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For anyone still looking, I found a workaround in FreeTaxUSA. If you can't find the specific ESPP entry form, you can actually report it as "Other Income" and just put a description like "ESPP Discount - Form 3922" and enter the discount amount. It's not the most accurate way to do it, but it ensures the income gets reported. Just make sure you keep good records of your cost basis for when you sell the shares later. The main thing is that the discount gets reported as ordinary income.
Is that really correct though? Won't that cause issues when you sell the shares later? I thought there was a specific way you had to report ESPPs to make sure the basis gets tracked correctly.
You're right that it's not ideal. The proper way is definitely through the Stock Options section I mentioned. The "Other Income" approach is really just a last resort if you absolutely cannot find the proper entry point. When you later sell the shares, you'll need to manually calculate and enter the correct adjusted basis. It's much better to use the proper ESPP entry screens which will help track your basis automatically and ensure everything is reported correctly on your tax forms.
Nick Kravitz
Am I the only one who thinks it's ridiculous that tax software makes it so hard to find where to enter common tax forms? Companies are increasingly offering ESPPs and I get this form every year, but I spend hours trying to figure out where to enter it correctly.
Hannah White
ā¢You're definitely not alone. I switched from FreeTaxUSA to TaxSlayer last year because of this exact issue. The problem is that most tax software is designed for "typical" W-2 employees without stock compensation. As soon as you have slightly more complex situations, it becomes a treasure hunt.
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Don't overlook state R&D credits too! Many states have their own research credit programs with different documentation requirements. In California, for example, the documentation requirements are similar to federal but they specifically want more details on how the research benefits California operations. Always check your state tax authority websites for their specific requirements. Some states are stricter than the IRS, while others are more lenient. Could be leaving money on the table if you only focus on federal credits.
Ryder Greene
ā¢Do you know if you need to file the state R&D credits at the same time as the federal ones? Or can you do federal first and then state later after you've seen if the federal ones are accepted?
You generally can file them separately with different timelines. Most states don't require that you've been approved for the federal credit before claiming the state credit, though some states do require you to at least have claimed the federal credit. The advantage of filing them together is that your documentation will be fresh and consistent. If you wait too long between filings, you might find discrepancies in your documentation which could raise red flags in an audit. But there's no technical requirement to file simultaneously in most states.
Has anyone successfully claimed R&D credits for software development projects? We have a fintech app that required significant experimental development to integrate with banking APIs. Would this qualify? And what kind of documentation should we be keeping?
I've successfully claimed R&D credits for software development for 3 years now. The key is documenting the technical uncertainty you faced. Keep all technical specifications, design documents, meeting notes discussing technical challenges, repository commit messages, and testing documentation. The IRS wants to see that you were developing something truly innovative - not just implementing known techniques. Track time specifically spent on experimental development vs. routine coding. For your fintech integration, focus on documenting the technical uncertainties you faced when developing the integration and how you systematically evaluated alternatives.
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Something else to consider: check if you were actually due a refund for 2018 before assuming you owe money. Even if your employer didn't withhold, you might have qualified for credits like the Earned Income Credit depending on your situation. If you were owed a refund, there's no penalty for filing late (though you only have 3 years to claim a refund, which has passed for 2018 now). But definitely file regardless. Not filing when required is a much bigger problem than owing and not paying. The IRS is generally willing to work with people who file but can't pay right away.
Wait, are you saying if I was actually due a refund for 2018, I've completely lost it now? That would be awful! Though honestly with no withholding and my income level that year, I'm pretty sure I would have owed. But thank you for that explanation about the difference between not filing vs. owing but not paying. That helps clarify the priorities.
Unfortunately, yes. The IRS gives you 3 years from the original due date to file and claim a refund. For 2018 taxes (due April 2019), that deadline passed in April 2022. After that, any unclaimed refunds become government property. You're right to focus on just getting the return filed now regardless. The IRS views non-filers much more seriously than people who file but can't pay. Once you file, you'll have options for payment plans or even settlement offers if you genuinely can't afford what you owe.
Sunny Wang
I had almost the exact same thing happen (didn't file 2016 taxes, state came after me first). The IRS eventually found me about 2 years after the state did. They sent a bunch of scary letters and the penalties were pretty rough. Something nobody mentioned yet - if you owe a lot and don't pay, they can eventually place a lien on your property, garnish wages, or seize tax refunds from future years. They can also report to credit bureaus which tanked my credit score for a while. Just file the return and get on a payment plan if needed. The mental relief is worth it. Living with tax anxiety hanging over you is miserable.
How bad were the penalties by the time they caught up with you? I'm wondering what kind of financial hit OP is looking at after 5 years.
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Just to simplify AGI calculation: 1. Start with ALL income (wages, 1099, interest, dividends, capital gains, etc) 2. Subtract ONLY "above-the-line" deductions: - Traditional IRA contributions - Student loan interest - HSA contributions - Self-employed health insurance - SEP/SIMPLE/401k contributions for self-employed - Alimony paid (for pre-2019 divorces) - Educator expenses - Some business expenses Taxes withheld throughout the year have NOTHING to do with AGI. And standard/itemized deductions come AFTER AGI calculation.
What about 401k contributions through my employer? And health insurance premiums? I'm confused if those count as "above-the-line" deductions or not.
Employer 401k contributions and pre-tax health insurance premiums are already excluded from your W-2 Box 1 wages. They've already reduced your reported income before you even start calculating AGI. That's why they don't appear as separate "above-the-line" deductions on your tax return - they've already been accounted for. This is different from things like traditional IRA contributions which you make separately from your paycheck, so those need to be deducted as a specific adjustment to income.
StarSeeker
One thing that helped me understand AGI is looking at the 1040 form itself. If you look at the first page of your 1040, everything above the "adjusted gross income" line (line 11 on recent forms) is part of the AGI calculation. This includes all your income sources at the top, then all those adjustments/deductions in the "Income" section. Anything listed in the "Adjusted Gross Income" section gets subtracted to arrive at your final AGI. Standard/itemized deductions and qualified business income deductions all come AFTER the AGI line, so they don't affect AGI calculation at all.
Zoe Stavros
ā¢Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who responded. This makes so much more sense now. So in my original example with $230k gross income and $9,800 in deductions, my AGI would depend on WHICH deductions those are. If those $9,800 were all "above-the-line" deductions like traditional IRA, HSA, etc., then my AGI would be $220,200. But if some of those deductions were itemized deductions like mortgage interest or charitable donations, those wouldn't affect my AGI at all. And the $78k in taxes I paid throughout the year is completely irrelevant to AGI calculation. This clears up my confusion completely!
Lucy Lam
I had a similar experience but the opposite way - TurboTax showed $280 more than TaxSlayer. Turns out TurboTax was correctly applying a savers credit that TaxSlayer missed. One trick I learned: you can view the actual forms before filing with either service. If you look at the completed 1040 forms from both and compare them line by line, you'll usually spot where the difference is coming from. It's usually on one specific line or schedule, and once you find it, you can research whether that specific calculation is correct.
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Aidan Hudson
ā¢This is great advice! Finding the specific line where the difference occurs is key. Then you can google that specific tax form line to check which calculation is correct.
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Zoe Wang
Just to add another perspective - sometimes the difference isn't because one software is "right" and the other is "wrong." Tax law has gray areas where reasonable people can interpret things differently. If you're self-employed or have investment income, check how each platform is handling your qualified business income deduction or investment expense allocations. These areas have some subjective elements where different software might make different but equally legitimate calculations. I personally would go through the comparison process others have suggested, but if both approaches seem reasonable, I'd probably go with the higher refund. Just make sure you can justify the positions taken on your return if asked!
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