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Savanna Franklin

IRS Transcript Shows $1,719 Balance Due Despite $39,513 Income and $1,546 Withholding - Self-Employment Tax Included

I just got my 2022 tax transcript and I'm super confused. It's showing I owe $1,719.49 but I was expecting a refund. According to the transcript from the Internal Revenue Service (United States Department of the Treasury), my Adjusted Gross Income is $39,513.00 and my taxable income is $26,563.00. I had withholdings of $1,546.00 from my W-2/1099, but they're showing a total tax per return of $3,254.00. They're also showing self-employment taxable income of $1,764.00 with a self-employment tax of $270.00. I'm filing as Single with 1 exemption, and now they've even added a late payment penalty of $8.54 and interest charges of $2.95. The processing date was April 24, 2023, and the return due date or return received date (whichever is later) was April 15, 2023. Looking at the transactions on my Account Transcript (Request Date: 04-08-2023): - Tax return filed: $3,254.00 (Cycle date: 20231405, 04-24-2023, Code 150) - W-2 or 1099 withholding: -$1,546.00 (04-15-2023, Code 806) - Penalty for late payment of tax: $8.54 (Cycle date: 20231405, 04-24-2023, Code 276) - Interest charged for late payment: $2.95 (Cycle date: 20231405, 04-24-2023, Code 196) This brings my total account balance to $1,719.49. The transcript states that this is not even the final payoff amount with accruals, though it shows accrued interest of $0.00 and accrued penalty of $0.00 as of Apr. 24, 2023, with the "account balance plus accruals" still at $1,719.49. There's even a tracking number on the transcript: 10. Can someone help me understand what's going on with these numbers? This has to be wrong right? I'm completely baffled because I was expecting money back, not to owe nearly $1,800!

Juan Moreno

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The tax transcript shows your total tax liability of $3,524 ($3,254 regular tax plus $270 self-employment tax) based on your adjusted gross income of $39,513 and taxable income of $26,563. Your withholdings of $1,546 from W-2/1099 income weren't sufficient to cover this liability, resulting in the balance due. The math breaks down as: - Base tax liability: $3,254 - Self-employment tax: $270 (calculated from $1,764 of SE income) - Less withholdings: -$1,546 - Late payment penalty: $8.54 - Interest charges: $2.95 = Total balance due: $1,719.49 Since you filed as Single with one exemption and had self-employment income, you should have been making quarterly estimated tax payments throughout the year. The IRS expects you to pay taxes as you earn income, which is why you're seeing the late payment penalty and interest charges (transaction codes 276 and 196). The transcript shows this balance was current as of April 24, 2023 (the processing date), but notes that this isn't the final payoff amount as additional interest may continue to accrue. You'll want to address this balance soon to prevent additional penalties and interest from accumulating.

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omg thank you for breaking this down! I had no idea about the self employment tax thing 😭

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Juan Moreno

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Np! Make sure to set aside about 30% of your self-employment income for taxes going forward. It'll save you from this surprise next year!

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Amy Fleming

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Hey, I recently discovered taxr.ai and it's been a game changer for understanding transcripts. It's only $1 and gives you a complete breakdown of everything - way better than trying to decode these numbers ourselves. Check it out: https://taxr.ai

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Alice Pierce

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Does it actually work? These transcript things are so confusing

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Amy Fleming

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100% works! It breaks down everything and even tells you if there are any issues that could delay refunds. Saved me hours of research

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Esteban Tate

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same boat here! first year doing self employment and the tax hit was brutal 🤮

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Pro tip: setup quarterly estimated payments thru IRS direct pay. its way easier than owing a big chunk at the end

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thank u! definitely gonna do this for 2023

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Elin Robinson

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Wait until you see how much self employment tax goes up when you make more lololol welcome to the club 🤡

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Atticus Domingo

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This is why I always tell ppl to use a tax professional their first year of self employment. Its worth the money to get it setup right

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Beth Ford

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facts! learned this the hard way too

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