22 Adding to what others have said: I work with several professional golfers (not on Djokovic's level lol, but still international players), and we track their income and tax liability by tournament location. We actually use a specialized scheduling tool that helps optimize their tournament schedule partly based on tax implications. Players competing in 15+ countries per year can lose anywhere from 30-45% of their gross income to taxes if they don't plan carefully. But with proper structuring, we've been able to reduce that significantly for some clients.

This is such a complex area! As someone who's dealt with international tax issues myself, I can confirm that the US absolutely taxes income earned within its borders regardless of where you live. What's particularly interesting about Monaco residents like Djokovic is that they get the best of both worlds in some ways - they pay US taxes on US tournament winnings (unavoidable), but any income that can't be clearly sourced to a specific high-tax country often remains completely untaxed due to Monaco's zero income tax policy. The real strategy comes in structuring endorsement deals and appearance fees. Many top athletes work with tax advisors to ensure that only the minimum required portion of their global endorsement income is allocated to high-tax jurisdictions like the US. It's fascinating how much tax planning goes into their career decisions - sometimes tournament selection isn't just about ranking points or prize money, but also about the overall tax burden of competing in that location.

I went through something very similar last year! Your employers definitely should have provided a W-2 since they paid you over $2,400. The fact that your return was rejected using their SSN as an EIN is a red flag that they haven't properly set up to be household employers. Here's what I learned: even if they claim they "reported your income somewhere" on their taxes, that doesn't fulfill their legal obligation to provide you with proper tax documents. You need that W-2 not just for filing, but for your Social Security credits and employment verification down the road. I'd suggest giving them one more chance to get you a proper W-2 (they can still issue one late), but if they refuse, definitely go the Form 4852 route that others mentioned. Keep detailed records of all your conversations with them and any payment records you have. The IRS understands that employees sometimes get stuck in these situations through no fault of their own. Also, don't stress too much about an audit - you're trying to do the right thing here, and that's what matters to the IRS. It's your employers who are potentially in hot water for not handling their responsibilities correctly.

I'm a tax preparer and see this household employee situation all the time unfortunately. Your employers are absolutely required to provide you with a W-2 since they paid you over $2,400. Using their SSN as an EIN was never going to work - they need to get a proper EIN from the IRS for household employment. Here's what I tell my clients in your situation: First, send your employers a written request (email is fine) explaining their legal obligation to provide a W-2 and give them 10 business days to respond. This creates a paper trail. If they don't comply, you can file Form 4852 (Substitute for Form W-2) with your tax return. When filling out Form 4852, be as accurate as possible with your income and estimated tax withholdings (which in your case would be zero since they didn't withhold anything). You'll owe both income tax and self-employment tax on the unreported income, but you won't face penalties since this isn't your fault. I always recommend keeping detailed records of all payments and communications. The IRS is generally understanding when employees are caught in these situations due to employer non-compliance. Your employers, on the other hand, could face significant penalties for failing to properly handle household employment taxes.

Based on your situation with a 3-month CD from November to February earning $103 in interest, you'll most likely receive just one 1099-INT for this tax year (2025). Since your CD was a traditional term deposit that paid all interest at maturity in February, that's when the interest became "constructively received" for tax purposes. The key factor is that you couldn't access the $103 in interest until the CD matured - it was locked up with your principal. Even though the interest was accruing monthly, you didn't have unrestricted access to it until February 2025, so that's the tax year it gets reported in. Your bank's conflicting answers probably stem from different reps not understanding your specific CD terms. I'd recommend checking your original CD agreement to confirm whether interest was paid at maturity (most common) or if there were any interim interest payments. If it was all paid at maturity, expect one 1099-INT next January for filing your 2025 taxes.

Just to add another perspective here - I work at a credit union and deal with these questions frequently. The timing of when you receive your 1099-INT really depends on your bank's specific policies and how they structure their CD products. Most traditional CDs like yours will result in a single 1099-INT issued in January following the year the CD matured (so January 2026 for your February 2025 maturity). However, some banks have "flexible" CDs that credit interest monthly or quarterly to a separate savings account, which would result in multiple 1099-INTs across tax years. Since you earned $103 total, you're well above the $10 threshold so you'll definitely get a form. I'd recommend calling your bank one more time and specifically asking to speak with someone in their tax reporting department - they'll have the definitive answer about their 1099-INT policies rather than general customer service reps who might not be familiar with the technical details.

As a tax professional, I want to emphasize a few additional points that could be crucial for your situation. First, make sure you're prepared for potential IRS questions about the fair market value of the timber. Since you received $3,100 from the mill, that establishes the fair market value, but if you're claiming any basis in the trees, you may need to substantiate that the timber was worth more than $3,100 before the pest damage. Second, consider keeping detailed records of the spotted lanternfly infestation in your area - photos, local government notices, extension service bulletins, etc. This creates a paper trail showing that your decision was based on legitimate environmental threats rather than market timing. Finally, since multiple neighbors participated, there might be economies of scale that affected the pricing. Make sure your individual allocation of both costs and proceeds is clearly documented and defensible. The IRS sometimes scrutinizes transactions involving multiple parties to ensure each person is reporting their fair share. One practical tip: if you're using tax software, you might need to manually override some entries since timber sales from personal property are relatively uncommon and the software might not handle all the nuances correctly. Consider having a tax professional review your return if the amounts are significant enough to warrant the expense.

This is such a helpful discussion! I'm new to this community but dealing with a similar situation with emerald ash borer damage to trees on my property. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly informative. I wanted to add one point that might be relevant for others in similar situations - if you're working with a logging company or sawmill, try to get everything in writing upfront about how proceeds will be calculated and what costs will be deducted. In my case, I assumed I'd get paid based on the full market value of the logs, but there were several fees I wasn't aware of (scaling costs, transportation, mill processing fees) that came out of my payment. Having that breakdown documented beforehand would have helped me better estimate the tax implications and ensure I was accounting for all the legitimate business expenses that could offset my capital gains. Also, for anyone considering this type of proactive tree removal due to pest issues, I'd recommend getting multiple quotes if possible. The pricing can vary significantly between different logging operations, and having documentation of the market rate helps support that you received fair market value for tax reporting purposes. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences and expertise - this thread is going to be really valuable for my tax preparation!

I keep hearing everyone talk about ROC, but my ET K-1 last year had like 6 different categories of income! Part was ordinary business income, part was ROC, part was interest, and there were some others. Do I need to track all of these separately??

Great question! I went through this exact same confusion when I started investing in MLPs. Here's what I learned after making some mistakes my first year: When you reinvest MLP distributions, you're essentially doing two separate transactions: 1. **Receiving the distribution**: This reduces your cost basis by the ROC portion (say 25¢ out of your 30¢ distribution) 2. **Reinvesting**: You're buying new units at current market price with that 30¢ So your original shares have their cost basis reduced by 25¢, but you now own additional shares with a cost basis of 30¢ (whatever the market price was when you reinvested). The key is tracking each "lot" of shares separately. Your original purchase is one lot, each reinvestment creates a new lot. This becomes really important when you eventually sell, because you can choose which lots to sell first for tax optimization. I highly recommend setting up a spreadsheet or using portfolio tracking software that can handle multiple lots. Don't try to average everything together - the IRS wants you to track each purchase separately. Also, make sure to save every K-1 form you receive, as you'll need the historical data to calculate your adjusted basis when you sell. One more tip: consider whether you really want to reinvest automatically. Some people prefer to take the cash distributions and manually reinvest to have better control over timing and record-keeping.