I had this same problem a couple years ago and it was such a headache! What worked for me was calling the IRS early in the morning (around 7 AM) when the wait times are shorter. Make sure you have your payment confirmation number, the exact amount, and the date you made the payment ready. Ask the agent specifically for a "payment reallocation" between tax years - that's the exact term they use. The agent was able to process it during the call, but it took about 6 weeks for the change to actually show up in my account. Also, definitely get a confirmation or reference number for the change so you can follow up if needed. It's frustrating but totally fixable - don't panic!

I've been through this exact situation! The key is to act quickly and be prepared when you call. Here's what worked for me: Call the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 early in the morning (7-8 AM) for shorter wait times. Have your SSN, payment amount, payment date, and confirmation number ready. Ask specifically for a "payment reallocation between tax years" - that's the exact terminology they use. The agent should be able to process it during the call, though it takes 4-6 weeks to show up in your account. Make sure to get a case/confirmation number for your records! Also, if you paid electronically, grab screenshots of your bank transaction or payment confirmation beforehand - it helps them locate your payment faster in their system. This is actually a pretty common issue, so don't stress too much. The IRS deals with payment reallocations regularly and the process is straightforward once you get through to someone. Good luck!

I went through this exact situation with my grandmother's estate last year. She made a substantial gift to family members in March and passed away in September of the same year. After consulting with our estate attorney, we were advised that both forms are indeed required. The Form 709 establishes the gift and its valuation at the time it was made, while the Form 706 includes it under the 3-year rule for estate tax purposes. One thing that really helped us was getting the property appraised as of the gift date (April 2023 in your case) rather than the date of death. This established the fair market value for gift tax purposes. The attorney explained that having this documentation upfront made both filings much smoother and helped avoid any IRS questions later. Also, make sure you're aware of the filing deadlines - Form 709 is typically due by April 15th of the year following the gift, and Form 706 is due 9 months after death (with possible extensions). Since your mom passed in October 2023, you'll want to coordinate the timing of both filings carefully.

I'm dealing with a very similar situation right now with my father's estate. He gifted some stocks to my brother and me in June 2023, and then passed away unexpectedly in December of the same year. From what I've learned through this process, you definitely need to file both returns. The Form 709 is required because the gift was completed during your mom's lifetime - the deed transfer made it a legal gift that needs to be reported. Then on Form 706, you'll include it in Schedule G as a transfer within 3 years of death. One thing I wish I'd known earlier: get organized with your documentation now. You'll need the original deed, any appraisals, and records of your mom's original cost basis for the property. The IRS may want to see how you determined the fair market value on the gift date versus any estate valuation. Also, don't stress too much about the "double reporting" - as others mentioned, the unified credit system prevents actual double taxation. It's really more about proper documentation and ensuring the IRS can track all transfers that affect the estate tax calculation. Have you already started gathering the necessary paperwork? That's honestly been the most time-consuming part for me.

I've been dealing with similar transfer delays with Wise, and it's usually related to their internal compliance checks rather than anything you did wrong. They have automated systems that flag transactions based on various factors - amount, frequency, recipient country, etc. In my experience, transfers over $5,000 to new recipients or countries you haven't sent to before often get reviewed. Even repeat transfers can sometimes get flagged if they're larger than your usual amounts or if there's been a gap in your transfer history. The good news is that once you're verified and have an established transfer pattern, future transfers usually go through much faster. I now regularly send $10,000+ to family in Canada and they typically process within hours rather than days. If you're planning regular larger transfers, it might help to contact Wise support proactively to verify your account for higher amounts. They can sometimes pre-approve you for larger transfers which reduces the chance of delays.

One important thing to consider is the timing of your transfers if you're planning to send larger amounts. I learned this the hard way when I sent $15,000 to my parents in Canada last year - the timing matters for both US gift tax reporting and Canadian tax implications for the recipients. From the US side, if you're sending more than the annual gift exclusion amount ($17,000 for 2023, $18,000 for 2024) to any one person, you need to file Form 709 by April 15th of the following year. But here's what caught me off guard: if your Canadian recipients receive large gifts, they might need to report it on their Canadian tax return too, even though gifts aren't typically taxable in Canada. Also, consider spreading larger gifts across tax years if possible. Instead of sending $30,000 to one family member in December, you might send $17,000 in December and $13,000 in January to stay within the annual exclusion limits and avoid the Form 709 filing requirement altogether. The key is planning ahead rather than just focusing on the transfer mechanics. The actual transfer through services like Wise is straightforward - it's the tax implications on both sides of the border that require more thought.

As a tax professional who works with several content creators, I can confirm that the advice in this thread is largely correct - PR gifts are generally taxable income regardless of whether content is explicitly required. However, I want to clarify a few important points I'm seeing some confusion about. First, the "fair market value" standard applies, which means you should use the retail price the general public would pay for the item. If a brand gives you a $100 serum, that's $100 of taxable income even if you only would have paid $20 for skincare. Second, regarding business deductions - you can potentially deduct expenses directly related to creating content about these products (lighting, backdrops, editing software, etc.), but you generally cannot deduct the cost basis of the "free" products themselves since you didn't purchase them. Finally, for those tracking everything manually, consider that most tax software now has features specifically for influencer income. TurboTax, FreeTaxUSA, and others have sections for "miscellaneous income from promotional activities" that can help ensure you're categorizing everything correctly. The documentation advice everyone's sharing is spot-on - keep detailed records, photograph everything, and when in doubt, report it as income. It's always better to be conservative with tax reporting!

This thread has been incredibly educational! As someone who just started receiving PR packages in the last few months, I had no idea about the tax implications. I've been treating them like random gifts from friends, which was clearly naive. The documentation strategies shared here are gold - I'm definitely implementing the photo system and email templates immediately. I particularly appreciate the real audit experiences people have shared - it really drives home how important proper record-keeping is. One question I haven't seen addressed: what about PR events where you receive gift bags? I attended a brand launch event last month and got a bag worth probably $300+ in products. Is this treated the same as mail PR, or are there different considerations since it was an "event experience" rather than unsolicited products? Also, for anyone else feeling overwhelmed by this - it sounds like the consensus is to err on the side of caution and report everything. Better to be overly compliant than face issues down the road. Thanks to everyone for sharing such practical, real-world advice!

Just want to add a data point - I had a similar issue and it turned out I wasn't eligible for APTC for one month due to having access to employer coverage that month (even though I didn't take it). The marketplace still paid APTC to my insurer but left Column B blank. When I called, they told me to use the SLCSP calculator tool to determine the correct amount for Column B, rather than leaving it as zero. Apparently a zero really isn't valid there on the 8962 form.

I had this exact same issue last year! Your tax software is correct to flag the $0 in Column B - it's actually not a valid entry on Form 8962 when you've received advance premium tax credits. Here's what's likely happening: The marketplace made an error on your 1095-A. Column B (SLCSP) is essential for calculating your premium tax credit eligibility, and it should never be blank or zero when you received APTC payments (Column C has a value). My recommendation is to use the SLCSP lookup tool on Healthcare.gov to find the correct amount for your zip code, family size, and coverage period for April. You'll need this information: your county, number of people covered, and their ages during that month. The tool will give you the official SLCSP amount that should have been in Column B. Once you have the correct SLCSP amount, enter it on your Form 8962 instead of the $0.01 workaround. This will give you an accurate premium tax credit calculation. You don't necessarily need to wait for a corrected 1095-A if you can verify the correct SLCSP amount yourself using the official tool. Just make sure to keep documentation of where you got the SLCSP figure in case the IRS has questions later.