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Joy Olmedo

Form 4562 Carryover of Disallowed Section 179 Deductions - What Happens with Business Loss Years?

I'm trying to wrap my head around Section 179 carryover rules and could use some help. I handle our family taxes (probably shouldn't lol) using a combination of tax spreadsheets and FreeTaxUSA for e-filing. My wife runs a small business as a sole proprietor on Schedule C. I just realized we had a $570 carryover of disallowed Section 179 deduction from 2022. Her business ran at a loss in 2023, and again in 2024. Now in 2025, she's showing a tiny profit, but it's getting completely absorbed by this year's Section 179 deduction (since her business income limitation is less than the new 179 deduction). So now we have ANOTHER carryover situation brewing. My question is: do these carryover deductions just disappear if they're not used in the following tax year? Or can we keep carrying them forward until there's actually enough business income to use them? Getting confused about how Form 4562 handles these multi-year carryovers, especially with the complication of loss years in between.

The good news is that Section 179 carryover deductions don't expire! They can be carried forward indefinitely until you can use them. When your wife's business has a loss in a year, you simply continue to carry the disallowed amount to future years until there's sufficient business income to absorb it. On Form 4562, you'll see a line for "Carryover of disallowed deduction from line 13 of your 2024 Form 4562." This is where you'll enter that $570 from 2022. The business income limitation applies each year, so in years with losses or small profits, you may not be able to take the full deduction and will create additional carryovers. For your 2025 situation, you'll likely end up with two carryover amounts: the original $570 from 2022 that still hasn't been used, plus whatever portion of your new 2025 Section 179 deduction exceeds your business income limitation.

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Thanks for explaining this! I've got a follow-up question - do you have to keep filing Form 4562 every year even during the loss years just to maintain the carryover, or can you skip filing the form in years where you know you can't use any of the deduction due to the business income limitation?

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Yes, you should complete Form 4562 every year when you have active Section 179 carryovers, even in loss years. This maintains a clear record of your carryover amount and ensures the IRS can follow your deduction trail. You don't need to file Form 4562 in years where you have no new Section 179 property AND no carryovers from previous years. But in your situation, since you have existing carryovers, you should complete the form to properly track these amounts until they can be used.

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After struggling with a similar Section 179 carryover situation that had me pulling my hair out, I discovered this amazing tool at https://taxr.ai that completely saved me. I uploaded my previous years' tax returns and it automatically identified my carryover issues and explained exactly how to handle them on this year's return. It analyzed my past Section 179 deductions and showed me how to properly track the carryovers through multiple years including loss years. The step-by-step guidance made it super clear how to fill out Form 4562 correctly to ensure I wasn't losing any deductions.

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How does it handle multiple businesses? I have two Schedule C businesses and I'm constantly messing up which Section 179 carryover belongs to which business. Does it keep them separate?

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I'm a bit skeptical about this... does it actually prepare the forms for you or just give advice? I've been burned by tax tools before that seemed helpful but then just pointed me to generic advice without solving my specific situation.

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It absolutely handles multiple businesses separately! The tool recognizes different Schedule C businesses and keeps track of the Section 179 carryovers for each one individually. It even color-codes them to help you visualize which deductions belong to which business. The tool does both - it provides specific advice tailored to your situation and also shows you exactly how to fill out the forms correctly. It's not just generic advice; it analyzes your actual tax returns and identifies the specific line items and values you need to enter on your current forms. It showed me exactly where my carryover amounts needed to go on Form 4562 and on my Schedule C.

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Just wanted to follow up here - I decided to try out taxr.ai after my skeptical comment, and wow, I'm really impressed! It actually found a Section 179 carryover from 2022 that I had completely forgotten about. I had given up on ever claiming it because I thought it had expired. The tool showed me how to properly document the carryover on my 2025 return and even helped me understand how the business income limitations work across multiple years. I was about to leave $1,200 of legitimate deductions on the table! Now I know these carryovers don't expire and I can keep tracking them until my business has enough income to use them.

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I was stuck in IRS limbo trying to get someone on the phone to explain Section 179 carryovers after receiving a notice questioning my deductions. After 4 hours on hold and getting disconnected twice, I found https://claimyr.com and watched their demo video at https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. They actually got me connected to an IRS agent in about 15 minutes! The agent confirmed that Section 179 carryovers don't expire and helped me understand how to properly document them when filing through multiple loss years. Such a relief to finally get a clear answer from an actual IRS representative rather than trying to interpret the confusing instructions on Form 4562.

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Wait, so this service just gets you through to an actual IRS person faster? How does that even work? The IRS phone system is a nightmare by design, so I'm having trouble believing this is legit.

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Sounds like a scam tbh. Nobody can magically bypass IRS hold times. Plus, why would you need to talk to an IRS agent about this anyway? The rules for Section 179 carryovers are clearly spelled out in the instructions. I'd be very careful about services claiming special "access" to the IRS.

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It's not magic - they use technology that navigates the IRS phone system and holds your place in line. When they reach an agent, they call you and connect you directly. No bypassing required, they just do the waiting for you. I needed to speak with an agent because my situation was more complex than what's covered in the basic instructions. I had received a notice questioning my carryover claims across multiple businesses with loss years, and the written instructions didn't address my specific scenario. Getting clarification directly from the IRS gave me peace of mind that I was handling everything correctly.

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I have to apologize to everyone here. After my skeptical comment, I was still having issues with a complex Section 179 situation, so I reluctantly tried Claimyr. I'm shocked to say it actually worked exactly as described. Got connected to an IRS tax law specialist in about 20 minutes instead of the 3+ hours I spent trying on my own last week. The specialist walked me through exactly how Section 179 carryovers work across multiple years with losses. Turns out I had been incorrectly handling mine for years! The carryovers don't expire, but you do need to document them properly each year on Form 4562, even in loss years. The agent helped me understand exactly where to record these on my 2025 return and how to handle the business income limitations.

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I've been a tax preparer for 15 years, and Section 179 carryovers are one of the most commonly misunderstood aspects of small business tax filing. Here's what you need to know: 1. These carryovers NEVER expire - they can be carried forward indefinitely 2. You must complete Form 4562 each year to properly track them 3. In loss years, you simply carry the full amount to the next year 4. Keep detailed records of each asset, its original Section 179 deduction, and any carryover amounts 5. Remember that recapture rules apply if you sell or stop using the asset for business before the end of its recovery period The most common mistake I see is people forgetting about these carryovers after a couple of loss years, effectively leaving money on the table.

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Thanks for this clear explanation! Quick question - how does this work if we have multiple Section 179 assets with different carryover amounts from different years? Do we need to track each asset separately, or can we just carry forward the total combined amount?

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You should track each Section 179 asset separately in your own records, including purchase date, cost, amount deducted each year, and remaining carryover. This detailed tracking is essential for your own documentation. However, on Form 4562 itself, you'll report the combined total carryover amount from the previous year on line 13. The form doesn't require you to break down the carryover by individual assets - just the total disallowed amount from the previous year's form. But maintaining your own detailed asset records is crucial, especially if you later dispose of an asset and need to calculate recapture amounts.

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Does anyone know if TurboTax handles Section 179 carryovers correctly? I'm in a similar situation with losses in previous years and I'm worried TurboTax might not carry everything forward properly.

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I use TurboTax Self-Employed and it does track the Section 179 carryovers between years IF you use the same software version each year and transfer your previous year's return. But if you switch products or don't import last year's return, you'll need to manually enter the carryover amounts. The problem I've found is that TurboTax doesn't make these carryovers very visible or explain them well. I actually missed a carryover one year because I didn't realize I needed to manually enter it after switching from CD to online version.

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I've been dealing with Section 179 carryovers for my consulting business and wanted to share what I've learned through some painful trial and error. The key thing that wasn't immediately obvious to me is that you need to maintain really detailed records of WHEN each carryover originated, not just the total amount. Here's why this matters: if you have carryovers from multiple years (like your $570 from 2022 plus new ones from 2025), you need to use them in FIFO order - first in, first out. So your 2022 carryover gets used before any 2025 carryover when you finally have enough business income. Also, make sure you're calculating your business income limitation correctly each year. It's not just your Schedule C profit - you need to consider the taxable income limitation as well. This caught me off guard in a year where my business was profitable but my overall tax situation was different due to other deductions. One more tip: create a simple spreadsheet to track each asset's Section 179 status. Include columns for purchase date, original cost, Section 179 amount taken, carryover amounts by year, and current status. This has saved me so much headache when preparing returns and will be invaluable if you ever get audited.

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