One additional consideration that hasn't been mentioned yet - if your LLC units are subject to vesting and the company hasn't sold yet, make sure you understand what happens if you leave the company before the liquidity event. Many LLC operating agreements have "bad leaver" provisions that could affect your tax treatment or even result in forfeiture of unvested units. Also, since you mentioned the units only vest upon sale or IPO, you'll want to confirm whether there are any interim valuation events that could trigger partial vesting or affect your basis calculation. Some agreements have provisions for secondary sales or tender offers that could complicate the tax picture. The 83(b) election protects you from ordinary income treatment at vesting, but it doesn't necessarily protect against forfeiture provisions in your grant agreement. Worth reviewing those terms with both a tax professional and potentially an employment attorney if there are significant amounts at stake.

This is a really comprehensive discussion! One aspect I'd add that might be relevant to your situation - make sure you understand how the LLC's depreciation recapture (if any) might affect your sale. Even though you filed an 83(b) election, if the LLC has been taking depreciation deductions on assets over the years, some portion of your gain could be subject to depreciation recapture at ordinary income rates rather than capital gains rates. This is separate from the Section 751 "hot assets" issue that was mentioned earlier, but can similarly convert what you expect to be capital gains into ordinary income. The LLC should provide this information when the sale occurs, but it's worth asking about proactively so there are no surprises. Also, given that you've held these for 9 years, you might want to consider whether any tax-loss harvesting opportunities in your portfolio could help offset the capital gains when you do sell. Since this sounds like it could be a significant gain, having a tax planning strategy in place before the sale completes could save you quite a bit in taxes.

Anna, I'm so sorry for your loss. This thread has covered so many important aspects of dealing with an inherited IRA that goes to an estate - it's really become a comprehensive guide for anyone facing this situation. One final thought I'd add: since you're early in this process and clearly being very thorough, consider creating a simple spreadsheet or document to track all the key dates, amounts, and requirements. Things like the date of death, the December 31, 2023 account balance, each monthly RMD amount and date, the remaining RMD calculation, and key deadlines. This will be invaluable when working with your tax professional and estate attorney, and will help ensure nothing falls through the cracks. Given all the moving pieces - probate requirements, RMD calculations, tax planning across different scenarios, beneficiary notifications - having everything organized in one place will save you time and reduce stress. You've shown incredible diligence in asking the right questions and seeking proper guidance. With the professional team you're assembling and all the excellent advice in this thread, you're well-positioned to handle this complex situation successfully. Your uncle would be proud of how thoughtfully you're managing his affairs during such a difficult time. Wishing you the best as you work through this process!

Anna, I'm so sorry for your loss. Reading through your situation and all the excellent advice in this thread, I wanted to add one more perspective as someone who works in retirement plan administration. Since your uncle was taking monthly RMDs rather than a single annual distribution, there's a good chance he had set up automatic monthly withdrawals with the custodian. If that's the case, you'll want to confirm whether the custodian calculated those monthly amounts correctly based on his life expectancy and account balance. Sometimes these automatic systems use outdated factors or don't adjust properly for market changes in the account value. Also, given that he was organized enough to set up a trust for his other assets, I'd suggest checking if he had worked with a fee-only financial planner or CPA in recent years. They often keep detailed notes about clients' retirement distribution strategies and might have documentation about his intentions for the IRA beneficiary - sometimes people discuss updating beneficiaries but never follow through with the paperwork. One last practical tip: when you meet with your tax professional, bring a complete copy of the will along with the IRA documentation. The interaction between how the will distributes assets and the tax implications of the IRA distribution can sometimes create planning opportunities that aren't immediately obvious. You're handling this with remarkable thoroughness during what I know is an incredibly difficult time. The professional guidance you're seeking combined with all the insights shared here should help you navigate this successfully.

As someone who's been through this process multiple times, I can confirm that 9 days is completely normal! The IRS processing times can vary significantly based on several factors - complexity of your return, current volume they're handling, and even random system delays. I've had returns that updated on day 6, others that took the full 18-19 days before showing "Approved." The key thing is that you're seeing Tax Topic 152, which is actually reassuring - it means your return is in the normal processing queue without any red flags or holds. Try not to stress about the timeline too much. The 21-day window is their commitment, and they're pretty good about meeting it. Your return is being processed, it's just moving through their system at their pace right now.

I'm in a similar situation - filed on the 5th and still showing "Return Received" status with Topic 152. Reading through everyone's experiences here is actually pretty comforting! It sounds like the 9-day mark is still well within normal processing times. I've been obsessively checking the IRS2Go app multiple times a day even though I know it only updates once daily 😅 The explanation about the three-stage process (Received → Approved → Sent) really helps put things in perspective. Guess we just need to practice patience and trust that our returns are moving through the system normally!

Another thing to keep in mind - if you're using TurboTax like you mentioned, they actually have a pretty straightforward amendment process. You can import your original return and then add the missing 1099-NEC income, and it'll automatically generate the 1040X for you. Just make sure when you're entering the 1099-NEC that you select it as self-employment income (which it sounds like it was since it was freelance design work). TurboTax will automatically calculate the self-employment tax for you, which is going to be about 15.3% of that $9,100 on top of your regular income tax. One silver lining - since you already got your refund, you might be able to use part of that $675 toward what you'll owe on the amendment. But definitely don't wait too long to file it, even though you have 3 years technically. The interest keeps adding up!

Yes, TurboTax automatically handles the deduction for the employer portion of SE tax when you enter 1099-NEC income! It calculates the full 15.3% self-employment tax on your net earnings, then gives you the deduction for half of that amount (which represents the "employer" portion) on your 1040. This reduces your adjusted gross income, so you don't pay income tax on that portion. It's one of the nice things about using tax software for amendments - it catches these details that are easy to miss if you're doing it manually. Just make sure when you're entering the 1099-NEC that you also input any legitimate business expenses you had related to that freelance work, since those will reduce your net self-employment income and save you on both income and SE taxes.

I've been through this process twice now - once with my grandfather's estate and again with my aunt's - and wanted to share what I learned about the software options and some pitfalls to watch out for. For software, I had the best experience with TaxAct Premium. The interview process is thorough and it handles most estate scenarios well. That said, I did run into issues when the estate had partnership income (K-1 from a business). The software could import the K-1 but didn't provide great guidance on how partnership items should flow through to beneficiaries. One thing I wish someone had told me upfront: pay close attention to the estate's tax year vs. calendar year. Estates can choose their tax year when they file their first return, and this decision impacts distribution timing and beneficiary tax planning. Most software assumes a calendar year, but depending on when the person died and when you expect to distribute assets, a different tax year might be beneficial. Also, if the estate owns any rental property, make sure whatever software you choose can handle depreciation recapture if you sell the property. This was a surprise complication that added significant complexity to my aunt's return. The tax preparation experience you mentioned should actually be helpful here - a lot of the concepts are similar to business returns, just applied to estate situations. Good luck with the filing!

This has been such a valuable discussion! As someone who's currently in the middle of handling my grandmother's estate, I wanted to add a few points that might help others in similar situations. First, regarding the software recommendations - I ended up going with TaxAct Premium based on the suggestions here and it's been working well so far. The estate had some complexity with municipal bonds and dividend income, and the software handled it better than I expected. The interview process really does walk you through the estate-specific questions methodically. One thing I learned that might save others some trouble: if you're dealing with an estate that received a significant life insurance payout, make sure you understand whether it's taxable to the estate or passes directly to beneficiaries. The life insurance proceeds themselves usually aren't taxable, but any interest earned on those proceeds while sitting in estate accounts definitely is and needs to be reported on the 1041. Also, I can't stress enough the importance of getting an EIN for the estate early in the process. You'll need it for opening estate bank accounts, and definitely for any tax software or IRS communications. It's free to get directly from the IRS website, but it can take a few weeks if you do it by mail. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - it's made this overwhelming process much more manageable!