Has anyone actually tried calling the research facility to get them to correct the form? Last year my wife got a wrong 1099 from a company and they fixed it and reissued within a week. Seems like the simplest solution if there's still time.

I'm a retired accountant and have dealt with this exact situation multiple times. The key thing to understand is that while the research facility made an error using 1099-NEC instead of 1099-MISC, you don't have to let their mistake cost your dad extra taxes. Here's what I recommend: Report it as "Other Income" on Schedule 1, Line 8z, and write "Medical research study participation - reported on incorrect 1099-NEC" in the description. This correctly classifies the income without triggering self-employment tax. The IRS computer matching will see that you reported the income amount, even though it's on a different form than expected. Including the explanation prevents confusion. I've had clients do this successfully without any IRS follow-up questions. Don't overthink this - it's a common error by research facilities who don't understand the difference between the forms. Your dad participated in a study, not a business venture, so treat it accordingly on your tax return.

This is really helpful! As someone who just went through a similar situation, I'd definitely recommend documenting everything before you talk to your parents. I created a simple spreadsheet showing what I paid for (rent, groceries, car payment, insurance, etc.) versus what my parents covered, and it made the conversation much clearer. One thing to keep in mind - the support test looks at the entire year, not just the months after you moved out. So even though you've been independent since September, you'll need to calculate whether your parents provided more than 50% of your total support for the full 2023 tax year (January-December). If your income was over $4,700 and you were supporting yourself for the last few months of the year, you're probably in the clear to file independently. But having those numbers ready will help convince your parents and give you confidence in your decision. Good luck!

Great advice everyone! I'm actually a tax preparer and wanted to add a few key points that might help clarify things: 1. **The timing matters less than total support**: Even though you lived with your parents for 8 months, if you earned enough to cover more than half your annual expenses (including the months at home), you likely provided your own support. 2. **Calculate your total annual expenses**: Add up EVERYTHING for the year - food, housing, transportation, personal expenses, etc. If your earnings covered more than 50% of this total, your parents can't claim you. 3. **The $4,700 gross income test**: Since you mentioned earning over this amount, you automatically fail the qualifying relative test regardless of support. 4. **Document everything**: Keep records of your pay stubs, lease agreement, and major expenses. If there's ever a question from the IRS, you'll need proof. Based on what you've described, you should definitely file independently. Just make sure to coordinate with your parents so you don't both claim the same exemption and trigger an IRS notice. Good luck!

I had the exact same confusion with my graphic design business last year! The QBI deduction was actually working perfectly, but TurboTax's interface made it seem like nothing was happening. What's likely occurring is that TurboTax calculates your potential QBI deduction as soon as you enter your Schedule C information. So when you get to the specific QBI section later in the process, you're just confirming something that's already been factored into your refund calculation. Think of it this way - if your husband's photography business had $50k in qualified business income, you could potentially deduct $10k (20% of $50k) from your taxable income. But TurboTax probably already included this benefit in your running refund total based on the business income you entered earlier. To verify this is working correctly, look for Form 8995 or 8995-A in your tax documents when you're done. That's where the QBI calculation actually appears, and you should see the 20% deduction amount listed there. The QBI deduction is definitely valuable - it can save hundreds or thousands in taxes depending on your business income and tax bracket. It just doesn't show up as a dramatic "refund jump" because good tax software anticipates it!

I had this exact same experience with my consulting business! The QBI deduction was already being calculated by TurboTax from the moment I entered my Schedule C information, so when I reached the specific QBI section, confirming it didn't change the refund amount because it was already factored in. Here's what's probably happening: TurboTax is smart enough to recognize that your husband's photography business qualifies for QBI and automatically applies the 20% deduction to your qualified business income early in the process. Photography isn't considered a "specified service business" for QBI purposes, so you should get the full deduction as long as your total household income is below the phase-out thresholds. To confirm this is working, check your final tax documents for Form 8995 (or 8995-A if your situation is more complex). This form shows the actual QBI calculation. You should see your husband's business income listed there along with the 20% deduction amount. The deduction reduces your taxable income, not your tax bill directly. So if your husband's photography business had $40k in qualified income, you'd get an $8k deduction from taxable income. Depending on your tax bracket, this could save you $1,000-$3,000+ in actual taxes. Don't worry - you're not missing out on anything! The QBI deduction is one of the few tax benefits that actually works as advertised for small businesses.

This is a really common situation for sports bettors, and the tax rules can definitely be confusing at first. You're absolutely right that you need to report all the winnings from your 1099s - the IRS already has that information, so there's no way around it. The key thing to understand is that gambling wins and losses are treated separately for tax purposes. Your winnings from PrizePicks and Underdog get reported as "Other Income" on your tax return, but your losses from DraftKings and FanDuel can only be deducted if you itemize deductions on Schedule A. Here's the catch though - you can only deduct gambling losses up to the amount of your gambling winnings. So if your 1099s show $3,000 in winnings but you lost $5,000 on other platforms, you can only deduct $3,000 of those losses. Also, since gambling losses are an itemized deduction, you'll need to compare your total itemized deductions (gambling losses + mortgage interest + charitable donations + state taxes, etc.) to the standard deduction to see which is better for your situation. Make sure you keep detailed records of all your betting activity - screenshots, account statements, anything that shows your actual wins and losses. The IRS will want to see documentation if you're ever audited.

This is exactly the situation I went through last year! You're on the right track understanding that you must report those 1099s from PrizePicks and Underdog - there's no way around that since the IRS already has copies. Here's what I learned: Your gambling winnings get reported as "Other Income" on Form 1040, but your losses from DraftKings and FanDuel can only be deducted if you itemize on Schedule A. The frustrating part is you can only deduct losses up to your total winnings, so if you actually lost money overall, you might still owe taxes on the "winnings." The biggest mistake I almost made was not keeping proper records. Start gathering everything now - login to your DraftKings and FanDuel accounts and download your complete betting history for 2023. Most platforms have an export feature in their transaction history section. If you can't find it, contact their customer service for annual statements. Also consider whether itemizing makes sense for your situation. You'll need your gambling losses plus other itemizable deductions (mortgage interest, charitable donations, state taxes) to exceed the standard deduction ($13,850 for single filers in 2023) to get any benefit from those losses. One last tip - if you're having trouble reaching customer service for your betting records, some people have had success with services that help you get through faster, but the key is getting that documentation sorted out before you file.

This has been an incredibly thorough discussion! As someone who works in HR for a mid-sized company, I can add that we've started including information about potential FICA overwithholding in our onboarding materials for employees who indicate they have other jobs. While we can't adjust our withholding based on their other employment, we at least try to make sure they understand they may get a refund when filing their taxes. We've also noticed this issue has become much more common since the pandemic, as more people have taken on side gigs or remote work opportunities. Our payroll costs have definitely increased due to these "excess" employer FICA contributions, but like others have mentioned, there's really no alternative under current regulations. One thing that might be helpful for other employers is to factor this potential cost into your budget planning if you regularly hire people who likely work multiple jobs. We've started estimating an additional 1-2% in payroll tax costs for positions that typically attract workers with other income sources (like part-time evening shifts or seasonal work). It's not a perfect solution, but it helps avoid budget surprises.

This discussion has really opened my eyes to how complex FICA taxation becomes with multiple employers! As someone who's considering taking on a second part-time job to supplement my income, I had no idea that both employers would end up paying the full Social Security tax on their portions of my wages, even if the combined amount exceeds the wage base limit. What's particularly striking is how this creates an unintended burden on employers - especially small businesses - who are essentially paying extra taxes through no fault of their own. The fact that employees get their excess back through tax refunds while employers have no recourse seems like a significant policy gap that affects hiring decisions and business costs. I'm curious whether anyone has insights on how this might influence salary negotiations? If I'm transparent with a potential employer that I have another job and they'll be paying "excess" FICA contributions, would it be reasonable to factor that into compensation discussions? Or is this just considered a standard cost of doing business that employees shouldn't worry about? The broader point about how our tax system hasn't adapted to modern work patterns really resonates. With gig work and multiple income streams becoming increasingly common, these kinds of regulatory mismatches are probably creating all sorts of unintended consequences that we're only beginning to understand.