The 2014 Annual Anandtech Tax Time Thread!

[dmw16]

Question related to filing an extension and Form 4868...

I went to irs.gov/payments and sent a partial payment of my taxes owed via one of their payment providers. I selected on the provider site that I was paying/filing an extension.

What I can't figure out is: do I still need to send in a form 4868? There is a note under payments:

You can pay online with a direct transfer from your bank
account using Direct Pay, the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System, or by debit or credit card. You can also pay by phone using the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System or by debit or credit card. For more information, go to www.irs.gov/payments. Confirmation number. You will receive a confirmation number when you pay online or by phone. Enter the confirmation number below and keep for your records.
Enter confirmation number here
Note. Do not file a paper Form 4868 if you already submitted it electronically and are not mailing in a payment.

I have a confirmation number, but I can't make heads or tails of whether or not I still have to file something? I am using turbotax but they don't give me the option of saying I already paid an extension. Do I just select "pay by mail" when I file my extension in TurboTax?

 

[cabri]

You need to send in a 4868 if you are not submitting the full paperwork by the 15th.

Best to select pay by mail; at this point, you do not know what the tax payment will be.

The 4868 does not ask about payment method.

Also, will TT charge you a fee to file the extension; you may just wish to file the 4868 by mail.

(I happen to have my printed out and going in the mail on Wed - Block S/W wanted to charge me for filing it. :thumbsdown

 

[etherealfocus]

There's a line on the 4868 form... "Do not file Form 4868 if you want the IRS to figure your tax or you are under a court order to file your return..."

The IRS can do my taxes for me?? I assume they won't get me all the deductions I want and such, but if they just sent me their best guess and I could send them a spreadsheet full of deductions that'd be pretty nice. I assume it's not that simple, of course...?

 

[tw33ter]

I'm asking this on behalf of my brother. His only source of income last year was a SSA-1099. Does he need to file a tax return on that?

 

[HybridSquirrel]

I sent a check to my state for taxes owed 3 weeks ago but they haven't cashed it yet. I try to call but the line is constantly busy and no one responds to e-mails. Should I just assume they received it and will cash the check? Tracking shows it was delivered, I even e-mailed several times saying I would cancel the check if no reply is provided by today.

 

[cabri]

There's a line on the 4868 form... "Do not file Form 4868 if you want the IRS to figure your tax or you are under a court order to file your return..."

The IRS can do my taxes for me?? I assume they won't get me all the deductions I want and such, but if they just sent me their best guess and I could send them a spreadsheet full of deductions that'd be pretty nice. I assume it's not that simple, of course...?

The IRS will use the standard deduction and any numbers that have been sent to them by employers/banks/stock brokers

Stock sales will be treated as 0 cost basis.

They will not look for available credits

 

[cabri]

I'm asking this on behalf of my brother. His only source of income last year was a SSA-1099. Does he need to file a tax return on that?

He should to file; the amount taxable depends on the amount

 

[cabri]

I sent a check to my state for taxes owed 3 weeks ago but they haven't cashed it yet. I try to call but the line is constantly busy and no one responds to e-mails. Should I just assume they received it and will cash the check? Tracking shows it was delivered, I even e-mailed several times saying I would cancel the check if no reply is provided by today.

If the state has signed for you have tracking confirmation for the check/paperwork; leave it alone.

Cancelling may cost you $$

 

[nk215]

I never understand the tax extension thing. If you don't owe the IRS, you can file tax anything w/o penalty. Basically if you sent in a check slightly larger than what you owe by 04/15 then you can take your sweet time to follow up with 1040. [I've never try it but I think that's how it works].

By the time you work out how much you owe, you may as well (e-)file it and be done with it.

Either way, I actually get a refund this time unfortunately, the SSA got my info wrong so I have to file the tax by mail. In the past, I owed so I didn't try e-file.

 

[nk215]

I sent a check to my state for taxes owed 3 weeks ago but they haven't cashed it yet. I try to call but the line is constantly busy and no one responds to e-mails. Should I just assume they received it and will cash the check? Tracking shows it was delivered, I even e-mailed several times saying I would cancel the check if no reply is provided by today.

I've had check not cashed for months. Don't cancel or you'll be hit with multiple fines. My local tax office one time hold by check for 3+ months before cashing it.

 

[nk215]

I'm asking this on behalf of my brother. His only source of income last year was a SSA-1099. Does he need to file a tax return on that?

If the only income you received during 2014 was your social security or the SSEB portion of tier 1 railroad retirement benefits, your benefits generally are not taxable and you probably do not have to file a return. If you have income in addition to your benefits, you may have to file a return even if none of your benefits are taxable.

Base amount. Your base amount is:
$25,000 if you are single, head of household, or qualifying widow(er),
$25,000 if you are married filing separately and lived apart from your spouse for all of 2014,
$32,000 if you are married filing jointly, or
$-0- if you are married filing separately and lived with your spouse at any time during 2014

That info came directly from the irs website (publication 914)

State tax is a different story.

 

[HybridSquirrel]

If the state has signed for you have tracking confirmation for the check/paperwork; leave it alone.

Cancelling may cost you $$

I have confirmation it was dropped off at the building the tax department works in. It wasn't signed by anyone specific. Just irritating. I have the money in there now I just want it gone so I can stop worrying about it.

 

[highland145]

Happy "It's almost over" Day. Or the "I'm Screwed" Day.

 

[etherealfocus]

Filed my extension as of 11:29pm 4/15/2015. I'm off to go burn some effigies of the IRS... thanks for your help guys!

 

[Ns1]

My wife and I run/own a 501c3 corporation. Are there any tax incentives for contributing personal funds to said 501? I'm not sure if our contributions would be considered regular charitable donations or not, given our close relationship to the non-profit.

 

[highland145]

My wife and I run/own a 501c3 corporation. Are there any tax incentives for contributing personal funds to said 501? I'm not sure if our contributions would be considered regular charitable donations or not, given our close relationship to the non-profit.

Wife runs one also. We took the $$ she gave as charitable donations. Just made sure we have a paper trail like the others. FYI, I am not a CPA.

 

[Ns1]

Wife runs one also. We took the $$ she gave as charitable donations. Just made sure we have a paper trail like the others. FYI, I am not a CPA.

well, at least it's something lol.

 

[Dr. Zaus]

Wife runs one also. We took the $$ she gave as charitable donations. Just made sure we have a paper trail like the others. FYI, I am not a CPA.

I read up on it since I asked in the first place on page 1. 2/3rds of the money going into a 501c3 cannot come from the same source: all family members, corporations in which family members have a substantial interest, or money given by a family member ear-marked for giving to the 501c3.

The other 1/3rd must come from charitable donations: You must deduct from this about the value of anything 'given' in-kind for the donation, unless the donation exceeds $75 and what is given is below $15 and can be seen as 'trial' or 'marketing' such as mugs with the 501c3's logo on it. (double check the $ values, I may be off by $5 here or there)

All 'earnings' from performing things that are related to the non-profit's rason de etre is removed from the calculations entirely. All 'earnings' that come from doing something un-related, but not as a fund-raiser, count as a "unrelated earnings" and you need to pay taxes.


Be very careful about fundraising with that 501c3 as well; each state has regulations about how to fundraise in it. You are best off using a 3rd party that's registered properly in each state if you seek to raise funds on the internet.

Failure to pass the 1/3rd non-single source requirement can lead to retroactive removal of both he 501c3's tax-exempt status, and the write-offs (and thus insurance of tax-penalties) issued by the 501c3.


I'm not a CPA either; but I am NOT going to pay the goddamned alternative minimum tax: even if it means starting a charity and giving that money away of the benefit of Autistic kids!

 

[Ns1]

Yeah that's not a problem. So as long as the personal contributions don't exceed X percent we're cool.

 

[TechWiz365]

This is a really great thread, I'm 18 and will be doing my taxes on my own for the first time next year so can't wait for the 2016 thread to come out!

 

[highland145]

This is a really great thread, I'm 18 and will be doing my taxes on my own for the first time next year so can't wait for the 2016 thread to come out!

I hope you make $1M/year/life so you can support old people like me.

 

[HybridSquirrel]

12 weeks later they cashed my check! Whoopie. Bye bye $1800

 

[cabri]

12 weeks later they cashed my check! Whoopie. Bye bye $1800

And Illinois has not even looked at my paperwork after 4 weeks

 

[Craig234]

How would you file the purchase of a planned rental property - property taxes, depreciation etc. - that ends up used by a friend who never pays rent?

 

[cabri]

How would you file the purchase of a planned rental property - property taxes, depreciation etc. - that ends up used by a friend who never pays rent?

Use the Schedule E

However, if the property continues to show no income; the Feds may not look on it as a rental but rather a second home.

Then the non-taxes and interest items are all that you can continue to deduct and that would be via the Schedule A. And you would have to recover everything on the Schedule E