Tax Refunds.

[kuronosan]

Edit: derp...need to read better.

Yes, to answer your question. Lower withholding contributes.

[Guyverarmor]

I believe I had to wait until or after 7th Feb or much later. They haven't release the education credit form yet QQ

Yeah, you can file with TurboTax to do the Education credits but yeah, IRS won't even look at yours if you claimed it till mid Feb at least. Shit sucks yo. We are okay on money, but man, was hoping to pay off 2-3 bills completely before they actually came due for Feb. -_-

[BadKarma]

Stupid question: I made $5600 last year. Do I even have to file?

[Ragnus]

Shouldn't have to. I think the minimum for that is $9500 last I checked.

[Dolmen]

I know next to nothing about taxes, so this may be a stupid question.

My wife and I married in December, so the entire year we were both having taxes withheld each month based on the single rate. Is there anything we have to do or mark in order to get back the extra due to the whole 'married on Dec 31st, married the whole year' thing? I ask because we are filing separately (before people start pointing it out, we both did 'test runs' jointly and separately on both H&R and TurboTax, both places had us receiving higher returns as MFS) and my refund is the same as it had been the previous years as being single. Is the lower withholding just part of the refund I'm seeing and losing money because of how other things now fall in taxes? Or is that even enough information lol. I put up a question on TurboTax, just haven't had it answered yet.

Just change your W-4s at work to Married (or Married, but withhold at single rate). The extra withholding that was taken out due to the single rate comes back to you on the return you file, nothing special to do.

[Dolmen]

Stupid question: I made $5600 last year. Do I even have to file?

If you had any withholding taken out (federal/state) you should file to get it back.

[tyven]

If you had any withholding taken out (federal/state) you should file to get it back.

this. and you may qualify for EIC but idr what the threshold for that is

[Brill Weave]

this. and you may qualify for EIC but idr what the threshold for that is

I don't know why but 6k is sticking in my head for some reason.

[Headspace]

I got my W-2 back from when I worked as a part time, hourly person on a research grant. I made $560 total but I only has $18.50 for federal withholdings and no SS or medicare. They said it's because I'm a student working for the university. Will I end up owing money from that 560 if I made over $10k at my other job before I quit?

[Sqwunk]

From TurboTaxs website on EIC

Spoiler: show

Can I take the Earned Income Credit?

If you were married filing jointly and earned less than $50,270 ($45,060 for individuals, surviving spouses or heads of household) in 2012, you may qualify for this tax credit, or even for a refund check. It's complicated, but the Earned Income Credit (EIC) is worth exploring if you or someone you know has modest earnings.

The credit reduces any federal income tax you owe, dollar-for-dollar.
If the credit completely eliminates your tax bill, and some credit is still left over, you can actually get a cash refund for the remaining amount.

To help you find out if you qualify, Turbo Tax asks simple questions so you can get the largest possible credit.

Tests for qualifying

First you have to qualify. Then your income has to be within stated limits. Finally, if you have one or more kids, they have to qualify too for you to receive a larger credit. If you pass all these tests, you could get a credit of as much as $5,891 for 2012 depending on your income and the number of children you have.

Once you determine that you qualify for the credit, use the Earned Income Credit table found in the instructions for Form 1040 (or Forms 1040A or 1040EZ) to look up your income and find out the amount of credit you're entitled to.

Check out our mobile app to see if you qualify: EITC Finder
You qualify if:

You have income from earnings (for example, from a job, your own business, union strike benefits, certain long-term disability benefits).

You did not receive more than $3,200 in interest or dividends, or income from rentals, royalties or stock and other asset sales during 2012.

You are single or, if married, do not use the Married Filing Separate status.

You, your spouse and children, if applicable, all have Social Security numbers.

You and your spouse are not being considered as a child on someone else's tax return for purposes of the earned income credit.

You are not excluding any income you earned in a foreign country on your return.

You are a citizen or resident of the United States.

You have dependents.

You do not have a qualifying child, but you and your spouse are between 25 and 65, not the dependents of anyone else, and you have lived in the United States for more than half of the year.

How much can I earn and still qualify?

This credit is targeted at households with modest incomes, so if you earn "too much" you may not qualify. Just how much can you earn and still qualify? It depends on how many qualifying children you have (we'll define this in a moment). Those with the lowest income qualify for the biggest credits. Those with incomes above the phase-out threshold qualify for lower credits until they reach the point where the credit is eliminated completely. The rules have been liberalized to result in higher credits for many households, especially those with three or more qualifying children. The following table shows the 2012 income limits for receiving credits and the maximum 2012 credit amounts.

(1)If you have:

(2)Your earned income(and adjusted gross income)must be less than:

(3)Your maximum credit will be:

(1) No qualifying children
(2) $13,980 ($19,190 if married and filing a joint return)
(3) $475

(1) 1 qualifying child
(2) $36,920 ($42,130 if married and filing a joint return)
(3) $3,169

(1) 2 or more qualifying children
(2) $41,952 ($47,162 if married and filing a joint return)
(3) $5,236

(1) 3 or more qualifying children
(2) $45,060 ($50,270 if married and filing a joint return)
(3) $5,891


Does my child qualify?

To qualify, the child must be:

Your son, daughter, stepchild, adopted child or a descendant.

Your foster child, placed with you by an authorized agency or court order.

Your brother, sister, stepbrother, stepsister or a descendant of one of these.

Age 18 or younger as of the end of the year (unless he or she is a full-time student, in which case the student must be 23 or younger). Exception: A person who is permanently and totally disabled at any time during the year qualifies, no matter how old.

A resident with you in the United States for more than half of the year.

Example:

You and your sister live together. You are 30 and your sister is 15. When your parents died two years ago, you took over the care of your sister, but you did not adopt her. She is considered a qualifying child because she lived with you more than half of the year.

Who is an eligible foster child?

For the Earned Income Credit, a foster child is defined as an individual who is placed with you by an authorized placement agency or court order. The child must have lived with you for more than half of the year.

What about my welfare benefits?

The Earned Income Credit has no effect on certain welfare benefits. Any refund you receive because of the EIC will not be considered income when determining whether you are eligible for, or how much you can receive from, the following benefit programs:

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
Food stamps
Low-income housing

For more information on whether you qualify for the credit, use the TurboTax program. An overview is also available in Publication 962: Possible Federal Tax Refund Due to the Earned Income Credit.

For complete details, see IRS Publication 596: Earned Income Credit (EIC).

I claimed it as a 25 yr old, with income <$13,980, and no qualifying children. I didn't get the full 475, TurboTax told me I was getting 383 from it. Not really sure why mine was reduced but I don't really care because I took the American Opportunity Credit too, so my return more than doubled regardless.

Shitty that education stuff makes you wait til mid February

[Eleven19]

Gotta file for Fed, half a year in NJ and half a year in MI... Never done my own taxes, always used my parent's person they knew. I wonder if I should go to H&R Block to get mine done this year because I have no idea what I'm doing. Don't really want to have to pay for it, though... Blech.

[BadKarma]

Ergh. Ill get 56 dollars back from the fed....and then I owe the state 170 bucks.

I fucking hate new york

[Headspace]

Can't wait for tax refunds to come out to see Miz being a cornball brother and hating on all the Hidden Valley Kings out buying PS triples and rims

According to FB it's already started

[kuronosan]

I got my W-2 back from when I worked as a part time, hourly person on a research grant. I made $560 total but I only has $18.50 for federal withholdings and no SS or medicare. They said it's because I'm a student working for the university. Will I end up owing money from that 560 if I made over $10k at my other job before I quit?

If that is all you made you don't even need to file. If you do and have no additional income you might get a refund.

[Mertron]

According to FB it's already started

cant wait to buy a new laptop, thanks obama!

[Minions]

Anyone work as an independent contractor and get a 1099 Misc in the past? I know this year it comes before the end of February. How do you go about filing your taxes with deductions? I know you have to file a Schedule C form, then you can deduct the costs of tools etc. Is there a certain way you have to e-file (for free?).

Any help is appreciated.

[Shakki]

I got married in December and am filing a joint return for the first time. I got right to the end and it says I need to get an e-filing pin from the IRS for my husband. When we go to the website for it, it keeps telling us the information we input doesn't match the IRS records, regardless of what combinations we try, and the phone line keeps disconnecting us after a few minutes. He didn't save a copy of his filing from 2011.

So...what now? Is there a way to view past returns online? We weren't able to find out how to do so using Turbotax.

[kuronosan]

Use your last year AGI instead or call the IRS hotline.

[Shakki]

He doesn't know it, and the hotline is what keeps hanging up on us partway through the call. Am I just being dumb and there's a way to look up last year's AGI?

[Jer]

So...what now? Is there a way to view past returns online? We weren't able to find out how to do so using Turbotax.

Only if you filed through TurboTax during those years I believe.