Just to clarify something - the income threshold to qualify for marketplace subsidies in non-expansion states is 100% of the Federal Poverty Level, not $14k exactly. For 2023, that's about $13,590 for a single person. When you file your taxes with Form 8962, if you received APTC (Advanced Premium Tax Credit) but your income falls below 100% FPL, there's a specific checkbox (I think it's Part III of the form) that handles this situation. Check "yes" to the question about estimating your income would be higher than poverty level.

I work for a tax preparation service and see this situation frequently during filing season. The key thing to understand is that the IRS distinguishes between "reasonable estimates" and intentional misrepresentation. When you initially enrolled using your 2022 income as an estimate, that was completely appropriate - you had no way of knowing your workplace would close. The fact that you took time off after losing your job is also a reasonable life decision that couldn't have been predicted when you enrolled. The "penalty of perjury" language applies to knowingly providing false information, not to life circumstances changing after enrollment. An audit would focus on whether your original estimate was reasonable based on the information available at the time, not whether it turned out to be accurate. What matters for audit protection is that you eventually updated your information when you realized the discrepancy during open enrollment. This demonstrates good faith compliance. Document everything - keep records of when you updated your marketplace information, any communications with them, and note the timeline of your job loss. The income cliff provision others mentioned is real and will protect you from repaying the subsidies. Just make sure to complete Form 8962 accurately and check the appropriate boxes for falling below the poverty threshold despite reasonable initial estimates.

I went through something similar a few years back - had to get W-2s from 3 different employers after some pretty messy departures. One key thing that helped me was being persistent but professional with follow-ups. If you don't hear back from HR within 10-14 days of your initial email, send a polite follow-up. I used something like: "Following up on my request from [date] for my 2024 W-2. Please let me know if you need any additional information to process this request." Also, don't forget that even if your mail forwarding expires, USPS will still forward tax documents for a full year as long as you set it up before the deadline. Since you did yours in December, you should be covered through December 2025. One last tip - if any of these employers used direct deposit, check if you still have access to whatever banking app or service they used. Sometimes payroll companies like ADP or Paychex will email you directly when W-2s are available, even if you no longer work there. Worth checking your email (including spam folder) for any notifications from payroll services. You've got this! The awkwardness of the situation doesn't change your legal right to those tax documents.

I'm dealing with a similar situation right now - left 3 jobs this past year and two of them were... let's just say not amicable departures. The advice here about contacting HR directly instead of your former manager is spot on. One thing I'd add is to keep detailed records of all your contact attempts. I created a simple spreadsheet tracking when I emailed each company, who I contacted, and their responses. This documentation became really useful when I had to escalate one case. Also, if you're dealing with smaller companies that might not have dedicated HR departments, try reaching out to their accounting/bookkeeping person or whoever handles payroll. Sometimes at smaller places, the owner's spouse or a part-time bookkeeper handles tax documents and they're usually much more professional about it than whoever you had conflicts with. The mail forwarding should definitely help, but don't rely on it completely. I'd still proactively reach out to each employer just to be safe. Better to have an awkward 2-minute phone call than deal with IRS penalties later!

I used Pay1040 for the first time this year for a $3,200 payment and had a great experience overall. The confirmation email came through within about 10 minutes, and the payment showed up on my IRS account transcript after 2 business days. One tip I'd share - take a screenshot of the confirmation page immediately after submitting your payment, not just relying on the email. I also made sure to double-check all my information before hitting submit since I'd heard horror stories about typos causing delays. The 1.87% fee was definitely worth it for the credit card points I earned, plus having the payment processed immediately gave me peace of mind about meeting the deadline. Just make sure you have enough credit limit available - they do put a temporary hold for the full amount plus fee while processing.

I've been using Pay1040 for about two years now and it's been reliable every time. The key things I've learned: always double-check your SSN and tax year before submitting, save both the confirmation email AND take a screenshot of the confirmation page, and don't panic if it takes 2-3 business days to show up in your IRS account. One thing that really helped ease my anxiety was setting up my IRS online account ahead of time so I could monitor when the payment posted. The first time I used a credit card processor I was nervous about the large amount too, but now it's my preferred method since I earn rewards and don't have to worry about timing bank transfers. For a $6,700 payment, you're probably earning decent rewards that offset most or all of that processing fee. Just keep all your documentation and you should be fine!

I'm in the exact same situation! Got denied by SBTPG yesterday even though my transcript shows a clean refund coming. Credit score is 695 so not terrible either. Really needed that advance to cover some unexpected car repairs but looks like I'll have to figure something else out. At this point I'm wondering if anyone is actually getting approved or if they're just denying everyone this year 🤷‍♀️

Just went through the same thing with SBTPG - got denied even though my transcript looks perfect and I have a 710 credit score. Talked to my tax preparer and they said SBTPG has basically stopped approving most people this season, even folks who would have been approved easily last year. Really sucks because I was counting on that advance to help with some medical bills. Guess we're all stuck waiting for the IRS to do their thing. At least when I checked my transcript yesterday it looks like everything is processing normally, so hopefully we'll see our refunds in a few weeks 🤞

I went through this exact same situation last year and here's what I learned: The key issue isn't whether you're on separate health plans, but whether her FSA can be used for your family's medical expenses when you file jointly. Since you mentioned she uses her FSA for prescriptions and doctor visits, it sounds like a general medical FSA. Even though you have separate insurance, the IRS considers her FSA as available to cover your medical expenses because you file taxes together. This technically disqualifies you from HSA contributions. However, I'd strongly recommend getting the actual plan documents from her HR department - not just asking them verbally. Look specifically for language about who can use the FSA funds. Some plans restrict usage to the employee only, which could change everything. If it turns out her FSA does disqualify your HSA, ask her benefits team about switching to a limited-purpose FSA during the next enrollment period. Many employers now offer this option specifically for situations like yours. You'd lose some FSA flexibility but gain HSA eligibility, which is often worth it given the triple tax advantage of HSAs.

I actually went through a very similar situation recently and wanted to share what I discovered. The confusion around HSA/FSA combinations is incredibly common, and unfortunately, many HR departments give incomplete or incorrect information about this. Here's what matters most: Since you file taxes jointly, the IRS looks at what accounts are available to your household, not just what you personally use. If your wife's FSA is a general medical FSA (which it sounds like it is since she uses it for prescriptions and doctor visits), then technically those funds could be used for your medical expenses, even if you never actually do that in practice. This makes you ineligible for HSA contributions, regardless of having separate health insurance plans. The separate insurance actually doesn't matter for this rule - it's all about the FSA accessibility. However, there are a few potential solutions: 1. Check if her FSA plan documents specifically restrict usage to her only (unlikely but worth checking) 2. See if her employer offers a "limited purpose FSA" option during next enrollment 3. Consider whether the HSA tax advantages outweigh her current FSA benefits I ended up having my spouse switch to a limited purpose FSA, and honestly, the HSA benefits (triple tax advantage, investment growth potential, no "use it or lose it" rule) made it totally worth the trade-off. We just budget differently for regular medical expenses now. The peace of mind of knowing we're fully compliant with IRS rules was worth making the change.