I'm in a similar unmarried situation and just had a consultation with a CPA about this. Here's what might help: 1) Have you calculated the difference between what you'd gain by filing HOH vs what your boyfriend might lose in healthcare subsidies? Sometimes the higher-earning parent filing HOH and claiming the kids provides more overall family benefit even if there's a small premium increase. 2) Make sure you're considering the Child Tax Credit which is up to $2,000 per qualifying child for 2024 tax year. This could be significant with two kids. 3) Look at childcare expenses if applicable - the Child and Dependent Care Credit might be more valuable to you as the higher earner. The best solution is usually to run the numbers both ways (you claim kids vs. he claims kids) and see which produces the best overall result for your household.

Did either of you use those Premium Tax Credits for the Obamacare plan? If so, be super careful about changing who claims the kids because it can cause major headaches with the Form 8962 reconciliation. My partner and I did this wrong one year and ended up owing $3200 back to the IRS because the subsidy was calculated based on different info than what we filed.

I created a custom Excel spreadsheet that helps with ERTC/PPP optimization that I'm happy to share. It's not as fancy as dedicated software, but it has formulas that calculate different scenarios based on which wages you allocate where. Key features: 1. Separates employees by quarter/PPP period 2. Calculates ERTC for different qualified wage caps 3. Optimizes PPP forgiveness with non-payroll expenses 4. Shows total benefit comparison between different allocation methods Message me your email if you want a copy. It comes with no guarantees but has worked well for my 30-employee manufacturing business.

Has anyone actually had their ERTC claim accepted and received a check yet? We submitted amended 941s for Q2-Q4 2020 and Q1-Q3 2021 almost a year ago and haven't heard anything. Our CPA says the IRS is backlogged by 18-24 months on these claims. Just wondering if there's any light at the end of this tunnel...

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.

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!

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.

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.

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.

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.