Check your transcripts every week. Sometimes they update there before the Where's My Amended Return tool shows anything

Filed my amendment back in September and still waiting too! The uncertainty is the worst part - you never know if they're actually processing it or if it got lost somewhere. I've been checking the IRS tool religiously but it just says "received" with no timeline. Really hoping it doesn't take the full 20+ weeks that others are mentioning 😅

Has anyone tried using TaxSlayer for business returns? Their website says they support 1120-S but I can't tell if they have good guidance for Schedule L specifically.

I've been struggling with Schedule L myself and found that the key is understanding that it's basically a snapshot of your business assets and liabilities at two points in time - beginning and end of tax year. One thing that really helped me was creating a simple mapping document between my QuickBooks chart of accounts and Schedule L line items. For example, my "Equipment" account maps to line 10a (Depreciable assets), and my "Accumulated Depreciation" account maps to line 10b. The biggest gotcha I found was that retained earnings on Schedule L needs to match your tax basis, not book basis. So if you have differences between book and tax income (like different depreciation methods), you'll need to adjust retained earnings accordingly. Have you tried running a "Balance Sheet Standard" report in QuickBooks for 12/31 of your tax year? That should give you most of the ending numbers you need. For beginning numbers, either use last year's ending balances or run the same report for the first day of your tax year.

Has anyone had success just checking the "Exempt" box in Workday for a paycheck or two? I'm considering this but not sure of consequences...

I completely understand your frustration with the new W-4 form! I went through the exact same thing last year and felt like I needed a degree in tax law just to adjust my withholding. Here's what worked for me: The quickest way to increase your take-home pay temporarily is to use Step 4(b) "Other Deductions." In Workday, this might be labeled as "Additional Deductions" or something similar. You can enter a dollar amount here that reduces your taxable income for withholding purposes. A rough rule of thumb: if you're in the 22% tax bracket and want an extra $200 per paycheck, you'd enter about $4,500-$5,000 in deductions (this assumes biweekly pay). The system will withhold less tax because it thinks you have more deductions coming. Just remember to change it back after a few paychecks! I set a calendar reminder because it's easy to forget. Also keep in mind you're just borrowing from your future tax refund - you'll still owe the same total tax for the year. The Workday interface is definitely confusing compared to the actual IRS form, but once you find that deductions field, it should do what you need.

One thing that might help ease your stress - the IRS is generally more interested in getting you back into compliance than in punishing you. They see situations like yours all the time, especially after the chaos of the past few years. When you're gathering documents, don't forget about things like state tax refunds you might have received (those can be taxable income), unemployment benefits, or any side gig income from apps like Uber, DoorDash, etc. These smaller income sources are easy to forget but can add up. Also, if you moved during those years, make sure you're filing in the correct states. Some states have no income tax, others do, and you might owe taxes in multiple states depending on when you moved and where you worked. The key is just to start. Pick one year (I'd suggest 2020 since it's the oldest) and focus on getting all the documents together for just that year first. Once you see how the process works for one year, the others will feel much more manageable. You've got this!

I went through something very similar a few years back - hadn't filed 2018-2020 due to job changes and personal issues. The anxiety was honestly the worst part! Here's what worked for me: Start by requesting your wage and income transcripts from the IRS website (irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript). This will show you exactly what income the IRS has on record for each year, which helps you identify any missing documents and gives you a baseline to work from. One thing that really helped my peace of mind was calling the IRS Taxpayer Advocate Service (1-877-777-4778). They're specifically there to help people in situations like yours get back on track. They can't do the filing for you, but they can explain your options and help you understand what to expect in terms of penalties. Don't beat yourself up about this - life happens, and you're taking the right steps now. The IRS would much rather have you file late than not at all. Focus on getting organized first, then tackle one year at a time. You'll feel so much better once you start making progress!

I noticed nobody mentioned state taxes. Depending on your state, you might need to add the HSA distribution to your state taxable income too. Some states like California don't recognize HSAs at all, which makes it even more complicated. FreeTaxUSA should handle this automatically, but it's good to be aware.

I went through this exact same situation a couple years ago and want to add something that might help save you some money. Before you finalize everything in FreeTaxUSA, double-check if any portion of your HSA withdrawal might qualify for penalty exceptions under IRS Publication 969. There are several situations where the 20% penalty can be waived - things like disability, unemployment for more than 12 weeks, certain higher education expenses, or first-time home purchase (up to $10,000). Even if the expenses weren't medical, you might still avoid the penalty if you meet one of these other criteria. When you're in the HSA section of FreeTaxUSA, there should be questions about whether you qualify for any penalty exceptions. Don't just assume you'll pay the full 20% penalty without checking these options first. I saved myself about $600 by discovering I qualified for the unemployment exception.