This is a gray area. The IRS guidance states that computer equipment can be a qualified education expense if it's needed for enrollment or attendance. Since your courses had online components that required a computer, you have a legitimate case.

I successfully claimed a new laptop last year. The key was documenting how it was necessary for my specific program. My university had a policy stating students needed "access to a computer" for certain courses, which I printed out and included with my tax documents. Also saved course syllabi that mentioned required online components.

Oh that's really good to know! My university lumps everything together on one statement - tuition, fees, housing, meal plan, health insurance, etc. I need to make sure I'm only including the qualified items in my appeal. Is there an easy way to separate these out?

most schools will give you an itemized statement if you request it from the bursar or student accounts office. just ask for a "detailed statement of account" with all charges broken down by category. thats what i did and it made it super clear which items were tuition/fees vs housing/meals. some schools also have a separate form they can provide specifically for tax purposes that only shows the qualified education expenses. worth asking if they have something like that!

Do they accept payments right there at the office? Or do they just help you figure out how to pay? My payment is due really soon and I'm getting nervous about penalties.

They don't actually accept payments directly at most locations, but they'll help you make the payment online while you're there. The IRS employee can bypass the normal verification requirements when you're in person with proper ID. They did this for me when I couldn't verify online. If your payment is due very soon, make sure to mention that when you call for an appointment. They sometimes have emergency slots for urgent cases. If you absolutely can't get an appointment before your due date, you might want to mail a check as a backup plan just to show you're trying to pay on time.

Not to be that person but this doesn't actually help OP with their current problem of paying taxes without previous returns. They already know how much they owe, they just need to pay it.

Thank you so much for this detailed advice. I've never heard of Form 911 - does that require proof of hardship? And what kind of evidence would be most helpful to show I was kept in the dark? I don't have much documentation since I wasn't allowed to see financial records.

Form 911 does require showing hardship, but in your case, the potential tax bill of $247k on a $30k income absolutely qualifies as financial hardship. The Taxpayer Advocate Service is specifically designed to help in situations where the normal IRS processes would create significant difficulty. For evidence, anything that demonstrates the controlling nature of the relationship helps. This could include: statements from family/friends who witnessed the financial control, documentation of separate bank accounts you didn't have access to, emails/texts where you asked for financial information and were denied, or documentation from divorce proceedings that mentions financial control. Even a statement from a therapist (if you've discussed the financial abuse) can be valuable supporting evidence. The IRS doesn't expect extensive documentation in abuse cases - they understand documentation itself was often controlled.

The statute of limitations might not apply if returns weren't filed at all. The 10-year collection period doesn't start until a tax is assessed, and if no returns were filed, the assessment may not have happened until recently when the IRS created substitute returns.

You're absolutely right about the unfiled returns issue. If the ex never filed returns, the statute of limitations on collection wouldn't have started until the IRS prepared Substitute for Returns (SFRs) and made assessments based on those. The Currently Not Collectible status would still apply though. With a $30k income and basic living expenses, there's no way the IRS collection standards would show ability to pay on a $247k+ tax debt. This could at least provide immediate relief while pursuing the innocent spouse relief, which is definitely the best long-term solution in this case.

Safe deposit boxes aren't as secure as people think. My parents lost access to theirs when their bank suddenly closed the branch, and it was a nightmare getting their documents. Also, if you die without someone else having official access, the box gets sealed and your executor has to go through legal hoops to access it. Plus you can't quickly access stuff if you need it on evenings or weekends.

I hadn't considered the bank closure scenario - that's a good point. My branch has been open for decades so I guess I just assumed it would always be there. As for access issues, I've made sure my wife is listed as having access rights, so that should prevent problems if something happens to me. The weekend access limitation is real though - there have been a couple times when I needed something and had to wait until Monday. Maybe a hybrid approach would be better, keeping digital copies for immediate access and the physical originals in the safe deposit box.

Really appreciate the cybersecurity perspective! I'm not very tech savvy - is creating an encrypted zip file something a regular person can figure out? Or is it complicated? The encryption option sounds perfect if I can manage it.

Did your CPA give you advice for the current tax year or just file last year's return? I'm considering one but want ongoing tax planning, not just filing help once a year.

My CPA definitely provided advice for the current year, which was one of the most valuable parts of working with him. After filing my previous year's return, we had a separate 30-minute call specifically focused on tax planning strategies for the current year. He suggested restructuring how I track business expenses, recommended setting up quarterly estimated payments to avoid penalties, and gave me a spreadsheet template for better tracking my crypto transactions throughout the year. Good CPAs view the relationship as ongoing tax optimization, not just a once-a-year filing service.

I used CoinTracker last year and it was decent for basic stuff but struggled with some DeFi transactions and NFTs. It helped organize everything but I still needed to make a lot of manual adjustments. Better than nothing though!