Don't forget to check if you took any loans against the policy! If you did, that complicates things. Any outstanding loans at surrender are considered part of your distribution, even though you don't actually receive that money (since the loan is satisfied when the policy is surrendered).

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm actually in a very similar situation - inherited a whole life policy that my uncle had been paying into for about 20 years before he passed. I was planning to just surrender it and report the full amount as taxable income, but after reading through all these comments, I realize I need to get the complete premium payment history first. The tips about using Claimyr to get through to the right department at the insurance company seem really valuable. I've been dreading dealing with customer service, but it sounds like getting to their "policy services" or "tax basis research" team makes all the difference. One question though - since I inherited this policy rather than received it as a gift while my uncle was alive, does that change how the basis is calculated? From what I understand, inherited policies get a "stepped-up basis" to fair market value at death, but I want to make sure I'm not missing anything before I surrender.

I had a similar issue last year and it turned out my firm hadn't properly designated me as an authorized user in their e-Services account. Even though my CAF was active, the firm's TDS administrator needs to specifically add you to their organization's transcript access list. Here's what worked for me: Ask your firm's e-Services administrator (usually whoever handles the firm's IRS online accounts) to log into their e-Services portal and navigate to "User Account" > "Add Authorized User." They'll need your PTIN, name exactly as it appears on your CAF, and should assign you "Transcript Delivery System" permissions. The process usually takes 1-2 business days to activate once they add you. In the meantime, you might want to verify that your individual CAF authorization is actually showing as "Active" in the system - sometimes there can be processing delays even after you receive confirmation. If your manager is unavailable, try reaching out to whoever handles the firm's IT or administrative functions. They should be able to help get you added to the system quickly.

I went through this exact same frustration about 6 months ago! The key thing that finally worked for me was realizing that there are actually TWO separate authorization steps needed for TDS access as a tax professional working for a firm. First, your individual CAF number needs to be active (which it sounds like you already have). But second, and this is the part that trips up a lot of people, your firm needs to have you listed as an authorized delegate in THEIR organizational TDS account. Here's what I'd suggest doing while your manager is out: Contact your firm's office manager or whoever handles the administrative side of things. Ask them who has "e-Services Administrator" access for your firm's IRS accounts. That person needs to log into the firm's e-Services portal and add you to their TDS user list using your PTIN. If nobody at your firm knows who the e-Services admin is, you can actually call the IRS Business and Specialty Tax Line at 1-800-829-4933 (though expect long hold times). They can tell you who the current administrator is for your firm's account. Once you're added by the admin, it usually takes 24-48 hours to show up in the system. The good news is that once it's set up properly, you'll be able to access transcripts for all clients where proper authorization forms have been filed. Don't give up - this is a super common issue for new tax pros and it's definitely solvable!

This is exactly the kind of detailed guidance I was hoping for! As someone who just elected S Corp status for my LLC this year, the HSA contribution strategy wasn't even on my radar until I saw this thread. I've been paying my health insurance premiums personally and was planning to just make HSA contributions from my personal account, but now I realize I'm potentially leaving money on the table with the FICA tax savings. The $318 savings on a $4,150 contribution that @Sienna Gomez mentioned really puts it in perspective. Quick question for the group: If I already made some HSA contributions personally earlier this year (before reading this), can I switch to the payroll method for the remainder of the year? Or would mixing contribution methods create complications for tax reporting? I've contributed about $1,000 so far directly from my personal account to my HSA. Also planning to double-check my HDHP qualification as suggested - I assumed it was HSA-eligible but want to verify the deductible amounts meet the IRS requirements.

This has been such an informative discussion! I'm in a similar situation - just set up my single-member S Corp this year and have been wrestling with the HSA contribution strategy. One thing I wanted to add based on my research: if you're doing this through payroll, make sure to communicate clearly with ADP about the timing of when your HSA account will be ready to receive contributions. I learned that some payroll processors will hold the first contribution until they can verify the account is active and able to receive deposits. Also, for anyone considering the personal vs. payroll contribution route, don't forget that the FICA tax savings are permanent - it's not like you get that money back later. With a single-member S Corp, you're paying both the employer AND employee portions of FICA (15.3% total), so saving 15.3% on your HSA contributions is significant money. @Sofia Perez - have you had a chance to set up the payroll deductions with ADP yet? I'd be curious to hear how that process goes since I'm about to do the same thing with my payroll provider.

In case it helps anyone, I found this explanation on Wheaton Precious Metals' investor FAQ page that specifically addresses taxation. It confirms they're a corporation and dividends/capital gains are taxed accordingly. They even mention that their non-direct exposure to physical metals is one reason some investors prefer them over physical gold or ETFs.

Just wanted to add that the distinction between these investment types becomes really important when you're doing tax-loss harvesting. Since royalty stocks like WPM are taxed as regular stocks, you can harvest losses against other stock gains at the more favorable capital gains rates. But if you're holding physical gold or gold ETFs that are taxed as collectibles, those losses can only offset collectible gains first before being applied to regular capital gains. This is something I learned the hard way when I was trying to optimize my tax situation last year. I had losses on some gold ETFs that I couldn't use as efficiently as I thought because of the collectible classification. The streaming stocks give you much more flexibility for tax planning strategies.

Great question! As others have confirmed, you can absolutely contribute to both a SEP IRA and Roth IRA in the same tax year - they have completely separate contribution limits and eligibility rules. For 2025, you can contribute up to 25% of your net self-employment income to your SEP IRA (maximum $69,000) AND up to $7,000 to your Roth IRA since you're under the $153,000 income threshold. With your $109k income, you're in a perfect position to take advantage of both. Your accountant might have been thinking of the rule that prevents contributing to both traditional and Roth IRAs beyond the combined $7,000 limit, but SEP IRAs operate under completely different rules as employer-sponsored plans. One thing to keep in mind: make sure you're calculating your SEP contribution correctly using the actual formula (it works out to about 20% of net self-employment income, not a straight 25%). And consider prioritizing the Roth while you're eligible, since tax-free growth is hard to beat!

I went through this exact same situation last year! Your accountant was probably mixing up the rules - it's a pretty common confusion. You can absolutely contribute to both a SEP IRA and Roth IRA in the same year since they operate under completely different sets of rules. With your $109k income, you're eligible for the full $7,000 Roth IRA contribution (under the $153k threshold), and you can also contribute up to about 20% of your net self-employment income to your SEP IRA. Just remember that the SEP calculation isn't a straight 25% - it works out to closer to 20% due to how the math works. I'd definitely prioritize maxing out that Roth IRA while you're eligible again. Tax-free growth is incredibly valuable, and once your business bounces back and your income increases, you might lose that opportunity. The SEP IRA will always be there as long as you have self-employment income. Sounds like you might want to find a new accountant who's more familiar with self-employment retirement planning! This is pretty basic stuff for someone working with freelancers.