Does anyone know if I need to be concerned about FATCA if I temporarily lived abroad last year but my bank accounts are all US-based? My bank sent me a 1099-INT with the FATCA box checked but I'm not sure if my situation is different since I was physically outside the US for part of the year.

Hey Daniel! I totally understand your confusion - I went through the exact same panic when I first saw that FATCA box checked on my 1099-INT from my Chase savings account. It's one of those things that sounds way scarier than it actually is. The key thing to remember is that FATCA reporting requirements are on the BANK, not on you as the account holder. When Ally Bank checks that FATCA box, they're basically just telling the IRS "we've done our job reporting this account information as required by law." It has nothing to do with you having foreign accounts or needing to file additional paperwork. For your regular US savings account with $750 in interest, you just report it as normal interest income on your tax return. Don't let TurboTax's foreign account questions confuse you - if you don't actually have accounts outside the US, you answer "no" to those questions regardless of what boxes are checked on your 1099-INT. The whole FATCA system was designed to catch people hiding money offshore, but it creates these confusing notifications for regular taxpayers who have done nothing wrong. You're not going to trigger an audit just because of this checkbox!

Has anyone else noticed that tax preparers are getting shadier every year? Last time I used one, they "accidentally" checked the box to take their fee from my refund even though I paid cash upfront. When I questioned it they acted like it was a small mistake that wouldn't affect anything. Found out later they get kickbacks from the bank that processes those transactions.

I'm really sorry you're dealing with this situation. Based on what you've described, this definitely sounds like an unauthorized refund transfer product was used without your knowledge or consent. Since you paid upfront in cash, there was absolutely no legitimate reason for your preparer to route your refund through a third-party account. Here's what I'd recommend doing immediately: 1. Call the IRS at 800-829-1040 and request a "refund trace" - this will track exactly where your money went and can help recover it if it's sitting in a third-party account. 2. Get a copy of your tax transcript from the IRS (it's free) so you can see exactly what was filed under your name and what account information was used. 3. File Form 14157 with the IRS to report the preparer for potentially fraudulent practices. Even given her health situation, what happened to you was not ethical or legal. The fact that she changed your banking information without explanation and you haven't received your refund after 3 months is a major red flag. Don't feel bad about pursuing this - you deserve to get your money back and prevent this from happening to other taxpayers. The IRS takes these complaints seriously and has processes in place to help victims of preparer fraud.

One thing nobody mentioned - your age might actually be an advantage here. If you're buying these tools early in your career, you'll get many years of use out of them. Also, check if your company has any kind of tool reimbursement program that you might not know about. Mine had a $500/year tool allowance that I didn't even realize existed for my first two years!

Hey Diego! Great question and smart thinking getting this figured out early in your career. Just wanted to add something that might help with your situation specifically as a younger driver. Since you mentioned you're not even 21 yet, you're probably in a lower tax bracket, which means the value of these deductions might be less than for someone earning more. But don't let that discourage you - investing in quality tools now is still smart for your career. One thing to consider: if your employer classifies you as an independent contractor rather than an employee, the rules change completely. As a 1099 contractor, you'd deduct tools on Schedule C as business expenses, which is much more favorable than the employee expense rules others mentioned. You wouldn't need to worry about the 2% AGI floor or itemizing vs standard deduction. Also, keep photos of your tools with serial numbers and store them somewhere safe (cloud storage). If they get stolen from your truck, you'll need proof for insurance AND to show the IRS you actually owned them. Truck stops aren't exactly known for being theft-free! Quality tools are definitely worth the investment in this industry - they'll pay for themselves in avoiding downtime and costly roadside repairs.

The consensus from what I've seen across multiple tax forums is that 570 without 971 is usually good news. It typically means they're reviewing something internally that doesn't require your input. Most people report these resolving within 2-8 weeks with no action needed. If you had a 971, that's when you should expect a letter requesting information or explaining an adjustment.

I'm in a similar situation right now - TC 570 appeared on my transcript 3 weeks ago with no TC 971 code. Reading through everyone's experiences here is both reassuring and nerve-wracking! It sounds like there's a decent chance it will resolve on its own, but the uncertainty is really stressful when you're counting on that refund. Has anyone found any patterns in terms of what day of the week or time of month these 570 codes typically get resolved? I've been checking my transcript every morning but wondering if there are certain days when the IRS batch-processes these reviews.

Just a warning - if customs holds your package and you don't pay the fees within 10 days (at least with bpost), they might send it back to the seller! This happened to me with an order from Japan because I was on vacation when they sent the notification. Check your email regularly and maybe download the app for whatever delivery service is bringing your package.

Had a very similar experience with an order from Zalando that I thought was shipping from their European warehouse but ended up coming from their Hong Kong fulfillment center. Ended up paying about €45 in total fees on a €170 order (VAT + duties + DHL handling fee). One thing I'd recommend - if you have the tracking number, you can sometimes see which courier service will be delivering it. Different companies have different handling fees, so at least you'll know what to expect. DHL tends to be the most expensive for handling fees but they're usually pretty quick with the customs clearance process. Also, don't panic if the tracking shows "held by customs" for a few days - that's totally normal. They're just processing the paperwork and calculating the fees. You should get contacted within 2-3 business days with payment instructions.