Kea

Client received no school credit for trip because she already had her Old Testament credits. The trip was organized by her college & another college. She did archeological work at an Old Testament site to show a connection to the Old Testament. The group stayed with the US organization Blossoming Rose, which is a 501©3. So, I'm still not sure. Related to studies but no credits. Perhaps charity volunteer expenses make more sense?

Thanks Judy. Per # 2 on that page, my client is responsible for anyone he can claim as a dependent, unless there is an exemption: 2. Who is subject to the individual shared responsibility provision? The provision applies to individuals of all ages, including children. The adult or married couple who can claim a child or another individual as a dependent for federal income tax purposes is responsible for making the payment if the dependent does not have coverage or an exemption. Since Dad would have an exemption due to his low income, that means my client would not be subject to the penalty? In that case, a taxpayer wouldn't be responsible for penalty for their kids, either -- their income is also $0.

@joanmcq - If you think you've had fun dealing with the PCPs each year, just wait until you deal with the 2013 sale. (I did several last year when client finally sold all of them.) Oh, the states that cropped up that hadn't been an issue in prior years. Losses for each year that had business and / or capital gains from the sales.

The "ideal" way to report is to use the net winnings for each "session" (typically per day), but this assumes that the client kept a diary of their wins / losses per session. So, you are correct to treat the 10 W2Gs separately if they client can substantiate. To avoid the CP 2000 issue, you could report all on Line 21 and make adjustments also on that line. Then report losses on Sch A. Reporting only the net wins per session lowers AGI and is typically more beneficial -- IF client can document!

My client's dad lives with him. Dad is from Asia and his only income is pension of approx $300 per year (depending on conversion rate). Dad is in US legally and therefore must have health insurance by 3/31/14. Household income is well over poverty. But since Dad is over 65 he can't get insurance through the healthcare.gov website & since he has not been here for 5 years, he is not eligible to buy into Medicare. I have read that TX insurance companies do not sell policies to anyone over 65. (I'm not sure if that website was current or not.) I have given my client the name of the navigator that I used to see if he can find anything. Client is hearing advice that he shouldn't claim his dad as a dependent & Dad should file his own return showing lack of income. I advised that that won't help since it goes by household income (and, well, that whole fraud thing...) Is anyone familiar with how to avoid the Catch-22 of having to pay a penalty for not having insurance when he cannot get insurance? Thanks

I'm a child of the 80s, too. Loved the "new wave" music & the movies. But I never had feathered bangs or Ditto jeans.

Thanks, will do.

Client is a graduate student at a seminary school. She took a school trip to Israel to do an internship at a national park. She was not paid and her expenses consisted of airfare & lodging. She was there for approx 4 weeks. It's not tuition so I don't see it counting toward the tuition & fees adjustment or the Lifetime Learning Credit. Could it count as Misc deduction subject to 2% AGI? Not as unreimbursed employee expense, but perhaps as temporary job location? It was unpaid so not sure it counts as a "job"? Any other suggestions? Thanks

The baby didn't have any daycare costs. Then they would have exceeded the credit. Didn't ask but I'm guessing they had family do the babysitting for the newborn?

Yep, that's what I was afraid of. Definitely working! (Maybe even harder than her job?) I've thought about it before, but the actual expense is usually so far above the max allowable that it was moot. This couple didn't max out. I was hoping you'll could find a way. Thanks for confirming.

In January - May, 2013, clients have 4-year-old child in nursery school while both parents work. In March Mom gives birth to 2nd child. Do expenses for nursery school count as day care during the weeks Mom took off from job to care for newborn? She took off more than 2 weeks so does not meet the definition of temporary absence due to illness (in Pub 503). Thanks

I have very few clients who take actual expense rather than standard miles. But the one I was working on yesterday had a dramatic increase in commute vs business miles. They bought this GMC truck in 2009 & it weighs > 6000 lbs. All miles are business & commute, no personal (other than commute). In 2009 we took Section 179 for $6000. In 2013, business use dropped below 50%. Trying to determine if recapture is based on all depreciation (280F) or just the 179? Basically, is a work truck > 6k lbs listed? I know luxury vehicle limits don't apply. Thanks

I really didn't have any problems switching between MS Office on PC & Open Office on Mac. In fact, while I was only using my old MS Office on PC, I'd get the occasional client spreadsheet that was saved as .xlsx. I would copy it to the Mac, open in Open Office & save back to .xls. Then copy it back to the PC. But I do completely understand about needing to do things in a hurry. The only comment I'll make is to make sure you are using the same date reference on each program. Back in the OLD days (1980s?) I would see dates change between Mac & PC spreadsheets. They used different starting dates for their numeric versions (1900 vs 1904?). When I was looking through the Open Office settings, I saw they give you a choice of 4 differnt starting dates. I have considered buying the home / student addition of Microsoft Office for my PC - it would do everything I need at a reasonable price. But Microsoft specifically says that it is not to be used by a business & I don't want to get in trouble with the Microsoft police. I realize that they would probably never know the difference, but, hey, we hear that same excuse from our tax clients. Just sayin'.

I'm trying to move to more electronic, but I still have some clients that prefer the appointment. The one yesterday just doesn't trust sending her documents by e-mail or fax. Really the only problem with that meeting was that it was not on my schedule! (I remember discussing setting a March appointment...) She drove up while I was on the phone with the person I did have on my schedule, giving her directions (there's a lot of construction in our area and all the landmarks are gone.) Perhaps when / if I move in the next couple of years, that will get more people to switch to electronic delivery. (Or switch preparers. That's OK, too - closer to retirement!)

From my own experience - cash back on my personal card is treated similar to a coupon that just reduced the price of the various items I purchased. Cash back on my business card is treated is a reduction to my expenses (usually supplies) since it reduced the price of the varies items I purchased and expensed on my Sch C.

I was using a 2001 Office, but it was an "update." New computer didn't have anything to "update" & I didn't feel like installing my even older MS Works just to install the update. So I decided to just install the free Open Office, instead. My old version was working fine. Just don't feel like jumping through hoops or paying hundreds of $ just to install it on a new computer. @JohnH - Open Office makes a Mac version - no excess fluff in the tool bars. I used it until I got a Microsoft Office on sale for under $100.

I've been leaving the country & date fields blank. I get a yellow warning but no e-file rejects.

I think brisket is a great meat to represent Texas!

One I did yesterday was all covered, code A. But there was one transaction with a 37¢ wash sale! Since it rounds to $0, do I really have to break it out? I'm tempted to follow Margaret's lead & just deal with the notice IF it arrives.

Catherine is correct. This always happens to my MA (NR) client. He always gets his K1 late. He tries to estimate his income when filing the extension but it's always wrong. Then he gets hit with the extra bill. Last year he tried to really over-estimate so that he would pay too much. Nope, still too low.

I don't remember if there was a way to force the printing of the Schedule B. What I did when I needed that form was to "print form" when I was on that page. I know that's a cumbersome work around. Good luck.

Good point! I just looked at his 2012 info and he sold this stock at a loss last year, too. That would turn it into long term! I guess Vanguard got this one right. Thanks!

Thanks. Sounds like I'm staying out of trouble.

Yep, I double checked the dates! One was held 4 days and one for 11 months. Heading says "LONG TERM" report in "Part II Code D." I'll use the correct dates and change to Code A. Any IRS nastygram will be easy to address. I was thinking it might be good to use "various" so I could avoid the nastygram - since there is no tax consequence. Thanks. Glad to know others are seeing these errors. (er, you know what I mean.)

I used TaxWise last year. Switched back to ATX this year. I had too many issues with TaxWise to stay with it again.