Man, that is a lot more complicated than I thought it would be.
Are estimated taxes a thing I have to do if I plan to file quarterly? Which form do I use for that? I plan on staying at least one quarter for the sake of getting some actual office/data entry/it (it's a pretty nice, varied position) experience on my resume, but after that I may have to give an ultimatum. My boss isn't a bad dude overall, but he is clearly trying to screw his hires by taking them for a ride assuming that most people don't know anything about working 1099. There's only one other full position in this office so far (it used to be just a one-man operation, but he's growing), and the other guy already walked because of this issue. I'm almost positive his replacement has no idea how the 1099 works either.
I've only been there for a week so far, and haven't gotten paid yet. Would that make my estimated taxes late?
Self Employment tax covers the FICA taxes, and then I have to pay both state and federal income taxes after that? Where do I find the brackets to estimate the percentages for me?
Sorry I am such a tax newb, but this (2012) will be the first year I'm not a dependent, and I know 1099s can file quarterly, so I wanted to get a leg up as soon as I could.
Man, that is a lot more complicated than I thought it would be.
Are estimated taxes a thing I have to do if I plan to file quarterly? Which form do I use for that? I plan on staying at least one quarter for the sake of getting some actual office/data entry/it (it's a pretty nice, varied position) experience on my resume, but after that I may have to give an ultimatum. My boss isn't a bad dude overall, but he is clearly trying to screw his hires by taking them for a ride assuming that most people don't know anything about working 1099. There's only one other full position in this office so far (it used to be just a one-man operation, but he's growing), and the other guy already walked because of this issue. I'm almost positive his replacement has no idea how the 1099 works either.
I've only been there for a week so far, and haven't gotten paid yet. Would that make my estimated taxes late?
Self Employment tax covers the FICA taxes, and then I have to pay both state and federal income taxes after that? Where do I find the brackets to estimate the percentages for me?
Sorry I am such a tax newb, but this (2012) will be the first year I'm not a dependent, and I know 1099s can file quarterly, so I wanted to get a leg up as soon as I could.
The way quarterly estimates work is that if, when you file your return, you owe more than $1000 in tax for that year, you get penalized. The way to avoid those penalties is to make estimated payments throughout the year (due April, June, September, and January. The form you use is here: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040es.pdf). Contractors often have to make estimated payments because their employers aren't withholding anything for them, so it's easy to end up owing >$1000. It only takes about $8k to end up owing almost $1000 in self employment tax alone.
To figure out your federal income tax, I'd recommend the Excel spreadsheet that Kipling posted a link to at the top of page 3. Go to tab Sch C, and type in what you ballpark you'll have made by the end of the year on line 1b. Then on tab Sch SE, check the "Short Schedule SE" box at the top. Then look at tab 1040 to get an idea of what you'd owe.
And don't worry about your estimates being late. The first estimated payment for 2012 income isn't due until Apr 17, so you've got time.
As a side note, it's pretty common for employers to try and treat their workers as contractors, even though they should be employees. It's a bit of a gray area, but in the end it shouldn't really be all that gray, employers just want to save money. If you're working hours that your employer tells you to work, at his place of business, using his tools; my gut would say that he should be treating you as an employee. Check out this page for some explanation: http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=99921,00.html.
If you were considering quitting, you may want to at least bring it up with your boss first. You never know, he might agree to change. If not, I don't know if you'd want to take it as far as making an anonymous tip to the state unemployment board (they get pissed about this kind of stuff), but it sounds like he wouldn't even be able to trace it back to you. Just a thought.
Thanks for all the help so far, guys. I've been going over that stuff on and off today, and it's slowly coming together for me.
One more thing, though. I just remembered/figured out I filled out a W4. What does that do in relation to withholding, and does it change my situation? With a W4, will my employer withhold for me?
Thanks for all the help so far, guys. I've been going over that stuff on and off today, and it's slowly coming together for me.
One more thing, though. I just remembered/figured out I filled out a W4. What does that do in relation to withholding, and does it change my situation? With a W4, will my employer withhold for me?
Yeah, generally if your employer has you fill out a W-4, it's so that they can know how much to withhold for you (because you're an employee). It's usually just a W-9 if you're a contractor. The easiest way to tell though would be to just look at one of your pay stubs. If he's withheld for social security and medicare (should be a combined 5.65% of your pay) and federal/state income tax, then he's treating you as an employee.
Taxes are done and filed. Nearly $5000 coming back to me. I really need to redo my W4s now. Not that I mind big refunds, but y'know, I could get INTEREST on that money during the year... (at 0.01% YAY)
"Simple, real stupidity beats artificial intelligence every time." -Mustrum Ridcully in Terry Pratchett's Hogfather p. 142 (HarperPrism 1996)
Taxes are done and filed. Nearly $5000 coming back to me. I really need to redo my W4s now. Not that I mind big refunds, but y'know, I could get INTEREST on that money during the year... (at 0.01% YAY)
Yeah, I know what you mean. I used to keep more money throughout the year and get a smaller refund, rather than give the government an interest free loan for the year. But lately I've been preferring to have more withheld and get a big refund. I mean, sure, I could earn interest, but it's almost guaranteed that I end up spending a lot of it throughout the year. Now I prefer to just consider it kind of a forced savings, with a nice lump sum in the spring.
So this has been bothering me since my mom told me about. A friend of her's daughter did taxes this year. Thing is her only income is from welfare and she is getting a refund. How does that work? She does have a kid, so I figured she could have gotten a child tax credit.
So this has been bothering me since my mom told me about. A friend of her's daughter did taxes this year. Thing is her only income is from welfare and she is getting a refund. How does that work? She does have a kid, so I figured she could have gotten a child tax credit.
There are a handful of refundable credits (meaning you can get a refund even if you don't have any tax to offset), the child tax credit being one. So if it's $1000 or less, that's probably what it is. There is also something called the earned income credit which can mean a crazy big refund, but like the name says you have to have some earned income, which welfare isn't. So unless she lied on her return, it's probably not EIC.
Taxes are done and filed. Nearly $5000 coming back to me. I really need to redo my W4s now. Not that I mind big refunds, but y'know, I could get INTEREST on that money during the year... (at 0.01% YAY)
Yea... I know it's backward financial-planning-wise, but the wife and I actually like the fatty refund. It's a psycological thing I guess. We don't have that money to spend during the year, etc.
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sportzboytjwsqueeeeeezzeeeesome more tax breaks outRegistered Userregular
So this has been bothering me since my mom told me about. A friend of her's daughter did taxes this year. Thing is her only income is from welfare and she is getting a refund. How does that work? She does have a kid, so I figured she could have gotten a child tax credit.
She probably had some federal withholdings on that, and since she didn't make jack, she got that withheld money back. Just my guess.
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I started 2011working for a company in Missouri, in May of 2011, I moved to Texas and started working for a company there. When filling out my taxes, all my income and wages earned (even that which was earned in Texas) is counting towards my Missouri taxes. However, because you don't pay state tax in Texas, it ends up telling me I owe the state of Missouri about $2500. Is this correct? I feel like i'm getting fucked here.
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I started 2011working for a company in Missouri, in May of 2011, I moved to Texas and started working for a company there. When filling out my taxes, all my income and wages earned (even that which was earned in Texas) is counting towards my Missouri taxes. However, because you don't pay state tax in Texas, it ends up telling me I owe the state of Missouri about $2500. Is this correct? I feel like i'm getting fucked here.
Well, I don't know what program you're using to fill out your Missouri return, but I just tested out the one on the Missouri website that you can fill in (http://dor.mo.gov/forms/MO-1040_Fillable_Calculating_2011.pdf), and it seemed to be fine. You put your federal AGI (which includes income from both states) on line 1. The you use form MO-NRI (page 9 and 10) which will end up with what percentage of your income was earned in Missouri. And that percentage flows back to the main form (line 27).
If you're using turbotax or something, I would think it would do that automatically. Make sure that when you enter your wages into the federal return that you're indicating which state each wage applies to.
Most federal return services are free, but they charge for the state. I believe on the state side, FreeTaxUSA is the lowest you can get, but double check to see if you can efile with your state.
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sportzboytjwsqueeeeeezzeeeesome more tax breaks outRegistered Userregular
Here is MO's tax rates. Unless the money you made purely in MO >= ~50,000, you're going to have a hard time owing $2500 to the state in 3 months... Without sharing your info too much, did you make insane good money there, or are you (more likely) including your full year's wages for consideration for MO's return?
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GnomeTankWhat the what?Portland, OregonRegistered Userregular
Okay, I have a problem. My former employer is dragging their feet about sending me my W2, probably because I left the company on less than great terms. I have the W2 for my current employer, but without the other one, I can't file because I don't have my total income picture.
What exactly are my options here? I've tried dealing with the employer of course, and I just get the run around. What recourse do I have for an employer that just doesn't send me a W2? It's getting near April, and I'm a bit worried.
Okay, I have a problem. My former employer is dragging their feet about sending me my W2, probably because I left the company on less than great terms. I have the W2 for my current employer, but without the other one, I can't file because I don't have my total income picture.
What exactly are my options here? I've tried dealing with the employer of course, and I just get the run around. What recourse do I have for an employer that just doesn't send me a W2? It's getting near April, and I'm a bit worried.
The internet seems to say:
"If you still have not received your W2 form by February 14th, and have followed up with your employer, you may contact the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 for help. "
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GnomeTankWhat the what?Portland, OregonRegistered Userregular
I'll do that, thanks. I honestly thought it would be a bit more complex than that :P
Nope, they're probably about to get the short end of the shit stick though.
not a doctor, not a lawyer, examples I use may not be fully researched so don't take out of context plz, don't @ me
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GnomeTankWhat the what?Portland, OregonRegistered Userregular
I couldn't care less. This is a company that paid me late on a regular basis, and on at least two occasions I took my daughter to the doctor to magically find our insurance "inactive" (insurance I paid a mint out of pocket for).
Just a curiosity question. How do itemized deductions work? Specifically, does the schedule A form outline all acceptable deductions (mortgage interest, loan interest, state taxes, and a few others)? Are there other ways to make deductions? Why can't I find a list of all deductions areas (like school expenses, medical expenses ect..)? Obviously there's going to be a lot of case by case instructions, but I feel like there should be a not impossibly long list that outlines the general areas of where your expenses can be deducted. To get a rough estimate of whether or not itemizing will be worth it.
Second question, if you use the cheap version of the tax software, like turbotax free, is it ignoring credits that you might be applicable for? Or will it always look for everything possible, but it just wont do state taxes, or whatever, unless you pay for the higher priced stuff?
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"The world is a mess, and I just need to rule it" - Dr Horrible
I dunno about Turbotax, but even the free version of TaxAct basically asks you questions about life events that may give you credits (did you buy a home, did you have a kid, moving expenses, major medical bills, student loans, etc.). I know medical expenses in excess of 7.5% of your AGI are deductible (itemized).
Just a curiosity question. How do itemized deductions work? Specifically, does the schedule A form outline all acceptable deductions (mortgage interest, loan interest, state taxes, and a few others)? Are there other ways to make deductions? Why can't I find a list of all deductions areas (like school expenses, medical expenses ect..)? Obviously there's going to be a lot of case by case instructions, but I feel like there should be a not impossibly long list that outlines the general areas of where your expenses can be deducted. To get a rough estimate of whether or not itemizing will be worth it.
Second question, if you use the cheap version of the tax software, like turbotax free, is it ignoring credits that you might be applicable for? Or will it always look for everything possible, but it just wont do state taxes, or whatever, unless you pay for the higher priced stuff?
In answer to one of your questions, yeah, everything listed on Schedule A is what you can deduct. In summary: medical expenses, interest, taxes, charitable contributions, casualty losses, and misc job expenses. The main things people often deduct are mortgage interest, property taxes, state income or sales tax, and contributions. If you have a ton of medical expenses (> 7.5% of your income) or unreimbursed job expenses (> 2% of your income), you may have some of those too. If the total of all of that is less than your standard deduction (something like $5800 for single or $11600 for married), you don't even bother itemizing. It can obviously vary case by case, but kind of a general guidline is that if you don't own a home, odds are you won't itemize.
Some of the other things you mention aren't really deductions, but adjustments or credits, neither of which go on Schedule A. I would just take a quick glance down a 1040 just to get an idea of what there is All told, there aren't that many personal expenses that have an impact on your taxes. I don't know of a really good list, but some common things are tuition and fees (line 34), student loan interest (33), american opportunity or lifetime learning credits (49), child tax credit (51), and earned income credit (64). And sometimes you might have moving expenses (26), retirement savings credit (50). A lot of these things have phase outs, so if you have too much income (or too little), they can be reduced or eliminated.
I can't really speak for Turbotax or anything, cause I've never used it, but I would imagine that the free version wouldn't skip anything.
I went to H&R block today, and they just made me more confused and told me I need to withhold about 30%, which seems awfully high to me.
I tried using that crazy Excel spreadsheet posted earlier, but it is a little over my head without including all the instructions and with the format being sort of messed from the excel layout.
So, I want to know, I'm willing to pay cash for a decent online service. Turbotax? Tax Act? What do I go to? What's best for a 1099 with another part-time job? I'm looking for State and Federal, and I'd like to have a full version directly from my desktop instead of just a web app, as long as that doesn't raise the cost substantially.
Also, since I'm 1099, and also since I haven't done my taxes from last year yet, is there something that will let me do the 4-5 returns I need to do this year?
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Giggles_FunsworthBlight on DiscourseBay Area SprawlRegistered Userregular
edited March 2012
So, I ended up owing money and this has never happened to me before. This is pretty undesirable as I lost my job at the beginning of the year and I'm on unemployment right now, I was kind of counting on a tax return to pay for a couple essential purchases. Company fired me the week I was moving down to be closer to work and I haven't quite been able to catch up.
I used the H&R Block Free File software if it makes any difference. Had my work withhold taxes since I started there in late 2010 all the way through 2011. Ended up owing the Federal Government $66 and California $5. In addition I have a fatty adjustment ($1762) from paying off student loans I wasn't able to afford to pay while I was unemployed. This seems wrong but maybe it's not? I got money back from the last couple months of 2010 from the same employer, and the Step 3 Check Status on the Welcome page says "Not yet available" on all the lines that don't say "Federal return" and "California". Has anybody else in here used this software and this is some sort of weird I pay them they pay me thing going on, and the stress from the strapped budget is freaking me out?
EDIT: Turbo Tax gave me the same result on the Federal refund. Not sure how this happened.
So, I ended up owing money and this has never happened to me before. This is pretty undesirable as I lost my job at the beginning of the year and I'm on unemployment right now, I was kind of counting on a tax return to pay for a couple essential purchases. Company fired me the week I was moving down to be closer to work and I haven't quite been able to catch up.
I used the H&R Block Free File software if it makes any difference. Had my work withhold taxes since I started there in late 2010 all the way through 2011. Ended up owing the Federal Government $66 and California $5. In addition I have a fatty adjustment ($1762) from paying off student loans I wasn't able to afford to pay while I was unemployed. This seems wrong but maybe it's not? I got money back from the last couple months of 2010 from the same employer, and the Step 3 Check Status on the Welcome page says "Not yet available" on all the lines that don't say "Federal return" and "California". Has anybody else in here used this software and this is some sort of weird I pay them they pay me thing going on, and the stress from the strapped budget is freaking me out?
EDIT: Turbo Tax gave me the same result on the Federal refund. Not sure how this happened.
Tax returns are for people who overpay their taxes. It's incredibly possible that you simply didn't overpay based on what your employer withheld, especially since it sounds like you were employed for all of 2011 (withholdings are designed assuming you're employed the whole year). I don't think there's much anyone here could answer without knowing your exact information, but it's likely that it's correct.
Related expenses. Student-activity fees and expenses for course-related books, supplies, and equipment are included in qualified education expenses only if the fees and expenses must be paid to the institution as a condition of enrollment or attendance.
This confuses me, as your initial post said no book expenses but is the catch that books don't count because they're not required as a condition of enrollment? I have other non-book expenses, such as a parking permit, without which I could not attend, but is not a strict requirement for enrollment. Can I not include these?
Also, I'm working through HRBlock to get an estimate of what I think my refund should be, but I fully expect that I'll have to file some sort of K-1 since I received money from a trust, but hope not to owe for it, since I segregated it in its own account(so no 1099 for interest?) and haven't "distributed" it to myself.
Would it be easiest to submit an efile from HRBlock, and then file an amended return with the K-1? I mean, that, or pay $30 for a premium version of the service, but that might still leave me with some confusion.
Related expenses. Student-activity fees and expenses for course-related books, supplies, and equipment are included in qualified education expenses only if the fees and expenses must be paid to the institution as a condition of enrollment or attendance.
This confuses me, as your initial post said no book expenses but is the catch that books don't count because they're not required as a condition of enrollment? I have other non-book expenses, such as a parking permit, without which I could not attend, but is not a strict requirement for enrollment. Can I not include these?
Also, I'm working through HRBlock to get an estimate of what I think my refund should be, but I fully expect that I'll have to file some sort of K-1 since I received money from a trust, but hope not to owe for it, since I segregated it in its own account(so no 1099 for interest?) and haven't "distributed" it to myself.
Would it be easiest to submit an efile from HRBlock, and then file an amended return with the K-1? I mean, that, or pay $30 for a premium version of the service, but that might still leave me with some confusion.
I'm not entirely sure about books, it seems like a bit of a gray area. The idea is that only expenses that are required by the school can be counted. So for example, lab fees and things like that. When you have to pay the professor to print you off a "textbook", that probably counts. But when you buy just a regular old textbook for a class, even though that's the book the professor told you to buy, I don't think it counts. Parking, although necessary to you in a certain sense, definitely doesn't count.
As for the K-1, you'll have to look at it when you get it to know for sure what you have to do with it. I'm sure if you plug it into your software, or take it to H&R Block or whatever, they'll handle it correctly. If the K-1 is addressed to you (and your SSN), though, you're likely going to have to include it in income. It doesn't really matter if you put it in it's own account, as long as that account is in your name, it's your money, regardless of whether you used it.
As long as you get it in the next couple of weeks, I don't see any reason to file an amended return. I would just wait and include it in your initial return. I'm not positive about this, but I think you would technically be filing a false return if you leave off something, even if you intend to add it later.
Related expenses. Student-activity fees and expenses for course-related books, supplies, and equipment are included in qualified education expenses only if the fees and expenses must be paid to the institution as a condition of enrollment or attendance.
This confuses me, as your initial post said no book expenses but is the catch that books don't count because they're not required as a condition of enrollment? I have other non-book expenses, such as a parking permit, without which I could not attend, but is not a strict requirement for enrollment. Can I not include these?
Also, I'm working through HRBlock to get an estimate of what I think my refund should be, but I fully expect that I'll have to file some sort of K-1 since I received money from a trust, but hope not to owe for it, since I segregated it in its own account(so no 1099 for interest?) and haven't "distributed" it to myself.
Would it be easiest to submit an efile from HRBlock, and then file an amended return with the K-1? I mean, that, or pay $30 for a premium version of the service, but that might still leave me with some confusion.
Yeah, that's the catch. Books are the same as room & board - they are not a deductible educational expense. Also, the K-1's distribution will retain its character - if it's capital gain income, you'll pick it up as capital income, hopefully at favorable rates.
Bleh, even more complicated than I thought. The trust return is separate, and might but not definitely need to be addressed on my income return? I didn't take any "income" from it, however the trust itself did receive its own income. It is an irrevocable trust, but I'm not sure if it's a grantor trust, though it sounds like maybe not since I don't think it is required to distribute all income to the beneficiaries each year. It looks like I might need to file a 1041, and if I'm wrong about not affecting my income tax, also a K-1?
I feel like I'm going to need to shell out money for some more advice, I just need to decide if a premium HR block version can work(though I see no support of a 1041), or a couple hundo for an accounting firm
Oh, if it's an ILIT (Irrevocable living insurance trust) and it's dishing out insurance proceeds, then I am sorry to hear about that. but yeah, but I don't think insurance proceeds distributed from an ILIT are taxable
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Are estimated taxes a thing I have to do if I plan to file quarterly? Which form do I use for that? I plan on staying at least one quarter for the sake of getting some actual office/data entry/it (it's a pretty nice, varied position) experience on my resume, but after that I may have to give an ultimatum. My boss isn't a bad dude overall, but he is clearly trying to screw his hires by taking them for a ride assuming that most people don't know anything about working 1099. There's only one other full position in this office so far (it used to be just a one-man operation, but he's growing), and the other guy already walked because of this issue. I'm almost positive his replacement has no idea how the 1099 works either.
I've only been there for a week so far, and haven't gotten paid yet. Would that make my estimated taxes late?
Self Employment tax covers the FICA taxes, and then I have to pay both state and federal income taxes after that? Where do I find the brackets to estimate the percentages for me?
Sorry I am such a tax newb, but this (2012) will be the first year I'm not a dependent, and I know 1099s can file quarterly, so I wanted to get a leg up as soon as I could.
The way quarterly estimates work is that if, when you file your return, you owe more than $1000 in tax for that year, you get penalized. The way to avoid those penalties is to make estimated payments throughout the year (due April, June, September, and January. The form you use is here: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040es.pdf). Contractors often have to make estimated payments because their employers aren't withholding anything for them, so it's easy to end up owing >$1000. It only takes about $8k to end up owing almost $1000 in self employment tax alone.
To figure out your federal income tax, I'd recommend the Excel spreadsheet that Kipling posted a link to at the top of page 3. Go to tab Sch C, and type in what you ballpark you'll have made by the end of the year on line 1b. Then on tab Sch SE, check the "Short Schedule SE" box at the top. Then look at tab 1040 to get an idea of what you'd owe.
And don't worry about your estimates being late. The first estimated payment for 2012 income isn't due until Apr 17, so you've got time.
If you were considering quitting, you may want to at least bring it up with your boss first. You never know, he might agree to change. If not, I don't know if you'd want to take it as far as making an anonymous tip to the state unemployment board (they get pissed about this kind of stuff), but it sounds like he wouldn't even be able to trace it back to you. Just a thought.
One more thing, though. I just remembered/figured out I filled out a W4. What does that do in relation to withholding, and does it change my situation? With a W4, will my employer withhold for me?
Yeah, generally if your employer has you fill out a W-4, it's so that they can know how much to withhold for you (because you're an employee). It's usually just a W-9 if you're a contractor. The easiest way to tell though would be to just look at one of your pay stubs. If he's withheld for social security and medicare (should be a combined 5.65% of your pay) and federal/state income tax, then he's treating you as an employee.
Thanks again for the help, @localh77 and @Tyrannus
Yeah, I know what you mean. I used to keep more money throughout the year and get a smaller refund, rather than give the government an interest free loan for the year. But lately I've been preferring to have more withheld and get a big refund. I mean, sure, I could earn interest, but it's almost guaranteed that I end up spending a lot of it throughout the year. Now I prefer to just consider it kind of a forced savings, with a nice lump sum in the spring.
There are a handful of refundable credits (meaning you can get a refund even if you don't have any tax to offset), the child tax credit being one. So if it's $1000 or less, that's probably what it is. There is also something called the earned income credit which can mean a crazy big refund, but like the name says you have to have some earned income, which welfare isn't. So unless she lied on her return, it's probably not EIC.
Yea... I know it's backward financial-planning-wise, but the wife and I actually like the fatty refund. It's a psycological thing I guess. We don't have that money to spend during the year, etc.
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She probably had some federal withholdings on that, and since she didn't make jack, she got that withheld money back. Just my guess.
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I started 2011working for a company in Missouri, in May of 2011, I moved to Texas and started working for a company there. When filling out my taxes, all my income and wages earned (even that which was earned in Texas) is counting towards my Missouri taxes. However, because you don't pay state tax in Texas, it ends up telling me I owe the state of Missouri about $2500. Is this correct? I feel like i'm getting fucked here.
Well, I don't know what program you're using to fill out your Missouri return, but I just tested out the one on the Missouri website that you can fill in (http://dor.mo.gov/forms/MO-1040_Fillable_Calculating_2011.pdf), and it seemed to be fine. You put your federal AGI (which includes income from both states) on line 1. The you use form MO-NRI (page 9 and 10) which will end up with what percentage of your income was earned in Missouri. And that percentage flows back to the main form (line 27).
If you're using turbotax or something, I would think it would do that automatically. Make sure that when you enter your wages into the federal return that you're indicating which state each wage applies to.
Cheap to free online tax filing service?
I was using TaxAct, but is $15.
My girlfriend said FreeTaxUSA, since they charge $10.
Anyone have a recommendation on a service? I know by hand is free, but I do like the speed and way the system saves my information.
Okay, here's how it should go: You should pay in Missourah on the money you made in Missourah.
http://swz.salary.com/salarywizard/layouthtmls/swzl_statetaxrate_MO.html
Here is MO's tax rates. Unless the money you made purely in MO >= ~50,000, you're going to have a hard time owing $2500 to the state in 3 months... Without sharing your info too much, did you make insane good money there, or are you (more likely) including your full year's wages for consideration for MO's return?
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What exactly are my options here? I've tried dealing with the employer of course, and I just get the run around. What recourse do I have for an employer that just doesn't send me a W2? It's getting near April, and I'm a bit worried.
The internet seems to say:
"If you still have not received your W2 form by February 14th, and have followed up with your employer, you may contact the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 for help. "
Second question, if you use the cheap version of the tax software, like turbotax free, is it ignoring credits that you might be applicable for? Or will it always look for everything possible, but it just wont do state taxes, or whatever, unless you pay for the higher priced stuff?
In answer to one of your questions, yeah, everything listed on Schedule A is what you can deduct. In summary: medical expenses, interest, taxes, charitable contributions, casualty losses, and misc job expenses. The main things people often deduct are mortgage interest, property taxes, state income or sales tax, and contributions. If you have a ton of medical expenses (> 7.5% of your income) or unreimbursed job expenses (> 2% of your income), you may have some of those too. If the total of all of that is less than your standard deduction (something like $5800 for single or $11600 for married), you don't even bother itemizing. It can obviously vary case by case, but kind of a general guidline is that if you don't own a home, odds are you won't itemize.
Some of the other things you mention aren't really deductions, but adjustments or credits, neither of which go on Schedule A. I would just take a quick glance down a 1040 just to get an idea of what there is All told, there aren't that many personal expenses that have an impact on your taxes. I don't know of a really good list, but some common things are tuition and fees (line 34), student loan interest (33), american opportunity or lifetime learning credits (49), child tax credit (51), and earned income credit (64). And sometimes you might have moving expenses (26), retirement savings credit (50). A lot of these things have phase outs, so if you have too much income (or too little), they can be reduced or eliminated.
I can't really speak for Turbotax or anything, cause I've never used it, but I would imagine that the free version wouldn't skip anything.
I'm using the California.gov page for info: https://ftb.ca.gov/individuals/efile/allsoftware.shtml
I went to H&R block today, and they just made me more confused and told me I need to withhold about 30%, which seems awfully high to me.
I tried using that crazy Excel spreadsheet posted earlier, but it is a little over my head without including all the instructions and with the format being sort of messed from the excel layout.
So, I want to know, I'm willing to pay cash for a decent online service. Turbotax? Tax Act? What do I go to? What's best for a 1099 with another part-time job? I'm looking for State and Federal, and I'd like to have a full version directly from my desktop instead of just a web app, as long as that doesn't raise the cost substantially.
Also, since I'm 1099, and also since I haven't done my taxes from last year yet, is there something that will let me do the 4-5 returns I need to do this year?
I used the H&R Block Free File software if it makes any difference. Had my work withhold taxes since I started there in late 2010 all the way through 2011. Ended up owing the Federal Government $66 and California $5. In addition I have a fatty adjustment ($1762) from paying off student loans I wasn't able to afford to pay while I was unemployed. This seems wrong but maybe it's not? I got money back from the last couple months of 2010 from the same employer, and the Step 3 Check Status on the Welcome page says "Not yet available" on all the lines that don't say "Federal return" and "California". Has anybody else in here used this software and this is some sort of weird I pay them they pay me thing going on, and the stress from the strapped budget is freaking me out?
EDIT: Turbo Tax gave me the same result on the Federal refund. Not sure how this happened.
Tax returns are for people who overpay their taxes. It's incredibly possible that you simply didn't overpay based on what your employer withheld, especially since it sounds like you were employed for all of 2011 (withholdings are designed assuming you're employed the whole year). I don't think there's much anyone here could answer without knowing your exact information, but it's likely that it's correct.
This confuses me, as your initial post said no book expenses but is the catch that books don't count because they're not required as a condition of enrollment? I have other non-book expenses, such as a parking permit, without which I could not attend, but is not a strict requirement for enrollment. Can I not include these?
Also, I'm working through HRBlock to get an estimate of what I think my refund should be, but I fully expect that I'll have to file some sort of K-1 since I received money from a trust, but hope not to owe for it, since I segregated it in its own account(so no 1099 for interest?) and haven't "distributed" it to myself.
Would it be easiest to submit an efile from HRBlock, and then file an amended return with the K-1? I mean, that, or pay $30 for a premium version of the service, but that might still leave me with some confusion.
I'm not entirely sure about books, it seems like a bit of a gray area. The idea is that only expenses that are required by the school can be counted. So for example, lab fees and things like that. When you have to pay the professor to print you off a "textbook", that probably counts. But when you buy just a regular old textbook for a class, even though that's the book the professor told you to buy, I don't think it counts. Parking, although necessary to you in a certain sense, definitely doesn't count.
As for the K-1, you'll have to look at it when you get it to know for sure what you have to do with it. I'm sure if you plug it into your software, or take it to H&R Block or whatever, they'll handle it correctly. If the K-1 is addressed to you (and your SSN), though, you're likely going to have to include it in income. It doesn't really matter if you put it in it's own account, as long as that account is in your name, it's your money, regardless of whether you used it.
As long as you get it in the next couple of weeks, I don't see any reason to file an amended return. I would just wait and include it in your initial return. I'm not positive about this, but I think you would technically be filing a false return if you leave off something, even if you intend to add it later.
Yeah, that's the catch. Books are the same as room & board - they are not a deductible educational expense. Also, the K-1's distribution will retain its character - if it's capital gain income, you'll pick it up as capital income, hopefully at favorable rates.
wait before you have everything before you file.
I feel like I'm going to need to shell out money for some more advice, I just need to decide if a premium HR block version can work(though I see no support of a 1041), or a couple hundo for an accounting firm