Maya, I completely sympathize with your AMT frustration! This is one of the most confusing areas of tax law, and even experienced practitioners get tripped up by it regularly. From what you've described, it sounds like you're running into the classic AMT NOL limitation issue. Here's the key point that often gets missed: AMT NOL carryforwards can only offset 90% of your Alternative Minimum Taxable Income (with some exceptions for losses from 2018-2020). This means even with a substantial NOL, you'll still owe AMT on at least 10% of your AMTI. But there's likely another factor at play here - when you sold assets to generate that long-term capital gain, were any of them depreciated property? If so, you might have different basis amounts for AMT purposes versus regular tax purposes. This could be creating additional AMT income that wasn't fully accounted for in your NOL calculations. I'd strongly recommend manually working through Form 6251 line by line rather than relying on tax software for this calculation. Many programs don't handle the complex interaction between AMT NOLs and capital gains correctly, especially when depreciation adjustments are involved. For your IRS response, make sure to include detailed supporting worksheets showing exactly how you calculated your AMT NOL carryforward and how you applied the 90% limitation. The clearer your documentation, the better chance you have of resolving this without extended back-and-forth correspondence. This situation is fixable once you understand all the moving parts - hang in there!

Welcome to the AMT nightmare club, Maya! I've been lurking here for a while but had to jump in because I just went through this exact same situation with my own return last month. The frustrating thing about AMT NOL carryforwards is that they operate under completely different rules than regular NOLs, and most tax software handles this terribly. Like others mentioned, you're dealing with the 90% limitation, but there's also another gotcha - if your capital gains included any Section 1250 depreciation recapture, that gets treated differently under AMT calculations. What finally helped me figure out my situation was creating a side-by-side comparison of my regular tax calculation versus AMT calculation for the capital gains. I found that my tax software was correctly tracking the NOL amounts but was applying them in the wrong sequence during the AMT calculation. Here's what I'd suggest as a newcomer who just figured this out: Before you spend hours on hold with the IRS, try recalculating Form 6251 manually with just a basic calculator. Focus specifically on lines 28-31 where the NOL gets applied. I bet you'll find the software made an error in how it applied the 90% limitation against your specific type of capital gains. The silver lining is that once you understand how this works, you can actually use it for tax planning in future years. AMT NOL carryforwards don't expire, so you can strategically time capital gains to minimize the overall tax impact. But yeah, the learning curve is brutal! Hang in there - this community has been super helpful for navigating these complex issues.

I have a similar issue. I bought $5,331 online course from an online guru. They have no refund policy. I am a Fitness Instructor. Is it possible to write that off? Thank you

I'm dealing with a similar situation right now! Just spent $8K on what was supposed to be an "advanced business scaling masterclass" that turned out to be recycled content from the instructor's old blog posts. So frustrating when you realize you've been taken advantage of. From what I've researched, the key is proving legitimate business intent at the time of purchase. Even though the course was disappointing, if you bought it genuinely believing it would help your freelance business, you should be able to deduct it. I'd recommend documenting everything - the original sales materials, what specific business improvements you were hoping to achieve, how you planned to implement what you learned. One thing I learned is that you need to show the expense was "ordinary and necessary" for your business. For freelancers, that usually means courses related to your service offerings, client management, marketing, or general business skills. The IRS publication 535 has good guidance on business education expenses. Also consider whether you might have grounds for a chargeback or consumer complaint. Just because someone says "no refunds" doesn't mean they can mislead customers about what they're selling. Might be worth exploring both the tax angle AND getting your money back entirely.

Not sure if anyone mentioned this yet, but you should file Form 3949-A with the IRS to report your employer for suspected tax fraud. Not filing W-2s for multiple employees over multiple years is almost certainly intentional - they were probably pocketing the tax money they withheld from your paychecks. That's theft!

This is a serious red flag situation that you need to handle carefully. As others have mentioned, the POA request is highly suspicious - there's no legitimate reason a company's CPA would need power of attorney from you to fix their own filing obligations. Here's what I'd recommend doing immediately: 1. **Document everything** - Save all communications with the CPA, keep copies of your pay stubs, W-2s, and the IRS notice 2. **Get your transcripts** - Request both Wage & Income and Account transcripts from the IRS online for all affected years 3. **Don't sign anything** - Absolutely do not give them POA or sign any documents The fact that this spans multiple years and involves withholding 45% from your severance suggests they may have been mismanaging payroll taxes for a long time. If they withheld taxes from your pay but never remitted them to the IRS, that's essentially theft. You might also want to check if other former employees are having similar issues - if this is affecting multiple people, it strengthens the case for deliberate non-compliance rather than an administrative error. Consider consulting with your own tax professional who can help you navigate this without any conflicts of interest. The company's CPA is looking out for the company, not for you.

This thread has been absolutely incredible! I'm on an H-4 EAD (spouse of H1-B holder) and have been struggling with Form 8802 for weeks. Reading through everyone's detailed experiences across so many visa types has finally made everything click. Like many others here, I was getting confused by the "resident alien" terminology since I'm clearly not a permanent resident. But now I understand that line 4a is asking about TAX residency status, not immigration status. I've been in the US for 4 years and definitely meet the substantial presence test, so I should check "Individual U.S. citizen/resident alien" and then put "H-4 EAD" in section 4e. What's really helpful is seeing the consistent approach work across H1-B, L1, F-1, TN, E-3, R-1, and now H-4 situations. The substantial presence test truly is the universal determining factor regardless of the specific visa category. I'll be including my H-4 visa copy, EAD card copy, I-94, recent tax returns showing I filed as a resident alien, and a brief cover letter explaining my tax residency qualification. Based on everyone's timelines, I'm expecting about 8 weeks for processing. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - this thread should definitely be saved as a reference guide for anyone dealing with Form 8802 confusion! The IRS instructions really need to be clearer about the tax residency vs. immigration status distinction.

This thread has been absolutely amazing! I'm on a J-1 visa (research scholar) and have been completely stuck on Form 8802 for the past two weeks. Like so many others here, I was getting tripped up by the "resident alien" language when I know I'm not a permanent resident. The key insight that everyone keeps emphasizing - that line 4a is about TAX residency, not immigration status - finally makes perfect sense. I've been in the US for 2.5 years doing postdoctoral research and clearly meet the substantial presence test, so I should check "Individual U.S. citizen/resident alien" and then specify "J-1" in section 4e. What's really remarkable is seeing this same pattern work across literally every visa type mentioned here - H1-B, L1, F-1, TN, E-3, R-1, H-4 EAD, and now J-1. The substantial presence test is truly the universal standard the IRS uses, regardless of whether you're here for work, study, research, or any other purpose. I'll be including my J-1 visa copy, DS-2019 form, I-94, past two years of tax returns showing I filed as a resident alien, and a cover letter explaining my substantial presence test qualification. The 7-9 week processing timeline everyone has shared gives me realistic expectations. One J-1 specific question - since research scholars sometimes have different substantial presence test rules in their first few years, should I include any documentation about my specific J-1 category? Or is the standard approach everyone has outlined sufficient? This community discussion has been infinitely more helpful than the confusing IRS instructions. Thank you all for sharing your detailed experiences!

I think everyones missing the elephant in the room. if ur spending 300k+ on a rolls, the tax break shouldn't be the deciding factor!! either u can afford it or u cant. trying to get uncle sam to subsidize ur luxury car is exactly why they tighten these rules.

As someone who's worked in tax preparation for over 15 years, I'd strongly caution against this strategy. While you're technically correct that vehicles over 6,000 lbs GVWR qualify for heavy vehicle treatment, the IRS has gotten increasingly aggressive about challenging luxury vehicle deductions. The "ordinary and necessary" test is subjective and heavily scrutinized for expensive vehicles. Even if you win an audit, the time, stress, and professional fees will likely exceed any tax savings. I've seen clients spend $50,000+ in legal and accounting fees defending $30,000 in tax benefits. Consider this: if your business truly needs a luxury vehicle for client relations, document that business need thoroughly BEFORE purchasing. Get client feedback, industry standards, competitor analysis - anything that shows this vehicle level is expected in your industry. Without that foundation, you're essentially gambling with the IRS. The smart money says buy what you can afford without the tax break, or find a more defensible vehicle that still meets your business needs.