File Form 8606 for each person who did a conversion The key thing that messes people up is when the value changes between contribution and conversion. If you convert quickly there's minimal growth (or loss). Make sure you track your "basis" (non-deductible contributions) correctly or you could end up paying tax twice on the same money!

This thread perfectly captures the frustration so many of us singles feel about the tax system. What really bothers me is how the disparity has actually gotten worse over time - when you look at historical tax brackets, the gap between single and married filing jointly rates used to be much smaller. I've been tracking my effective tax rate versus my married coworkers for the past few years, and it's consistently 3-4 percentage points higher despite similar gross incomes. That might not sound like much, but on a $75k salary, that's an extra $2,250-$3,000 annually that I'm paying just for being single. The really infuriating part is when people suggest that singles should just "get married for the tax benefits." That completely misses the point - we shouldn't have to change our fundamental life choices to get fair treatment from our own government. Marriage should be about love and commitment, not tax optimization. I've done everything possible on my end - maxed out my 401k, HSA, taken every deduction I can find, even moved to a state with no income tax. But at the end of the day, we're still working within a system that was designed decades ago and hasn't adapted to modern reality where nearly half of American adults are single. We need politicians to acknowledge that this isn't just affecting a small minority anymore - we're talking about tens of millions of taxpayers who are systematically overtaxed compared to their married counterparts.

As someone who's been dealing with this exact frustration for years, I want to add that the discrimination goes beyond just tax rates - it's built into the entire structure of how we fund government services. Think about it: married couples with children consume significantly more public resources per dollar of taxes paid. Their kids use public schools for 12+ years, they need more police and fire protection for larger households, they create more wear on infrastructure with multiple vehicles, and they generate more waste that municipalities have to handle. Yet somehow I'm the one paying a higher effective tax rate? I calculated that over my working lifetime, this disparity will cost me approximately $75,000-$100,000 compared to a married colleague with identical income. That's enough to buy a house in many parts of the country! Meanwhile, I use fewer public services across the board. The real kicker is that this system was designed when single adults were mostly young people who would eventually marry. Now we have millions of Americans who are single by choice throughout their careers, and we're essentially funding a system that penalizes us for a lifestyle that puts less strain on public resources. I've optimized everything I can - retirement accounts, moved states, HSA maxed out - but we need actual legislative reform to fix this fundamental inequity. The tax code needs to reflect 21st century demographics, not 1950s assumptions about American family life.

Banks also look for unusual deposit patterns compared to your history. If you suddenly start making cash deposits when you normally don't, that might trigger questions regardless of the amount. My friend runs a legit dog grooming biz and started taking cash instead of venmo, and the bank actually asked her about the change in deposit patterns!

Great question! Just to add to what others have said - the key is being natural and consistent with your deposits. Since you mentioned this is from photography work, I'd suggest keeping good records of your jobs and payments. If you're getting paid $2k for a wedding shoot, just deposit that $2k when you get it. Don't try to split it up or hold onto cash to avoid any thresholds. The IRS cares way more about whether you're reporting the income on your taxes than about the specific deposit amounts. As long as you're documenting your photography income and paying taxes on it, you're doing everything right. Banks are looking for people who are obviously trying to game the system, not legitimate small business owners just depositing their earnings. One practical tip: consider opening a separate business account for your photography income if you haven't already. It makes tracking everything much easier and looks more professional if there are ever any questions.