Has anyone used the free file fillable forms on the IRS website with zero income? Wondering if there are any special instructions or if it gets confused when you put zeros everywhere.

Great question! As others have mentioned, you can absolutely file with zero income, and there might actually be some good reasons to do so in your situation. Since you mentioned being a student, here are a few things to consider: Even if your parents claim you as a dependent, you might still qualify for education-related credits like the American Opportunity Tax Credit if you paid for qualified education expenses (tuition, fees, required books). This can potentially get you money back even with no income. Also, filing establishes a paper trail with the IRS that can be helpful for future financial aid applications, loan applications, or other situations where you need to prove your tax filing history. Some programs require tax returns even if you had no income. The filing threshold for someone your age who can be claimed as a dependent is pretty low anyway - if you had even a small amount of income from odd jobs, interest, or other sources during the year, you might need to file regardless. Since you're graduating soon and entering the workforce, getting familiar with the tax filing process now (when it's simple) isn't a bad idea either. Better to learn when there's less at stake!

Has your husband been in the US continuously since you got married? Because that affects whether he's considered a resident alien or non-resident alien for tax purposes. If he passes the substantial presence test (basically in the US for 183 days or more in a year), he might actually be considered a resident alien for tax purposes regardless of his immigration status. This matters because resident aliens are taxed on worldwide income, while non-resident aliens are only taxed on US-source income. It completely changes the approach to addressing the back taxes.

I want to emphasize something that might get overlooked in all the technical discussion - don't panic about this situation. While it's complex, the IRS generally works with taxpayers who are making good faith efforts to come into compliance. Given the complexity of your situation (married filing status issues, NRA determination, 20 years of unfiled returns), I'd strongly recommend working with an Enrolled Agent or CPA who specializes in international tax matters. They can help you prioritize which issues to address first and in what order. One thing to consider is that your husband may not actually owe taxes for all those years - if his income was below certain thresholds or if tax treaties apply based on his country of origin, some years might not have required filing at all. The key is getting professional guidance to navigate this systematically rather than trying to tackle everything at once. Start with getting him an ITIN, correcting your recent filing status, and then working backward through the most critical years. This isn't insurmountable - it just needs a careful, strategic approach.

Has anyone actually gone through an IRS audit with one of these heavy SUV deductions? My tax guy is warning me that they're really scrutinizing these write-offs now, especially for real estate professionals. Apparently there was a memo sent to auditors about targeting "aggressive" vehicle deductions.

Just wanted to add something important that I learned the hard way - make sure you're actually using the vehicle primarily for business BEFORE you take those big deductions. I made the mistake of buying a $70K Range Rover thinking I'd use it 80% for business, but once I actually started tracking my miles, it was closer to 60%. The IRS expects you to have a reasonable basis for your business use percentage at the time you file, not just hope it works out. I had to amend my return and pay back some of the deductions plus interest. Now I track a few months of actual usage before making any major vehicle purchase decisions. Also, since you mentioned you're in Dallas - be aware that some luxury SUVs might not actually qualify even if they're heavy enough. The IRS has specific rules about vehicles designed for personal use vs. commercial use, and they've been getting stricter about this distinction.

Can anyone explain the difference between deducting HELOC interest on a primary residence vs rental property? My tax guy says they go on different forms but I don't understand why the rules are different.

Great question about HELOC interest deductibility! Just to add some clarity to what's been discussed - the key concept you need to understand is "tracing the use of proceeds." The IRS doesn't care what you call the loan or how it's secured - they only care what you actually spent the money on. So for your $40k HELOC example, you're absolutely right that only the $15k portion used for qualifying home improvements would generate deductible interest. You'd calculate this by taking the qualifying amount ($15k) divided by the total loan ($40k) = 37.5% of your annual interest payments would be deductible. One important thing to note that hasn't been mentioned yet - if you have both a primary mortgage and a HELOC, there's an order of allocation for the $750k debt limit. Your primary mortgage gets allocated first to the limit, then any remaining room goes to the HELOC used for qualifying purposes. For investment properties, yes the interest is generally fully deductible as a business expense on Schedule E, but make sure the property is genuinely used for rental/business purposes. The IRS can challenge this if it looks like personal use. Document everything from day one - don't wait until tax time to figure out your paper trail!

Lemme tell u what happened to my cousin. He was on F1 and let his gf use his account for etsy business. IRS sent him a letter saying he owed taxes on $18k of "unreported income" 😱 He had to prove that money wasn't his, which was super hard since it went into HIS account. Took like 8 months to resolve and he nearly missed opt application deadline bc of it. DON'T DO IT. Specially the crypto part. IRS is watching crypto transactions like hawks now!

As an F1 student myself, I want to strongly echo what everyone else is saying - DO NOT let your friend use your account for his crypto business. This is incredibly risky for multiple reasons: 1. **Tax implications**: Any money flowing through your account could be treated as income by the IRS, even if you're just a middleman. You'd need to report it and potentially pay taxes on it. 2. **Visa status risk**: F1 students have strict limitations on business activities. The USCIS could view this as unauthorized employment or business activity, which could jeopardize your visa status. 3. **Banking issues**: Banks monitor for suspicious activity patterns. Large, frequent transfers could trigger anti-money laundering alerts and freeze your account. 4. **Legal liability**: If your friend's business has any legal issues, you could be implicated since the money flows through your account. For your parents sending money for legitimate expenses (allowance, rent), that's generally fine as family support. Just keep good records showing the purpose of each transfer. Consider having them pay your university directly for tuition when possible, as that's clearly educational support. My advice: Tell your friend to set up his own business banking account. The risks to your education and legal status are just too high. It's not worth jeopardizing your future for this favor.