LPT: don't forget that while most of the military moving expenses are covered, you can still deduct anything that wasn't reimbursed! This includes things like extra weight charges if you were over your allowance, temporary storage beyond what the military covered, and miscellaneous moving-related expenses. The key with Form 3903 is that you can only deduct costs the military didn't reimburse you for. So document everything carefully, especially for an OCONUS move!

Based on all the experiences shared here, it seems like the consensus is that pet transportation costs are generally not deductible on Form 3903, even for military PCS moves. While it's frustrating since these costs can be substantial for overseas moves, the IRS appears to consistently treat pets as personal expenses rather than household goods. For your situation with Max's transportation to England, I'd recommend focusing on documenting all the other non-reimbursed moving expenses you'll have. Things like excess weight charges, additional travel costs not covered by your per diem, or any storage fees beyond what the military covers can add up and are clearly deductible. If you do decide to claim the pet transportation despite the risks, make sure you have thorough documentation and understand you might need to defend it if audited. But given the experiences shared by Giovanni and the JAG advice Fatima mentioned, it might not be worth the potential hassle. Good luck with your move to England! The overseas assignments are amazing experiences even if the PCS process is stressful.

I just went through this exact situation last month with my SSDI backpay from 2022-2023 that I received in 2024. The Publication 915 worksheets are absolutely brutal to figure out on your own! I ended up using TaxAct Premium after reading recommendations here and elsewhere, and it really did handle everything automatically. The key thing I learned is that you need your SSA-1099 form that shows the breakdown of which years your backpay covers - without that, you're basically guessing at the calculations. One thing that helped me understand the process better: that negative number you're getting on worksheet 2, line 21 is actually pretty common with SSDI backpay. It typically means your income in those prior years was low enough that the Social Security benefits wouldn't have been taxable anyway. So you're not doing anything wrong! The lump sum election calculation can save you significant money compared to just treating it all as current year income. In my case, it saved me about $800 in taxes. Definitely worth getting right, and the automated software takes all the guesswork out of it.

I'm dealing with a similar SSDI backpay situation and this thread has been incredibly helpful! I received backpay covering 2022-2023 that hit my account in 2024, and I was completely overwhelmed trying to figure out Publication 915. Based on all the recommendations here, I decided to try TaxAct Premium and it really did make the process much smoother. Like others mentioned, it automatically detected the lump sum situation when I entered my SSA-1099 and walked me through the calculations step by step. One thing I wanted to add that I learned from my tax preparer friend - if you're still getting negative numbers on the worksheets and it seems wrong, double-check that you're using the correct "base amount" from the tables in Publication 915. The base amount depends on your filing status, and using the wrong one can throw off all your calculations. For single filers it's $25,000, for married filing jointly it's $32,000, and for married filing separately it's $0 if you lived with your spouse at any time during the year. Also, don't forget that if you do end up owing additional tax because of the lump sum election, you might be able to spread those payments out rather than paying it all at once. The IRS has provisions for this in certain situations involving Social Security backpay.

Has anyone here considered the qualified business income deduction (Section 199A) when running construction through an LLC? I think you can get up to 20% off your business income that way, but I'm not sure if one-off construction projects qualify.

Great question about the LLC structure! I went through a similar decision process last year when I built a spec home. Here's what I learned: From a pure tax perspective, if this is truly a one-time project, the LLC won't change much - you'll still report everything on Schedule C either way. However, I ended up forming an LLC and I'm glad I did for several reasons: 1. **Clean separation of expenses**: Having dedicated business accounts made tracking deductions so much easier. When you're dealing with dozens of contractors and material purchases, this becomes invaluable. 2. **Professional credibility**: Contractors and suppliers took me more seriously when I could pay from a business account and provide an LLC business license number. 3. **Future flexibility**: Even though I planned it as a one-off, I ended up enjoying the process and am now looking at my second project. The LLC is already established. 4. **Audit protection**: If the IRS ever questions your business vs. hobby status, having formal business structure from day one strengthens your position. The setup costs are minimal (usually $100-300 depending on your state), and maintaining it is pretty straightforward. For the peace of mind and organization benefits alone, I'd recommend going the LLC route. One tip: Make sure you get an EIN and open business bank accounts right away. Don't commingle personal and business funds - that's the fastest way to lose your liability protection.

I switched from TaxAct to FreeTaxUSA this year after having similar login problems. Their interface is way more reliable and honestly easier to use. Plus it's cheaper for most filing situations. Might be worth looking into for next year if you keep having issues.

I had the exact same issue with TaxAct last week! The login loop is so frustrating. What finally worked for me was completely logging out of all Google/Microsoft accounts in my browser first, then clearing all site data for TaxAct specifically (not just cookies), and then trying again. If you're still stuck, you can also try accessing TaxAct through their mobile app instead of the website - sometimes that bypasses whatever browser-specific issues they're having. The mobile app saved my progress when the website wouldn't let me back in. Really hoping they fix these server issues soon. It's ridiculous that we have to jump through so many hoops just to file our taxes!

Does anyone know if this will affect the way the conversion is taxed? My understanding is that with in-plan Roth conversions, you're supposed to pay tax on the pre-tax portion that gets converted, but not on any after-tax contributions. Would the wrong code change how the IRS calculates the taxable amount?

I've dealt with this exact issue before with my solo 401(k). You're absolutely correct that code G should be used for in-plan Roth conversions, not code 2. Code 2 is specifically for early distributions from IRAs with exceptions. Here's what I learned from my experience: First, definitely contact your plan administrator ASAP to request a corrected 1099-R. Many can turn these around quickly since it's just a code correction. Second, if they can't get you a corrected form before your filing deadline, you can still file your return and include a brief statement explaining that the transaction was an in-plan Roth conversion within your 401(k), not an IRA distribution. The key thing is to make sure the dollar amounts in the other boxes are correct - Box 1 (gross distribution), Box 2a (taxable amount), and Box 5 (employee contributions). The wrong code is annoying but won't change your actual tax liability as long as those amounts are right. Keep documentation of your request to the plan administrator. I had to push mine pretty hard - they initially said "code 2 is fine" but eventually admitted they were using outdated guidance and issued the correction.