Thanks for bringing that up! I actually have some dividend income from a few stocks. Should I be double-checking specific forms or sections after FreeTaxUSA imports them?

You should definitely review the Schedule B if you have dividend and interest income. FreeTaxUSA sometimes misses smaller financial institutions or categorizes things incorrectly during imports. I particularly recommend double-checking that all your 1099-DIV and 1099-INT forms are fully accounted for. Sometimes qualified dividends might not get properly categorized, which can affect your tax rate. Also, if you have foreign dividends, make sure the foreign tax paid is correctly entered so you can claim the foreign tax credit.

FreeTaxUSA's crypto section is decent but limited. I ended up using CoinTracker first to generate all my crypto transactions and then entered the totals into FreeTaxUSA. Worked much better that way.

Do companies actually report small gift cards though? I've received $25-50 gift cards from managers before and I'm pretty sure they never showed up on my W-2. Is this something companies commonly overlook?

Technically, all gift cards should be reported regardless of amount. But you're right that in practice, many companies don't report very small denominations. This is an area where company practices often don't align with the actual IRS requirements. Some companies set an internal threshold (like $25 or $50) below which they don't report gift cards, essentially treating them as de minimis benefits even though technically the IRS doesn't consider gift cards to be de minimis regardless of amount. This creates potential compliance risks if ever audited.

Does this actually work? Our company has been looking for ways to reward employees without tax consequences. Do you have to have a formal written program for this to qualify? And what kinds of tangible items do you give that employees actually want?

Thanks for the recommendation! I'll check out Checkpoint. Does it have any kind of trial period? Also, do you find it's worth having a separate research tool when we already have ProSystem for preparation? Trying to justify the expense to the partners.

Yes, Thomson Reuters usually offers a 2-week trial if you reach out to their sales team. I found that to be enough time to see if it works for your research style. As for justifying the expense, I track time spent on research for each client and found I was saving about 3-4 hours per week using a dedicated research tool versus trying to cobble together information from free sources and tax prep software. When I showed the partners that math (my billable rate × hours saved per year), the decision was easy. Plus, having proper research documentation significantly reduces your professional liability risk.

I felt that way my first 3-4 years in practice. What helped me was taking specific continuing education courses on research methods and primary source analysis rather than just technical tax updates. Also, don't be afraid to tell clients "I need to research that" instead of guessing. They actually respect you more for being thorough.

If I already filed for 2021 last year but didn't claim the recovery rebate, is it too late to amend now? Is there a deadline?

You generally have up to three years from the original filing deadline to file an amended return, so you should still have plenty of time to amend your 2021 return. For 2021 returns (originally due April 2022), you would have until April 2025 to submit an amendment. Just make sure when you file the 1040-X that you're only claiming the recovery rebate credit if you were actually eligible and didn't receive the stimulus payment. You'll need to complete the Recovery Rebate Credit worksheet to determine your eligibility and amount.

Unfortunately, if you were claimed as a dependent on someone else's 2021 tax return, you weren't eligible for the third stimulus payment on your own. The payment would have gone to whoever claimed you (like your parents), but it was only for dependents under 17 for most of the stimulus payments.

Does contributing to HSA after the end of the year still reduce your MAGI for things like Roth IRA income limits or premium tax credits? I'm close to some of those phaseout thresholds.

Yes, HSA contributions made up until the tax filing deadline will still reduce your MAGI for most purposes, including Roth IRA income limits. This is one reason HSAs are so powerful for tax planning. However, for premium tax credits (ACA subsidies), it gets a bit more complicated. HSA contributions do reduce your MAGI for determining eligibility, but the timing can matter for marketplace reporting. If you're close to subsidy thresholds, you might want to make the contributions during the calendar year to ensure they're properly accounted for in the marketplace's initial calculations.

You're absolutely right about the math. People get so fixated on "dropping a tax bracket" when the savings are actually pretty minimal because of how marginal tax brackets work. I'd add that HSAs have another huge benefit - if you invest the money (most HSA providers allow this) and don't touch it for medical expenses now, it can grow tax-free for decades. Some financial planners actually recommend paying current medical expenses out-of-pocket if you can afford to, and letting your HSA grow for retirement. It's basically a stealth retirement account!