Hey! I was in almost the exact same situation as you last year and totally understand the confusion. Here's what I learned after going through this process: Since you have a driver's license and voter registration in your college state, you've established legal residency there. This means you'll likely file as a resident in your college state and report ALL your income (both campus job and summer job back home). For your home state, you'll probably need to file as a non-resident, but only report the income you earned there during the summer. A couple of things that really helped me: 1. **Check for reciprocity agreements first** - Some states have agreements where you only need to file in one state. This could save you a lot of hassle. 2. **Use tax software** - I tried doing it manually at first and got overwhelmed. Software like TurboTax or FreeTaxUSA walks you through the multi-state process step by step and asks simple questions to determine your filing requirements. 3. **Don't panic about double taxation** - Your resident state will give you a credit for taxes paid to the other state, so you won't actually pay tax twice on the same income. The fact that your parents claim you as a dependent doesn't change which states you need to file in - that just affects certain deductions and credits. I know it feels overwhelming, but once you get through it the first time, it becomes much clearer. You've got this!

I just went through this exact situation and want to share what worked for me! As a college student with income in multiple states, the key is figuring out your "tax domicile" first. Since you're registered to vote and have a driver's license in your college state, you've established legal residency there. This typically means you'll file as a resident in your college state and report ALL income (from both states). For your home state, you'll likely file as a non-resident and only report income earned there during your summer job. A few practical tips that saved me time and stress: **Check reciprocity agreements first** - Some states have agreements where you only file in one state. Could save you from dual filing entirely. **Use tax software designed for multi-state situations** - I tried figuring it out manually and got nowhere. Software like TurboTax walks you through it with simple questions about where you lived, worked, and have legal ties. **Don't worry about double taxation** - Your resident state will give you a credit for taxes paid to your non-resident state, so you won't pay twice on the same income. **Keep your W-2s handy** - The software will ask about income sources and tax withholding from each state. Being claimed as a dependent by your parents doesn't change your state filing requirements - that mainly affects federal deductions and credits. I know it feels overwhelming, but most tax software handles this situation really well once you get started. The hardest part is just taking that first step!

Great question about the home office deduction! Yes, you can absolutely still claim the home office deduction after marriage when filing jointly, as long as you meet the IRS requirements. The key is that the space must be used "regularly and exclusively" for business purposes - meaning it's your dedicated workspace and not used for personal activities like watching TV or as a guest bedroom. You have two options for calculating the deduction: the simplified method (up to $5 per square foot, max 300 sq ft = $1,500 max deduction) or the actual expense method where you calculate the percentage of your home used for business and deduct that percentage of qualifying home expenses like utilities, insurance, repairs, etc. Since your business is breaking even now, maximizing these deductions becomes even more important for reducing your self-employment tax liability. Keep detailed records of your home office measurements and any business-related expenses. When you file jointly, this deduction will help offset your self-employment income regardless of your spouse's W-2 income.

One additional consideration that hasn't been mentioned yet - when you get married, your filing status changes for the ENTIRE tax year, even if you only get married on December 31st. So if you're getting married this fall, you'll need to decide on your filing status for the full 2024 tax year. This means you should start planning now for how marriage will affect your quarterly estimated payments for the rest of the year. If filing jointly will result in tax savings (which it sounds like it will based on the other responses), you might be able to reduce your remaining quarterly payments slightly. Also, once you're married, you can choose to make joint estimated tax payments rather than separate ones, which can simplify the process. Just make sure to recalculate your estimates based on your combined income and the filing status you plan to use. Given your income levels and his dependent child, I'd strongly recommend running the numbers both ways before your wedding so you can adjust your tax withholding and estimated payments accordingly for Q4.

Great question about organizing records! I use a simple monthly folder system with subcategories that works really well: Vehicle (fuel, maintenance, repairs), Equipment (kitchen gear, POS system), Operations (permits, insurance, commissary fees), and Marketing/Events (catering supplies, advertising). I also keep a digital backup of everything scanned to cloud storage - learned that lesson when I spilled coffee all over important receipts! For the repair fund, 10-15% is a solid range. I'd actually lean toward 15% in your first couple years since you're still learning what normal wear patterns look like for your specific setup. Food truck equipment gets a workout, especially with high-volume items like empanadas that require consistent frying temperatures. One more organizational tip - keep a simple log book in the truck where you note any unusual sounds, performance issues, or minor problems as they happen. This helps with preventive maintenance scheduling and gives repair shops better diagnostic info, which can save you money on labor costs. The fact that you're thinking strategically about all these operational aspects while still in your first year tells me you're going to do really well in this business. Most new food truck owners get so focused on perfecting their menu that they neglect the business fundamentals. You're clearly taking a holistic approach which is awesome to see!

One thing I haven't seen mentioned yet is the importance of keeping detailed records of your business use percentage if you ever use the truck for anything other than business. Since you mentioned 100% business use, you're in great shape, but it's worth documenting this clearly in case the IRS ever questions it. Also, consider the timing of any major repairs or improvements you might make to the truck. If you do them before year-end, they could potentially be expensed immediately under Section 179 (for qualifying improvements) or using the de minimis safe harbor rule for smaller repairs. Just something to keep in mind as you plan your maintenance schedule. I'd also suggest looking into whether your state offers any additional tax incentives for small businesses or food service operations. Some states have programs specifically designed to support mobile food vendors that could stack on top of your federal depreciation benefits. The empanada business sounds amazing - authentic family recipes really do make all the difference in the food truck world. Best of luck with your depreciation decision and the continued growth of your business!

This WHFIT situation with IBIT is exactly why I always recommend keeping detailed records from day one. I learned this the hard way with another Bitcoin ETF last year. What helped me was creating a simple tracking system: original purchase price minus all those monthly "phantom proceeds" equals my adjusted cost basis. The key insight is that these aren't actual taxable events - they're just the fund passing through basis adjustments to you as the shareholder. Your tax software should allow you to manually enter the adjusted cost basis when you eventually sell. Just make sure to keep documentation showing how you calculated it in case the IRS ever asks. The monthly statements from your broker plus the 1099-B entries should provide a clear paper trail. Don't stress too much about the missing cost basis column on the 1099-B - that's unfortunately normal for these WHFIT structures. Focus on tracking your adjusted basis separately and you'll be fine when it comes time to actually sell the shares.

I went through this exact same situation with IBIT last year and it was incredibly frustrating at first. The key thing to understand is that these monthly "gross proceeds" entries are phantom transactions - they represent internal fund activities, not actual sales you made. Here's what I learned after consulting with a tax professional: these WHFIT distributions reduce your cost basis in the ETF. So if you originally bought $1,000 worth of IBIT and have $50 in total gross proceeds reported throughout the year, your adjusted cost basis becomes $950. When you eventually sell your shares, you'll use this lower adjusted basis to calculate your capital gain. The reason there's no cost basis shown on the 1099-B for these entries is because they're not traditional buy/sell transactions. Your broker may not update your account's displayed cost basis automatically, so you'll need to track these adjustments yourself. I created a simple spreadsheet tracking: original purchase price, minus each monthly gross proceeds amount, equals current adjusted basis. Keep all your 1099-B forms and monthly statements as documentation. When you sell, you'll manually enter the adjusted cost basis in your tax software and attach a note explaining the WHFIT adjustments. Don't panic about these phantom proceeds - they're not additional taxable income, just basis adjustments that will affect your eventual capital gain calculation.

This thread is incredibly helpful! I'm currently dealing with the same situation - filed 2/18, accepted same day, and my status bars disappeared on 2/28. I claimed the Child Tax Credit and Additional Child Tax Credit for my two kids, plus the Earned Income Credit. Like so many others here, I was really panicking when I first saw that generic "still being processed" message. All the articles I found online made it sound like disappearing bars meant something was seriously wrong with my return. But reading through everyone's experiences here has been such a relief - it's clear this is actually pretty normal when you claim certain credits that require additional verification. What really strikes me is how similar everyone's timelines are. It seems like most people see their bars disappear about 1-2 weeks after acceptance, especially with child-related credits and education credits. The lack of communication from the IRS definitely makes this more stressful than it needs to be, but at least now I know I'm not alone in this experience. I'm hoping to see some movement in the next week or two based on what others have shared. Thanks to everyone for posting their actual timelines - it's so much more helpful than all the speculation and fear-mongering articles out there!

This thread has been incredibly reassuring! I'm currently experiencing the same thing - filed 2/19, accepted same day, and my status bars disappeared on 3/1. I claimed the Child and Dependent Care Credit for my toddler's daycare expenses along with the standard Child Tax Credit. When I first saw that generic "Your tax return is still being processed" message, I immediately started googling and found so many alarming articles about audits and delays. I was convinced I had done something wrong on my return! But reading through everyone's actual experiences here shows this is clearly just a normal part of the process when certain credits need verification. It's really frustrating how the IRS system gives you so little information about what's actually happening. A simple message like "Your return is undergoing standard verification for claimed credits - estimated completion in X days" would eliminate so much unnecessary anxiety for taxpayers. Based on the timelines everyone has shared, it looks like most people are getting their refunds within 3-4 weeks even after the bars disappear, which gives me hope. Thanks to everyone for sharing their real experiences instead of just speculation - this community support makes the waiting so much more bearable!