Gail in Virginia

Thanks to all of you, and especially Eric and the Mods! I really appreciate this board every day!

I always wonder about the teenagers that I see working for Papa John's or Domino's - have they (or their parents) told the insurance company they are driving around with a lighted sign on their car delivering pizza?

I am inclined to agree with Abby, although I have very little to base it on either. But I also agree with Roberts, that it " isn't difficult to go simple if you want to ." The problem is that every special interest group in the country has its own set of deductions, or credits, or other loopholes that they don't want to give up and convinces congress that they need to go along with them. Then congress drafts legislation including all these complications, and IRS has to write regulations to try to accomplish what congress was trying to do with the law and before long you have the mess that we have all come to know and love - the US Tax Code. As amended. And expanded. And simplified. *sigh*

Amen! I bet we could actually simplify the code to where no one needed a preparer to do their return, or a computer. But those who want their loopholes will never let THAT happen!

In the past, tax "simplification" has been very good for business. We will see.

My husband was a firefighter at one time also, and he gave me a good talking to shortly after we were marred about the importance of leaving at once when a fire alarm sounds. I used to work for a largish bank, and often when the fire alarm would go off in our builing people would continue to work right through until the fire department arrived. The only time I remained after he scolded me was when I was headed out the door and saw the fire in a trash can, so I stayed to put out the fire.

I did not know that growing grass was legal in Tennessee, lol.

From a federal standpoint that seems correct - the AZ LLC is disregarded to the Delaware LLC which is disregarded to the Delaware Corp. which must file an 1120. I know Delaware is considered a tax haven for corporations, but I assume some kind of Delaware and Arizona return would need to be filed.

I think it is ridiculous that when you purchase software and it doesn't work you then have to pay someone to "fix" it. If I bought an appliance and it didn't work I would expect it to be fixed or replaced, but that isn't the way it works with software. I understand that sometimes the problem is with my setup and not their product, but I still find it incredibly frustrating.

The internet can be a dark and scary place....

I don't know. I have had clients file as single for years, and then when they pass away I find out they have a spouse I never knew about. And at no time does the IRS catch this. I assume that unless the return is audited, and maybe not even then, the only way this is caught is if one of the taxpayers actually files MFS and puts the other taxpayer's social security number in the correct place.

Edsel, if you look at page 15 of the New Jersey 1040 instructions, the third column, fourth paragraph, has the quote that I used in my answer to say that they could file separately on the New Jersey return even though they filed a joint federal return. This does assume that neither of them changes residence to the other's state within the year.

Christian, since only one of them (your client) is a Virginia resident, the Virginia instructions state " If you and your spouse filed a joint federal return, but only one of you is a Virginia resident, the resident must use Filing Status 3." Filing status 3, is of course, married filing separate. The New Jersey instructions state "If during the entire tax year one spouse was a resident and the other a nonresident, the resident may file a separate New Jersey return." So they can file jointly on the federal and yet separately on the states. Calculations of income and deductions might become a bit hairy (think higher fees!) but should not be so very complicated.

I don't have a birthday in Autumn, but I still love the cool nights, crisp breezes and beautiful colors of fall.

But the sock full of nickels can get them ready for the Rita hug, if used correctly!

and AMEN!

Smart hubby! I am sure that it will only be a matter of time (maybe minutes, but time) before scammers use this to their advantage. I did go to Equifax's site and check, and my information is among that which is compromised. Fun, fun.

Caller ID helped for a long time, but apparently technology has advanced to the point that scammers can spoof actual numbers and use them to call me. I normally don't answer my home phone or cell phone unless I recognize the number, but I have had a couple of calls come through with the name of local businesses as the caller and when I answer it turns out to be someone trying to sell me something. Seems like they are always a step ahead.

I am not from PA and don't know how the real estate laws work there, so take this with a grain (or a truckload) of salt. But I am wondering if this could be considered a life estate situation since Mom retained all of the incidences of ownership (paid the taxes, repairs, etc) and continued to live in the house. If it is considered a life estate situation, they may be eligible for the stepped up basis on mom's death.

In my area, several local banks will waive monthly service charges and account minimums on checking accounts provided you have at least one direct deposit. This might be why the employee wants direct deposit. Or maybe she finds it inconvenient to go to the bank. Who knows? I figure the employee is allowed to ask for anything, and the employer is allowed to say no, unless it is required by statute.

We were in about 92% eclipse band, but we had plenty of clouds too. I saw it for a second, then the clouds came back. I'm glad I got my glasses for free! Maybe I will see more in 2024.

I had a taxpayer a couple of years ago that did some workshops/seminars in Canada. They used her social security number on her Canadian form that reported her miscellaneous income. The number was divided into three equal parts (XXX-XXX-XXX) instead of 3-2-4 (XXX-XX-XXXX) but it was the same digits. Canada deducted the taxes directly that they wanted, but I told the client that I did not do Canadian returns if one was required. I don't think that she was required to file anything since the taxes were deducted directly.

One single six-month extension now.

We are in the .92 magnitude for the eclipse this time. My mother and brother had already scheduled vacation for that week, and will be in the .99 band. If my niece goes back to college by then (and I think she plans to) she will be in the 100% range. We all have our glasses, and my husband is talking about dragging out his telescope to use the attachment on that. I really doubt any work gets done that afternoon here, but that is okay. The last solar eclipse I remember is from 1979 (I think).

I don't think you can claim a dependent in a foreign country unless the country is Mexico or Canada. However, you can file jointly with a spouse provided you report world wide income for you and the spouse. But that is just what I remember, and sometimes I remember rules from 30 years ago better than the ones from last season.