Jen's Tax Blog

Jan Letter!

1/6/2023

Hello wonderful tax clients!

I hope you had a great 2022. I am looking forward to the first normal tax season in 4 years, as there are almost no special covid provisions or stimulus or extended seasons or mid-year unemployment tax changes! I am changing up a number of things this year so read this carefully!

1. Big change to online appt system! The past 3 seasons I have been running online appts just like in person, and I finally realized that doesn't make a lot of sense! So this year, things are gonna go a bit differently. Full details are on the website here, but TLDR you will upload all your stuff first, I will punch it in, and then send you a link to schedule your appt. You will not be scheduling online appts for tax prep through the website anymore, you'll get the link directly from me. Appts will be shorter since I won't be doing document input during, it will be already done beforehand, and we will also be sure nothing is missing! Just be proactive about sending in all your stuff and letting me know its all there, since you won't have an appointment deadline to work. And be sure to email me when everything is there and you are ready to go in the queue!

2. Free 15-min Pre-Tax Consults! To help us use tax prep time more efficiently, I am offering 15 min appts from now until Feb 15 to cover any questions you have about spreadsheets, deductions, etc! Sign up on the scheduling page on the website! And if it's before Jan 17, we can talk about making a 4th quarter estimated payment! Speaking of which...

3. 4th Quarter Estimated Payments are due Jan 17! If you have a lot of 1099/self-employment income, you have a lot of investment or other income with no withholding, or your are an NYC resident who got a lot of unemployment in 2022, you might need to pay a payment now to avoid underpayment penalties! Set up a consult to discuss if you need!

4. The Health Insurance Marketplace closes Jan 15! If you need any help signing up for health insurance through the marketplace, sign up for a free 30 min consult before Jan 15!

5. You will be getting an Engagement Letter to sign! In the past I usually had you sign your Engagement Letter along with everything else when your return is done, but it is industry best practice to get them signed in advance, and now that I have TaxDome I can do that, so I am switching things up! If I did your 2021 return, expect to get a request to sign your Engagement Letter through TaxDome next week. (I'll be going alphabetically by last name) If you aren't planning on using me this year, let me know and I will remove the signature request.

6. New Deadlines to avoid needing an extension! I love you all, but there are a lot of you! So I am moving my hard deadline for being finished by April 18th up to March 15. If you get your stuff to me between March 15 and Apr 1, then I will do my level best to get you finished, but if I can't I will give you a personalized estimate of what you may owe so you can make a payment with extension. After Apr 1, you are definitely getting an extension, and will need to use my Rule of Thumb guidelines to estimate your payment. Details here!

7. New (and 100% different) Payment Options! I am finally practicing what I preach and separating my business and personal accounts. This means that I am no longer accepting Venmo or Paypal! I am still accepting Zelle, but to a different account than before. So bottom line, however you paid me last year, it's different this year. I will be accepting Zelle to my new account, or you can pay by e-check or debit/credit through a service called CPACharge, you will get a link when we do your return. There will be a $5 charge for using debit/credit, Zelle or E-check are free!

8. Speaking of payments, I have changed some prices. I hate to have to increase prices, I know everything is going up in price for all of you, but everything I use from software to online services to of course my own personal expenses is going up so I just can't keep prices static. I have increased the base price of a state to $15 (from $10), limited the sliding scale to be from $5 to $20 off, and I will be charging more for more complex returns that take a lot of time. Also, people who have been with me more than 5 years have a lower legacy price, those will be increasing by $10. You can get an updated Price Quote here. As always, be as early as possible for the early bird discount, that hasn't changed! I also still give $5 off for every year after the first one you are with me, up to $50.

9. The Intake Form is now online! I am no longer using the New or Returning Client forms that were downloadable from the site in previous years, now I am using Zoho Forms online! What's so great about this (to me anyway!) is that I can make the forms responsive based on your answers, so if a section doesn't apply to you, you won't be asked further questions about it. I am working on videos going through filling things out, but they should be pretty straightforward. But since this is the first year I am fully using these, if you are an early bird be sure and let me know about any issues you encounter! Check it out here.

10. I made a PA W2 specific spreadsheet! No major changes to any of the other spreadsheets, but feel free to also download the latest version.

11. Returning Clients can start uploading whenever you want! If I did your 2021 return, you have a TaxDome account, you can upload without needing a link from me. Check out this video for further instructions! Or just email me for a link :)

12. Are you sure you uploaded everything? Check out my Readiness Check or the List of Documents I need!

13. In person Appts in NYC! I am tentatively planning on coming to NYC to do appts from Mar 10-Mar 15, keep an eye on the website for more details later this month. And of course, if you are in the ATL area during tax season you are welcome to come by for an in-person appt at my place, just shoot me an email!

14. Stick to emailing me! As always, please use email to jentaxprep@gmail.com as the way you communicate with me. Please do not text, call, DM or use the TaxDome messaging system to get in touch unless otherwise specified!

15. Check the Blog for any mid-season announcements!

16. I am working on making some more videos, more for spreadsheets and forms, and a couple on specific tax topics that come up a lot, like types of deductions and car deductions, so keep an eye out on the website for those if you are interested!

Ok, I think that's enough for now! As always, check the website first if you have any questions, and email me if the answer cannot be found! Or set up a 15 min consult! I look forward to speaking with you all soon!!!

Your friendly neighborhood tax preparer,

Jennifer

Short Fall Update

9/30/2022

I am back from my tour, and ready for extensions and getting ready for filing 2022!

1. The deadline if you filed an extension is Oct 17 (since the 15th is on a Saturday) Don't delay! Get an appt or email for a link NOW! If you live in Florida, due to the recent hurricane, your deadline has been extended to Feb 15, so take care of yourself and contact me when you can.

2. In November, December, and January I will be opening up free Health Insurance consultations for people who need help navigating the insurance marketplace, so keep an eye out for that!

3. In November, December, and January I will also be offering free 15 minute pre-tax prep consults. These will be for discussing what you need to prepare for tax prep, questions about deductions and spreadsheets, and reviewing the need to make a 4th quarter estimated payment. The goal is to make everything run super smooth during the time crunch of tax season! If you need any other topics discussed, set up a Personal Financial Planning Appt.

4. Efile for 2021 and 2020 will close temporarily on Nov 15, and will reopen sometime in late Jan. Efile for 2019 will close permanently on Nov 15, so if you need to file 2019, NOW IS THE TIME! (the window to file for a refund for 2019 will also close permanently April 17 2023)

In Person Appts are up!

2/11/2022

In person appts are now available to be scheduled! I will be in NYC to see your smiling yet masked faces from Mar 16 to Mar 22! Be sure to read the rules before scheduling!

The Advanced Child Tax Credit

2/3/2022

I am hearing all kinds of rumblings about issues with getting the correct number for the Advanced Child Tax Credit. If you are at all in doubt about knowing exactly how much you got, I strongly recommend you check your IRS account to find the exact number. It's a lengthy process so it needs to be done BEFORE your tax appt. Here is how to set that up and do it:
How do I sign up for an ID.me account?
“Tax preparer” cannot assist with the setup of ID.me accounts.
Before you get started with ID.me, you'll need the following:

Your Social Security number (you do not need the physical card)
A driver's license, US passport, or US passport card
A smartphone or computer with a camera
From the IRS website (www.irs.gov) click on the icon for Sign In to Your Account, and then click the button marked Sign into your online account. You'll be given the option of creating a new ID.me account or signing in to an existing account. Click the white ID.me Create an account button to start the registration process.
Next, enter your email address and choose a strong password. ID.me requires that passwords be eight characters or longer with at least one capital letter, one lowercase letter and a number. Confirm your password, click the check box to accept ID.me's terms and conditions and then click Create account.
ID.me will then send you a message to confirm your email address. Check your inbox for an email from ID.me, then click on the blue Confirm your email button in the message. Return to your browser.
Next you'll need to enable multifactor authentication (MFA) -- a second step to prove it's actually you each time you sign in with your ID.me password. Most people will probably opt for a text message or phone call to their mobile phones. After selecting your MFA option, enter the six-digit code sent to you by ID.me and click Continue. You'll need to use this step every time you log in to your online IRS account.
Now you'll need to add pictures of your photo ID. You can upload photos or take pictures with your phone. You'll need to choose one of three acceptable ID options: US passport book, state driver's license, or US passport card. Upload pictures of both the front and back of your driver's license or passport. If you'd like to take new pictures of your document with your phone, enter your phone number and ID.me will send you a link.
After uploading your document, you'll need to take and upload a video selfie with your phone or computer camera. If you want to use your webcam, click the white Take a selfie with my webcam button. If you want to use your phone, click the blue Take a selfie with my phone button and enter your phone number and ID.me will text you a message with a link.
When taking your video selfie, be sure to position your phone in portrait mode and move your head very close to the camera. The background will flash different colors as it scans your face. When you see a green checkmark, your video selfie is complete. Click Continue and return to your original browser window.
Next confirm your Social Security number by entering it and clicking Continue.
ID.me will now present a summary of your personal information, including name, address and phone number. Confirm that everything is correct, check the "Fair Credit Reporting Act" check box and click Continue.
After confirming your identity, ID.me will send you a text message asking you to explicitly allow the IRS access. Although you won't need to register with ID.me again, you will need to "allow" every service you want to use it with, such as Social Security or VA.
Click Allow and continue on the ID.me message to send verification to the IRS.
Your IRS online account is now complete and active. The IRS will log you out of your account. You will need to visit the Your Online Account page to log in (with MFA) each time you want to use your IRS online account.

Please note, married taxpayers will need both the husband and wife to sign up through ID.me to have access to all of their tax records.
How to Access your Advance Child Tax Credit and Economic Impact Payment (#3) Information from your IRS Online Account
Advanced Child Tax Credit Payment Information
· Once logged into your IRS Online Account, select Tax Records from the menu at the top of the screen.
· You will see a section on this screen labeled Advance Child Tax Credit Payments with a link to the Update Portal. Click on this link
· Toward the bottom of the screen under the Payments Section, click on the plus sign next to Processed Payments. All payments that you received should be listed here. Please print a copy of this screen to provide to us.
Economic Impact Payment 3 (EIP 3) Payment Information
· Once logged into your IRS Online Account, select Tax Records from the menu at the top of the screen.
· Toward the bottom of the screen under the Economic Impact Payment Information section, click on the plus sign next to 2021. All payments that you received should be listed here. Please print a copy of this screen to provide to us.
If you disagree with any of the information provided on these screens, we recommend printing a 2021 account transcript. This can be done via the following steps:
· From your online account homepage, select Tax Records from the top menu
· Click on the blue box labeled Get Transcript
· Select reason for needing a transcript. You can choose any of these that you like,
· On the next screen, choose the 2021 Account Transcript at the bottom left of the screen. This will have the details on any payments made to you for the 2021 tax year.
Can’t create or login to an IRS Online account? You can still have a transcript mailed to you.
· From the IRS website (www.irs.gov) select the icon for Get Your Tax Record
· On the next screen, Scroll down to the area discussing Alternative to Requesting a Transcript Online.
· There is a link here to Get a Transcript by Mail. Once clicking on this link, you will need to provide your Name, Social Security #, Address and Zip Code used on your most recent tax return. You will also need to select that you would like a 2021 Account Transcript. Once this information is entered, it takes 5-10 days to receive the transcript.
· You can also request a transcript by calling the IRS automated transcript request line at 1-800-908-9946. You will need the same information as listed above (Name, Social Security #, Address and Zip Code to request the transcript using this method

January Updates!

1/10/2022

Hi folks!

1. You should have gotten my January email, but if you didn't, it's here!

2. Appts are now available, up to 3 weeks out. So if you want an appt for Feb 21, it will be available Feb 1! All appts are online since I am in GA, stay tuned for news about me coming to NYC.

3. Speaking of me coming to NYC, if you haven't already make sure you sign up to tell me that you are interested in a mid-March appt in person. So far, only 9 people have expressed interest, which points to a very short trip for me, so if you want me to come for longer be sure to sign up so I know!

4. I forgot to mention this in my Jan letter, but if you are still missing your extra refund from Health Insurance Credits, or unemployment from either State or Federal, let me know so we can start looking in to that. There haven't been any announcements yet, but I'd like to know who still has things outstanding.

5. IRS Efile will be opening on Jan 24! Fingers crossed for a normal season with no law changes or extensions!

6. The Health Insurance Marketplace is closing Jan 15, go get coverage if you need it, and 4th Quarter 2021 Estimated Payments are due Jan 18! Pay up self-employed!

Talk soon!

November Updates!

11/7/2021

Hi folks, few quick things for you!

1. Efile will be closing for the season on Nov 20. If you haven't filed yet, you really need to do it before then, because otherwise you will have to wait until Efile opens up again in late Jan 2022. (and that's optimistic, last year the opening was delayed to Feb 12!)
This is also the LAST CHANCE to Efile tax year 2018. If you haven't filed that year yet, you need to do so ASAP. If you miss the Nov 20 deadline, you will have to mail in your return in order to file it, and wait the 9 months it takes to be processed. (The hard deadline to file for a refund for 2018 is April 18, 2022)

2. Unemployment refunds are still going out, I just saw that another batch is coming. So if you haven't gotten it yet, hopefully it's on its way now. But I still haven't heard that they are done, so we need to continue to wait. On state refunds, if I told you that you should be getting one automatically and you haven't or that you should wait to amend, do check in with me about that and we will see where we are.

3. The Health Insurance Marketplace is open! You can now sign up for health insurance for 2022! And good news, the credits are now more generous and available to more people, there is no longer a cliff at 400% of poverty level, so even people earning over 50k can get subsidies! Like last year, I am offering FREE help to sign up, if you want to make an appt with me to do the signup online together or just talk about your options, feel free to set up a time through my scheduling page. I want you all to have insurance! Sign up by Dec 15 for coverage starting Jan 1.

Have a wonderful Holiday Season and can't wait to talk to you in January!

Hurricane-related Extensions

9/17/2021

UPDATE: NY extended the deadline yesterday (Oct 12) at 4 pm, lol. However my point that you need to file before efile closes down still stands!

I hope you all are safe and well after the recent crazy weather! This post is only for people who haven't filed 2020 yet, if you already filed, this doesn't concern you, it's just for the procrastinators :)

You may have heard on the news that the (already extended) tax deadline has been extended from Oct 15 to Jan 3 for people in the areas affected by Hurricane Ida, which includes NYC and surrounding areas, and several counties in NJ and PA. This is true for the FEDERAL government. However, NY, being the crappy brutally taxing state it is, did NOT extend this deadline. So while you have more time to file your federal, NY is not giving you any more time, and you have to do your Federal return in order to do NY so really, you don't get an extension. Please do not delay, get your return done by Oct 15. If that is truly not possible because you were very badly impacted by the storm, let me know and we can work on drafting a request for penalty abatement, but this is not for people who can't legitimately say they were heavily affected by the storm.

PA and NJ, being much nicer states, have followed the federal and extended the deadlines to Jan 3. However, I still STRONGLY urge you not to use this as an excuse to delay if you can help it. Obviously, if your home got flooded, then of course take advantage. But if you are just fine, do not delay. Even though the deadline may be extended, Efile shuts down in early November, so if you wait, you will either have to mail in your return (BAD IDEA!) or you will have to wait til Efile reopens in late Jan, and by then you will be late. Also, I will NOT have a lot of availability to work with you after Oct 15, my schedule is packed with performing commitments in Oct and Nov and I will not be able to guarantee I can help you in time.

So, TLDR, unless you have really experienced serious consequences from these storms and truly cannot get your taxes done in the next month, proceed as though your deadline is still Oct 15. Because for most of you, it really is. I just didn't want to you be mislead by any news stories you might hear that tell you that you have more time, without giving you the full picture. Tough love, I do this because I care about you! :)

Refunds are still VERY delayed

8/3/2021

NOTE: this post is about refunds for regularly filed returns. If you are waiting for an extra refund from unemployment, this does NOT apply to you. There is no way to track those, just wait patiently :)

I'm starting to get a lot of emails from people concerned that their refunds have still not come several months after filing. You are not alone! Literally millions of people are still waiting on refunds as the IRS is behind on processing returns. As of June, it was reportedly 35 million still being processed. Sometimes there is an obvious reason, sometimes there is no reason at all. Unfortunately, there is literally nothing I can do to help you if you are waiting on your refund, assuming there is no actual issue to address. You just have to wait. If you haven't gotten your refund yet and you are worried, here is what you should do:

First, before you do anything else, check Where's My Refund? on the IRS website. You will need to know your social, filing status (married, single etc), and the amount of your refund. If you email me to check, this is the exact thing I am going to do.

Now, what does that say?
1. Your return is still processing. Congrats, the IRS has your return, but you just need to wait. Check the site periodically for any updates.
2. It might say there is an issue with your refund. It might have been taken for debts, or the IRS doesn't agree with your return, and they will be sending you a letter explaining what's going on. If you get a letter saying there is an issue, please do bring it to my attention.
3. It might say that your refund was issued on a certain date, either directly deposited to an account or mailed by check. If you check into that info and it seems your refund has gone astray, let me know and we can work on what to do next.

So if you are in situation #1 and your return is still being processed, why is it so delayed? The most common issue is that you requested stimulus money that you didn't get before on your tax return. These amounts have to be verified by an actual person, and that is taking months. You may have requested another credit like the EITC or Child Tax Credit and that amount is also being double checked by a human. A lot of returns were delayed that had unemployment this year. Even if you have none of these things, some returns just seem to be delayed for no reason I can discern at all, the IRS seems to have randomly decided a person needed to look at something, and again, thanks to Covid, that is taking a long time. Unfortunately there is nothing to do but wait patiently!

Now this is all for federal refunds, if you are missing a state refund, chances are much higher that there is an issue that needs to be addressed, like them wanting to verify your ID or get copies of your W2s or other state tax returns, so let me know if you have issues with them!

Pre-law change Unemployment refunds

6/14/2021

Hi folks! I have now emailed everyone who filed before the law with unemployment income or health insurance subsidies they paid back. So if you think that's you and you haven't heard from me, do email so I can check on you.

Reminder, the federal govt should be automatically sending out these refunds over the next few months (at least one client has let me know she got it!) so just chill and wait for your money. You only need to contact me if you get less than I said you would, which I know at least a few of you will based on the IRS guidance. We will then file an amendment to get you the rest.

I am assuming they will direct deposit the money to the same account if you got a refund, but if you originally paid, they will probably mail it, so if you don't want that check to go to the address on your 2020 return, you need to update your address with the IRS ASAP!

Reminder: 2nd Quarter Estimated Payments Due June 15

6/12/2021

Make sure you pay your 2nd Quarter Estimated Payments by Tuesday June 15! If you are not sure how to make the payment, there are videos for Federal and NY on the How-To Videos page. If you don't know how much you should be paying, email me!

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