Anyone else finding their 2022 tax meme is still relevant for 2023 filing season?

Wait I thought the Child Tax Credit was fully refundable now? And isn't there some special calculation if your income is below a certain amount? Last year my tax guy did some weird form for me because I only worked part time.

The Child Tax Credit is partially refundable through the Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC), up to $1,500 per qualifying child. The remaining $500 is non-refundable, meaning it can only offset taxes you owe. For lower income families, there is a special calculation called the earned income formula. If you earned at least $2,500, you can qualify for the refundable portion based on 15% of your earned income above that threshold. This is likely what your tax preparer was calculating with that "weird form" (probably Schedule 8812) when you worked part time.

How does it actually work? Like do you upload your W-2s and stuff or do you just answer questions? I'm struggling with figuring out if my stepdaughter qualifies since we have split custody with her mom.

Does it tell you if you're making mistakes? I'm always worried I'm missing something that's going to get me audited. Last year I claimed my niece but wasn't 100% sure if I was supposed to since her mom lived with us part of the year too.

You can either upload your tax documents like W-2s and 1099s, or just answer questions about your situation. For split custody situations like yours, it would ask specific questions about how many nights your stepdaughter stayed with you versus her mom, whether you have a formal custody agreement, and which parent provides more financial support. It absolutely helps identify potential mistakes and audit risks. The system checks for inconsistencies and flags anything that might raise IRS questions. For your situation with your niece, it would analyze whether you provided more than 50% of her support and if her mom could be considered a qualifying relative or dependent as well, which affects how you should claim your niece.

How does this even work? The IRS phone lines are completely jammed. I tried calling about my amended return like 30 times and gave up. Is this some kind of professional service that has a special line or something?

This sounds like bs honestly. Nobody can get through to the IRS. They're probably just taking your money and putting you on hold like everyone else. If it worked the IRS would shut it down.

It uses an automated system that navigates the IRS phone tree and waits on hold for you. When an actual IRS agent picks up, you get a call back to connect you directly. It's essentially like having someone wait on hold on your behalf so you don't have to listen to that terrible hold music for hours. It's completely legitimate and doesn't use any "special line" or shortcuts. The IRS doesn't shut it down because the service is simply automating what you could do yourself (if you had hours to waste on hold). It's just a clever use of technology to solve a frustrating problem. And yes, it absolutely works - I spoke with an agent who answered my questions about my complicated dependent situation.

Didn't they actually try to make a "postcard-sized" tax form a few years back? Whatever happened to that? Seems like my tax return gets thicker every year.

They did try to make that simplified postcard form around 2018 as part of the tax law changes. It was basically a marketing gimmick - they just moved all the calculations to separate worksheets and schedules that you still had to fill out. The whole thing was abandoned pretty quickly because it actually made filing more complicated, not less. Now tax returns are definitely getting thicker every year with more worksheets and schedules than ever. The 2023 tax year is no exception with all the special credits and deductions they keep adding without simplifying the old ones.

Try using tax software. It walks you through all that stuff step by step. TurboTax, H&R Block, or even the free options like FreeTaxUSA handle all those worksheets and calculations behind the scenes.