Yep, got my DDD on a random Tuesday last yr. The whole "Friday only" thing is BS tbh. Transcripts can update any day, but ppl keep spreading misinfo. I've been tracking this for 3 yrs now and seen updates every day of the week except Sunday. The cycle code on ur transcript (last 2 digits) can sometimes hint at ur update schedule, but even that's not 100% reliable. Congrats on ur DDD tho!

This is really helpful information! I'm new to understanding how the IRS system works, and I've been one of those people who thought updates only happened on Fridays. It's encouraging to know that my transcript could potentially update any day of the week. I filed about three weeks ago and have been checking every Friday like clockwork, but maybe I should check more regularly? Though from what others are saying, it sounds like obsessively checking daily might not be the best approach either. @Dominique Adams - congratulations on getting your DDD! April 23rd isn't too far away. Did you notice any other changes on your transcript before the DDD appeared, or did it really just go straight from N/A to showing the deposit date? Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences and the technical details. This community is so much more informative than just googling "when do IRS transcripts update" and getting conflicting information!

I've been using Taxcaster for a few years now and I'd say it's decent for a rough estimate but definitely not perfect. The biggest issue I've found is that it doesn't handle more complex tax situations very well - like if you have multiple income sources, itemized deductions, or any unusual circumstances. That said, a $10.5k refund does sound like you're significantly overwithholding! Even if Taxcaster is off by 20-30%, you're still probably getting way more back than you should be. I'd recommend starting conservatively - maybe adjust your withholdings to reduce your expected refund by half rather than trying to zero it out completely. That way you still get some extra money in your paychecks but have a safety buffer. Also, definitely double-check your inputs in Taxcaster and consider running the numbers through the IRS Withholding Calculator as well. Having two different estimates can help you feel more confident about making changes.

I've been using Taxcaster for about 3 years and my experience has been that it's usually within about $500-800 of my actual refund, which is pretty good for a free tool. However, $10.5k does seem quite high - that suggests you're definitely overwithholding by a significant amount. One thing I learned the hard way is to be really careful about entering your current withholdings correctly in Taxcaster. Make sure you're looking at your most recent paystub to get the exact federal tax withheld year-to-date, not just estimating. Also, if you've had any major life changes this year (marriage, divorce, new baby, buying a house), those can significantly impact your tax situation. My recommendation would be to run your numbers through both Taxcaster AND the official IRS Withholding Calculator, then split the difference between what they recommend. That way you're not putting all your eggs in one basket with a single estimate. I did this approach last year and ended up with a small refund of about $400 instead of the $3k I was getting before - much better for my monthly budget!

I actually went through this last year with my S-Corp. Something important I learned - if your new owner is a non-US citizen or certain types of entities, you could accidentally terminate your S election! Make sure your new member is a qualified S-Corp shareholder. Also, depending on your state, you might need to file amended articles of organization with the state. In California, for example, we had to file a Statement of Information update when our ownership changed.

One thing to keep in mind that I haven't seen mentioned yet - when you take distributions as an S-Corp, they need to be proportional to ownership percentages. You can't just decide to give one owner more distributions than another based on their contribution or work in the business. Also, make sure you're both taking reasonable salaries as W-2 employees if you're both actively working in the business. The IRS scrutinizes S-Corps that try to avoid payroll taxes by taking everything as distributions instead of salary. The salary requirement applies to all owner-employees, not just the original owner. For your specific situation with the mid-year ownership change, document everything thoroughly - the date of the change, the reason for it, how you determined the new ownership percentages, and keep copies of all amended corporate documents. This documentation will be crucial if you ever face an audit.

I want to add another perspective as someone who went through this exact situation as an F1 student from South Korea. The consensus here is absolutely correct - Schedule D is the right form for your Robinhood trades. What really helped me understand this was learning about the "effectively connected income" test. The IRS considers three factors: (1) whether the income is from assets used in or held for use in conducting a trade or business in the US, (2) whether the business activities in the US were a material factor in producing the income, and (3) whether the income is derived from sources within the US. For F1 students actively trading stocks while physically present in the US, you typically meet criteria (2) and (3), making it ECI that goes on Schedule D. The good news about your India-US tax treaty question is that even though capital gains don't get special treaty rates, the ECI treatment means you avoid the 30% flat rate and get taxed like a US resident. I saved about $800 in taxes by having long-term capital gains taxed at 15% instead of my ordinary income rate of 22%. One practical tip: Since you mentioned you made $3,200 in gains, make sure to set aside money for taxes if you haven't already. Even with preferential rates, you'll likely owe something, and international students can't always make estimated payments as easily as US residents. The Schedule NEC advice from HR Block was definitely wrong - that form is for things like rental income from property in your home country or certain royalty payments, not US stock trading.

As someone who works in tax compliance, I want to emphasize that everyone here giving advice about Schedule D being correct is absolutely right. The HR Block advisor who suggested Schedule NEC clearly doesn't understand the nuances of international student taxation. Here's a simple way to think about it: If you're physically in the US on F1 status and actively making investment decisions through a US broker like Robinhood, that activity creates "effectively connected income" that gets reported just like a US resident would report it - on Schedule D. Schedule NEC is specifically for income that's NOT effectively connected with US business activity. Think of it as income that would exist regardless of your physical presence in the US - like rental income from property you own back in India, or royalties from intellectual property. Regarding your tax rate concerns: Since your capital gains qualify as ECI, you'll pay graduated rates, not the flat 30%. Short-term gains (held less than 1 year) are taxed as ordinary income at your marginal rate, while long-term gains get the preferential rates (0%, 15%, or 20% depending on your total income). The India-US tax treaty doesn't provide special capital gains rates, but the ECI treatment is actually better for you anyway since it avoids the harsh 30% flat rate that applies to certain types of non-ECI investment income. Make sure to keep detailed records of all your transactions since you'll need to report each sale on Schedule D, even without a 1099-B from Robinhood.

I think the broader issue here is setting clear expectations with your CPA. I've had several over the years, and here's what I've learned: 1. Most CPAs are not automatically going to know every local tax requirement in every jurisdiction - they focus on what's common for most of their clients 2. The best approach is to explicitly ask them which jurisdictions they're comfortable/familiar with 3. For any CPA, provide them with a complete list of everywhere you do business or have property 4. Consider a CPA who specializes in multi-state taxation if you operate in several states The reality is that while a great CPA will research requirements they're unfamiliar with, they can't read your mind. You need to be proactive about communicating your full situation.

One thing nobody's mentioned - most tax software used by CPAs has significant limitations with local taxes. I worked at a CPA firm for years, and our $30,000/year professional tax software was TERRIBLE at flagging city/local requirements. The bigger firms get around this by having dedicated state & local tax (SALT) departments. If you're using a small or mid-sized firm, they might not have those specialized resources. And solo practitioners are almost certainly going to miss some local requirements unless they specifically practice in those jurisdictions.