Has anyone here dealt with the IRS Form SS-8 determination process?

I've helped several clients with Form SS-8 situations. The form is used when there's a question about whether someone should be classified as an employee or independent contractor. The IRS looks at behavioral control, financial control, and relationship factors to make their determination. Filing Form SS-8 initiates a review process where the IRS examines your work relationship. They will contact your employer for their side of the story. Based on what you described - set hours, company equipment, direct supervision - these are strong indicators of employee status rather than independent contractor. The process typically takes 6+ months for the IRS to make a determination. Your employer will definitely know you filed because the IRS will contact them as part of their investigation. This is something to consider if you're worried about job security.

I was in a similar situation last year and discovered taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) after spending weeks stressing about my contractor status. Their system analyzed my work arrangement and gave me a super clear breakdown of whether I qualified as an employee vs contractor according to IRS rules. The report they generated actually helped me have a productive conversation with my employer without having to immediately go the SS-8 route. Their analysis tool asked specific questions about my work arrangement and then showed me exactly which factors leaned toward employee status versus independent contractor. It was much less intimidating than immediately filing with the IRS.

Just wanted to follow up and say I tried taxr.ai after seeing the recommendation here. The analysis confirmed what I suspected - I should be classified as an employee based on IRS criteria. I printed the report and showed it to my boss during our weekly 1-on-1, framing it as something I was concerned about for both our benefits (mentioning that the company could face penalties if audited). To my surprise, he was actually receptive! He took it to the company's accountant, and they're transitioning me to W-2 status starting next month. No need to file the SS-8, and they're even going to help adjust my tax situation for the past few months. Sometimes a professional analysis is all you need to have that difficult conversation!

If your employer isn't receptive like some people have been lucky enough to experience, and you decide to go the Form SS-8 route, you might end up needing to speak with the IRS directly. I spent WEEKS trying to get through to someone at the IRS about my SS-8 determination status. After 20+ attempts, I found https://claimyr.com (there's a demo at https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c) which honestly saved my sanity. They basically hold your place in the IRS phone queue and call you when an actual human picks up. I was skeptical it would work, but I was connected to an IRS agent in about 2 hours rather than wasting entire days redialing. The agent was able to give me updates on my SS-8 status and answer questions about the process that I couldn't find anywhere online.

I need to eat my words from my earlier comment. After struggling for THREE DAYS trying to reach someone at the IRS about my SS-8 filing, I broke down and tried Claimyr. I was still super skeptical, but I was desperate for information on my case. It actually worked exactly as described. I got a call back about an hour and a half later with an IRS agent on the line. They confirmed my SS-8 was received and in process (filed 4 months ago). Even more helpful, the agent explained that I should go ahead and file my taxes as a self-employed person for now, but if the determination comes back that I should have been an employee, I can file an amended return to get back the self-employment tax I shouldn't have had to pay. Nobody had explained that to me before, and it was a huge relief to have a clear plan.

One thing nobody has mentioned yet is that even if you don't want to file the SS-8, you can still file Form 8919 "Uncollected Social Security and Medicare Tax on Wages" with your tax return if you believe you've been misclassified. This lets you pay just your portion of FICA taxes (7.65%) instead of the full self-employment tax (15.3%), without having to wait for an official determination. You do need to have a reasonable basis for believing you're misclassified, and you'll need to indicate on the form that you've either filed the SS-8 or plan to. But it might be a good middle ground if you're worried about the employer finding out immediately but still want tax relief.

I filed Form SS-8 last year and it took about 8 months to get a determination. My employer did find out pretty quickly (within a couple weeks) when the IRS contacted them for their side of the story. It got pretty awkward at work for a while, but I was already looking for another job anyway. The IRS ruled in my favor that I should have been classified as an employee. They sent a letter to both me and the company. I was able to file amended returns for the previous years and got back about $4,200 in self-employment taxes I shouldn't have had to pay. The company also got hit with some penalties. Just be prepared for a long wait and potentially a difficult relationship with your employer during that time.

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm in a similar situation - been working as a "contractor" for 14 months but I'm basically glued to my desk 8-6 every day, use their computer, follow their procedures, and get paid a straight hourly rate. No other clients, no business expenses to speak of. After reading everyone's experiences, I think I'm going to try the taxr.ai analysis first to get a professional assessment before having any conversations with my employer. The success story from Grace really gives me hope that this can be resolved without burning bridges. And if that doesn't work out, at least I'll have solid documentation to back up my position. One question for those who've been through this - should I be setting aside money now for potential back taxes if I do end up getting reclassified? I'm worried about owing a big chunk if they determine I should have been paying employee taxes for the past year and change.

This is such a thorough discussion - really appreciate everyone sharing their experiences! I went through a similar situation about 6 months ago and wanted to add a few thoughts based on what I learned. One thing that helped me was documenting everything about my work arrangement before taking any action. I kept a log for about 2 weeks noting things like: when I was told what to do and by whom, what equipment I used (theirs vs mine), whether I could set my own schedule, if I had to ask permission for time off, etc. Having concrete examples made it much easier to assess my situation objectively. Also, for anyone considering the conversation approach with their employer first - I found it helpful to frame it around compliance rather than personal grievance. Something like "I've been reading about IRS classification rules and want to make sure we're both protected from any potential issues." Most employers genuinely don't want to run afoul of tax regulations, especially smaller companies that might not have dedicated HR/legal resources. The documentation I kept also came in handy when I used one of those analysis tools mentioned here. Having specific examples rather than vague recollections made the assessment much more accurate and gave me confidence in the results.

I'm dealing with a very similar situation right now and this whole thread has been incredibly eye-opening! I've been classified as a contractor for my marketing role for about 7 months, but reading through everyone's experiences, I'm realizing I have almost all the classic signs of employee status - set schedule, company laptop, regular performance reviews, can't work for competitors, etc. What really resonates with me is Carmen's approach about documenting everything first. I'm going to start keeping that detailed log this week before I do anything else. The idea of framing it as a compliance conversation rather than a complaint is brilliant too. I'm leaning toward trying the analysis tool route first like Connor mentioned, then having a conversation with my manager if the results confirm what I suspect. The success stories here give me hope that this doesn't have to be a confrontational process. One follow-up question for those who've been through this - did any of you have non-compete clauses in your contractor agreements? I'm wondering if that's another red flag for employee classification, since true independent contractors should generally be able to work for multiple clients including competitors.

I've been following this discussion closely as someone who went through worker misclassification issues a few years back. What strikes me about all these stories is how common this problem has become, especially in tech and creative industries where companies are trying to minimize overhead costs. One aspect that hasn't been fully discussed is the psychological toll this situation can take. When you're in that gray area of "am I an employee or not," it creates constant stress about your financial security, benefits, and job stability. I remember constantly second-guessing whether I was handling my taxes correctly and worrying about potential penalties down the road. For anyone currently dealing with this, I'd strongly recommend taking action sooner rather than later. The longer you wait, the more complicated your tax situation becomes, and the harder it is to unwind everything if you do get reclassified. Plus, you're potentially missing out on benefits like unemployment insurance protection, workers' compensation coverage, and employer-paid portions of FICA taxes. The documentation approach that Carmen mentioned is absolutely crucial. I wish I had been more systematic about tracking the details of my work arrangement. Even simple things like screenshots of work schedules, email chains about assignments, or photos of your workspace setup can be valuable evidence later. Also wanted to echo what others have said about framing conversations with employers around compliance rather than conflict. Most small business owners aren't trying to deliberately misclassify workers - they're often just uninformed about the rules or following bad advice they got somewhere. Approaching it as "let's make sure we're both protected" usually gets much better results than accusations.

This entire thread has been incredibly valuable - thank you all for sharing your experiences! As someone who's been lurking on this sub for a while dealing with my own classification concerns, seeing real stories with concrete outcomes is exactly what I needed. I'm in a similar boat with a small consulting firm where I've been a "contractor" for about 6 months. Reading through everyone's experiences, I'm realizing I check almost every box for employee status - fixed schedule, their equipment, detailed supervision, can't work for anyone else, etc. The stress that Raj mentioned is so real - I've been losing sleep over potential tax issues. What I'm taking away from this discussion is that there's actually a logical progression of steps rather than having to jump straight to the nuclear option of filing SS-8: 1. Document everything for a few weeks (Carmen's approach) 2. Get a professional analysis to confirm my assessment (the taxr.ai tool several people mentioned) 3. Have a compliance-focused conversation with my employer 4. Only escalate to SS-8 if needed The success stories from Grace and others who resolved this through conversation give me hope this doesn't have to destroy my working relationship. And knowing about Form 8919 as a middle-ground option for tax filing is really helpful too. Starting my documentation log tomorrow - thanks everyone for the roadmap!