Comments | galagan: It's that time of year again....

galagan

It's that time of year again....

Apr 08, 2007 17:23

Good news: all you tax procrastinators have an extra couple days this year - April 17 is the deadline.

Bad news: that's just 9 days away.

I'm renewing my annual offering to talk through any tax issues anybody has. If you need me, you know where to find me.

Comments 12

samtheeagle April 8 2007, 21:41:01 UTC

Okay, here's one. IRS just decided to audit me for tax year 2005. They've concluded that I owe the better part of $2K. Ordinarily I wouldn't represent myself in an audit, but I'd probably pay the $2K in legal fees before walking in the door. Any advice?

galagan April 8 2007, 22:50:12 UTC

This rings a bell from whenever you first posted about it, but I couldn't find the link in your journal. Give me details again? Private e-mail at your option of course. In general, I favor representing yourself in an audit of this magnitude.

samtheeagle April 9 2007, 01:40:19 UTC

Actually, I never posted about it: this just happened. So far as I can tell, the IRS is double-counting a W2 and an amended W2, which should be easy enough to manage except that the agency's posture seems to be that I must prove I didn't earn certain income (i.e. that the amended W2 isn't separate income from the original W2). Bizarre.

galagan April 9 2007, 02:16:11 UTC

Easiest way to handle duplicate/amended forms is to go back to the employer that issued the forms and get them to do the right thing. Sounds like the employer messed up by not checking the "amended" box on the second form they filed. Have them 'fess up in writing and attach the confession to your response letter.

Usually, following IRS procedure is good enough to make them happy. That is, be diligent and don't ignore deadlines on IRS notice letters.

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ellen_fremedon April 10 2007, 01:20:12 UTC

sanj's roommate here. I have an issue ( ... )

galagan April 10 2007, 01:39:59 UTC

Welcome to my world - the world of self-employment tax hell! You've got the logistics down pat ( ... )

ellen_fremedon April 10 2007, 01:50:34 UTC

Well, fuck.

I didn't have any business expenses, except for transportation. I never worked from home. It was a pretty casual office, so I don't think I can deduct clothing or drycleaning. Transportation is really it.

Can I just multiply a day's train and bus fare by the number of days I worked there and call it a business expense, without any other documentation?

samtheeagle April 10 2007, 03:05:04 UTC

This is lawyer (but not actual tax lawyer) talking. Let's see if galagan concurs and gives me a gold star on my lawyergeek chart.

Can you deduct commuting expenses? If you didn't have a home office, I don't think so: commuting expenses generally are deductible only for necessary transportation between offices. If you did have a home office, then commuting from the home office to the KAB worksite could be deductible.

Clothing and drycleaning never are deductible unless they made you wear special KAB clothing that you paid for and for which you weren't reimbursed.

This result supersucks given your SE tax situation.

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