Thanks for this suggestion! Do you know if the Free File Fillable Forms are user-friendly for someone who doesn't have much experience with tax forms? I'm a bit worried I'll mess something up if I try to do it all manually.

The interface is definitely not as user-friendly as TurboTax. It's basically just the actual tax forms in electronic format with minimal guidance. There are some basic calculations built in, but it won't walk you through what to enter or provide explanations like commercial tax software does. If you're including something straightforward like a single 1099-G, it might be manageable. You'd essentially be copying most information from your original return and just adding the additional income. The key is to take your time and double-check everything. The IRS instructions for Form 1040-X are actually pretty detailed if you follow them carefully.

Wait, are you saying some unemployment benefits might not be taxable for 2023? I thought that was only a 2020 thing during the height of COVID. Can you provide more details on this announcement?

Thanks for this advice - I hadn't even thought about checking my credit reports. Is there anything else I should do besides responding to the IRS letter and checking my credit? Should I put a freeze on my credit or file a police report?

Responding to the IRS letter should be your first priority to get your refund moving. After checking your credit reports, consider placing a fraud alert with the credit bureaus if you see anything suspicious. A credit freeze is a good precaution if you find evidence of actual identity theft on your reports. A police report generally isn't necessary unless you find concrete evidence of identity theft beyond just the IRS letter. Many of these flags are preventative measures by the IRS, not confirmation that theft has occurred. If your credit reports are clean, you likely just got caught in the IRS screening system, which has been extra sensitive lately.

Yes! This is actually a big red flag - it means someone definitely tried to file a fraudulent return using your information. You need to call the IRS identity theft hotline immediately at 800-908-4490. And file your legitimate return by paper as soon as possible with Form 14039 (Identity Theft Affidavit) attached.

1 What exactly should I be keeping? Just the W-2C and copies of the amended return? Or should I also be keeping some kind of documentation about when I received it from my employer?

5 You should definitely keep the original W-2C (both your copy and all copies they sent you), your original tax return for that year, and copies of your completed amended return with all attachments. I'd also recommend keeping any emails or documentation showing when you received the W-2C from your employer, especially since it came so late. I'd also suggest writing a brief explanation letter to attach to your amended return explaining the delayed W-2C situation. This helps the IRS processor understand why you're amending a return from two years ago. In my case, including this letter helped when I had to follow up later.

22 I work in payroll, and you're partly right. There's been a big push for compliance audits after all the remote work and state tax complications from the pandemic. Many companies are still catching up and finding issues from 2-3 years ago. Plus the IRS has been sending more notices about mismatches between what employers reported and what employees filed.

Is Credit Karma Tax still free? I used it last year and it was pretty straightforward even though I had some 1099 income and a W-2.

Credit Karma Tax is now called Cash App Taxes, but yes, it's still free for federal and state returns! It works well for most basic to moderately complex situations. Just be aware it doesn't support multiple state filings or some less common tax situations like foreign income or rental property depreciation.

I did get copies but honestly I don't understand half of what's on them. There are all these forms and schedules that don't make any sense to me. But I'll definitely go back and ask them to explain. Do you think they might have entered something wrong on purpose to make it look like I'd get a bigger refund? The guy kept talking about how he could "maximize" my refund which sounded good at the time.

It's unlikely they did something fraudulent on purpose (that could cost them their business), but they might have been sloppy or made assumptions without asking you proper questions. Sometimes preparers at those places work on commission based on how many returns they process, so they rush through them. When you go back, ask specifically about the "underreported income" mentioned in the IRS letter. They should be able to run a comparison between what they submitted and what the IRS has on file for you. Don't leave until you understand what happened - it's your money and your tax record at stake.

I double-checked both my E*TRADE account and the transaction confirmations - there was definitely no "sell to cover" for taxes. The statements explicitly show 0% withholding on these vestings. All shares came through intact with no sales. I think I'm going to follow the advice about contacting our stock admin team specifically rather than regular HR. It sounds like there's something wrong with how my international transfer was set up in their system.

That's definitely a problem then. One other thing to check - some companies use a different payroll system for equity compensation than they do for regular salary. So while your ADP might show nothing, there could be withholding happening in a different system. This happened to me when I transferred from our Tokyo office. My regular pay was in ADP but equity was handled through a specialized system that didn't show up in my regular payroll login. Check with your stock admin team if they use a separate system for equity compensation reporting.

The general rule is that RSUs are taxed based on where you are when they vest, not where you were when they were granted. So if you're a US resident/taxpayer when they vest, the entire value at vesting is taxable in the US regardless of where you earned them. There can be exceptions based on tax treaties between countries and the specific structure of your equity plan, but in most cases, if you're physically in the US when RSUs vest, they're fully taxable in the US. You might want to check if there's a US-Canada tax treaty provision that applies to your specific situation.