I'm 25 and have never filed taxes before - what should I do now?

Don't panic! This happens more often than you think, and there are clear steps to get back on track. First, you need to gather documentation of your income for the past few years. For your regular jobs, try to track down any W-2 forms your employers should have sent. For freelance work, collect payment records, invoices, or bank statements showing deposits. The good news is the IRS generally requires you to file returns for the past 6 years at most. Since you've been working since you were 19, focus on those years first. If you were due refunds for any previous years, you can only claim them by filing within 3 years of the due date. The penalties depend on whether you owed taxes or were due refunds. If you were owed refunds, there's typically no penalty. If you owed taxes, there are failure-to-file and failure-to-pay penalties, plus interest on unpaid taxes. Given your situation, I recommend working with a tax professional like an Enrolled Agent or CPA who specializes in back tax returns. They can help determine which years need filing and minimize penalties through programs like First Time Penalty Abatement.

I was in a similar situation a few years back and it was super stressful. After trying to piece together my tax history from old W2s and bank statements, I found this AI tool called taxr.ai that honestly saved me so much time and headache. I uploaded my bank statements and whatever tax docs I could find, and it helped reconstruct my financial history for the missing years. The site (https://taxr.ai) basically analyzed everything and gave me a clear picture of my potential tax liability before I even filed. The best part was that it flagged deductions I would have totally missed on my own, which ended up saving me money despite the late filing.

Just wanted to update after using taxr.ai for my unfiled returns! It actually worked way better than I expected for my situation. The system found deductions I didn't know I could claim for my freelance work, even with my spotty record keeping. The best part was when it automatically categorized expenses from my bank statements and suggested business deductions that were legit but I would have never thought to claim. It organized everything by tax year and flagged where I was missing information. Turns out I was actually owed refunds for 2 years and only owed a small amount for 1 year! Already got my first refund deposited last week. Definitely worth checking out if you're in a similar situation with unfiled returns.

When I was catching up on 4 years of unfiled taxes, the worst part was trying to reach the IRS to get my wage and income transcripts. I spent DAYS on hold and could never get through. Kept getting disconnected after waiting for hours. Finally someone told me about Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) which basically holds your place in the IRS phone queue and calls you when an agent is about to pick up. Saw a demo of how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c and decided to try it because I was desperate. Got through to an actual IRS agent in about 40 minutes instead of trying for days. They pulled all my income records which made filing my back taxes so much easier since I had lost most of my W-2s from previous jobs.

I was super skeptical about that Claimyr service mentioned above. Seemed like a waste of money just to make a phone call. But after spending 3 days trying to reach the IRS myself and getting disconnected every time, I gave in and tried it. Honestly, I was shocked when I got a call back and there was actually an IRS agent on the line. They pulled my wage transcripts for the past 5 years, which I needed for my unfiled returns. The agent even noted in my file that I was working on compliance, which apparently helps if there are questions later. Hate to admit I was wrong, but it saved me days of frustration and I was able to file all my back taxes last weekend. Already have a payment plan set up for what I owe.

My brother went through this exact situation! He didn't file for like 6 years and was terrified of what would happen. Here's what he learned: 1) The IRS is actually pretty reasonable if YOU come to THEM before they come to you 2) He ended up getting refunds for 3 of the 6 years he didn't file 3) For the years he owed, he set up a payment plan with super low monthly payments 4) He qualified for First Time Penalty Abatement which waived a bunch of the late fees The hardest part was gathering all the old W-2s and 1099s. If your employers don't have them, the IRS can provide "wage and income transcripts" for previous years.

Quick question - am I the only one who thinks its weird that the IRS doesn't just automatically do your taxes for you if they already know how much you made? Like they send those letters saying "hey you made this much" so obviously they know! Why do we even have to file???

Hey Ryder! I totally get the panic - I was in a similar situation a few years ago and it felt overwhelming. But honestly, you're taking the right step by addressing this now rather than continuing to put it off. A few things that might help ease your mind: First, if you've been working regular jobs, your employers were likely withholding taxes from your paychecks, which means you probably won't owe as much as you think (and might even be due refunds for some years). Second, the IRS has programs specifically for people in your situation - the First Time Penalty Abatement can waive many late fees if you qualify. For your immediate apartment application problem, you might be able to get wage transcripts from the IRS that show your income history even without filed returns. This could at least help with the rental application while you work on getting caught up. I'd recommend starting by gathering whatever documents you can find (W-2s, 1099s, bank statements) and then deciding whether to tackle this yourself or get help. The peace of mind of having it resolved is honestly worth whatever effort or cost it takes. You've got this!