Filing back taxes from previous years - confused about occupation field?

You should always put the occupation you had during the tax year you're filing for, not your current job. The IRS wants to know what you were doing when you earned that income. In your case, you'd want to put "bartender" since that's what you were doing during the tax year in question. The occupation field helps the IRS match your reported income with what would be expected for that type of work, so accuracy matters. This is especially important for back taxes since you're already filing late. Make sure you're also using the correct tax forms for that specific tax year - the IRS changes forms slightly from year to year, so you need the 2022 version of any forms you're filling out.

When I was catching up on some back taxes last year, I was totally confused about all the documentation I needed and which forms to use. I tried calling the IRS but couldn't get through to anyone for help. Then I found this service called taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) that was a game changer for me. You upload your tax documents and it analyzes everything - including which forms you need for back taxes and how to fill out each section correctly. It specifically flagged the occupation field for me since I had changed jobs, and explained that I needed to list the job I had during that tax year. Saved me from making a bunch of mistakes that could have triggered an audit.

I wanted to follow up about my experience with taxr.ai since I was initially pretty skeptical. I ended up giving it a try after struggling with my 2020 back taxes, and I have to admit it was incredibly helpful. The system immediately identified that I needed to use a specific version of Schedule C for my self-employment income from that year, which I didn't realize had changed. It also specifically addressed the occupation question - I had switched from being a graphic designer to a web developer mid-year, and it explained I needed to list both occupations since they contributed significantly to my income. The guidance was surprisingly specific to my situation, not just generic advice. Definitely made the back-tax filing process much less stressful!

If you're filing back taxes, you probably know how impossible it is to actually reach someone at the IRS for help. I spent THREE WEEKS trying to get through their phone system for a question about my 2021 return. After getting disconnected 5 times, I found this service called Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) that got me through to an actual IRS agent in about 20 minutes. They have a demo video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent confirmed that for occupation, you need to list what you were doing during the tax year in question, not your current job. She also gave me specific guidance on the penalty abatement I needed for my late filing. Saved me hours of frustration trying to navigate the IRS phone system.

I need to apologize for being so negative about Claimyr in my previous comment. I was just frustrated after so many failed attempts to reach the IRS myself. After posting that comment, I decided to try the service out of desperation since I needed answers about my back taxes. I'm honestly shocked - I had an IRS representative on the phone within 27 minutes. The agent confirmed that for the occupation field, I needed to list my job from the tax year I was filing for (teacher in my case, not my current admin role). She also explained exactly which penalty abatement form I needed to include with my back tax filing. Just wanted to come back and admit I was wrong - this service actually delivered what it promised.

My tax preparer told me a trick - if you've changed jobs multiple times, you can just put something general like "various" or "multiple" in the occupation field for back taxes. Worked fine for me when I filed 3 years at once last summer.

Don't overthink this. Just put whatever your main source of income was for that tax year. I've filed back taxes for 3 different years and that's what the IRS told me to do.

Yes, this applies to electronic filing too! When TurboTax (or any other tax software) asks for your occupation while filing back taxes, it's asking for the occupation you had during the tax year you're filing for, not your current job. So for your 2021 back taxes, you'd enter whatever job you had in 2021. Most tax software doesn't make this super clear, which is why it's confusing. The occupation field is tied to the specific tax year you're filing, so even though you're filing it now in 2025, the software wants to know what you were doing professionally in 2021 when you earned that income. If you had multiple jobs in 2021, go with whichever one provided the majority of your income for that year. The IRS uses this information to help verify that your reported income makes sense for your line of work during that period.

Just wanted to chime in as someone who went through this exact situation last year. I had to file back taxes for 2020 when I was working as a retail manager, but by the time I filed (in 2023) I had moved into accounting. The key thing is that the occupation field on your tax forms should reflect what you were actually doing during the tax year you're filing for - so in your case, definitely put "bartender" for your 2022 taxes. This helps the IRS verify that your W-2 income and any tips you reported make sense for someone working in the service industry during that time period. One thing that helped me was gathering all my old pay stubs and W-2s from 2022 before I started filling out the forms. Having that documentation made it much easier to remember exactly what my job title was and when I worked there. Also, if you received any 1099s for tip income or side work during 2022, make sure those occupations match up consistently across all your forms. The IRS is pretty understanding about back taxes as long as you're being honest and thorough. Just take your time with the forms and don't rush through the details!