One important thing that confused me about the 1095-C - it's different from a 1095-B! My spouse got a 1095-B from their insurance company and I got a 1095-C from my employer and they contain different information. Just wanted to point this out in case anyone else has both forms in their household.

Just want to chime in with a simple summary for anyone still confused! Your 1095-C form is basically just proof that your employer offered you health insurance coverage. You DON'T need to mail it in with your tax return or enter specific numbers from it into tax software. Think of it like a receipt - keep it with your tax records in case you ever need to prove you had qualifying health coverage. The main thing it helps with is showing the IRS that you met the health insurance requirement and shouldn't be penalized. If you're using tax software like TurboTax or H&R Block, they might ask if you had employer-sponsored health insurance, and you can just answer "yes" based on having this form. But you won't need to type in the specific codes or dollar amounts from the 1095-C itself.

I'm dealing with this exact same situation with my S-Corp that I started in 2023! Reading through all these responses has been incredibly eye-opening - I had no idea the IRS was so strict about the salary requirement even when you're not taking distributions. Like you, I've been reinvesting everything back into growing the business and haven't taken a penny out personally. I was actually hoping I could avoid the whole payroll setup complexity until I started taking money out, but it sounds like that's not an option. The documentation aspect that several people mentioned really resonates with me. I think that's been my biggest mistake - not keeping records of my decision-making process around compensation. I've been so focused on just running the business that I haven't been thinking about creating that paper trail for potential IRS scrutiny. Based on all the advice here, it sounds like I need to: 1) Research comparable salaries in my industry and area, 2) Set a reasonable but affordable salary (maybe 60-70% of market rate given cash flow constraints), 3) Document my reasoning with a formal board resolution, and 4) Set up proper payroll processing. This thread has been a huge wake-up call. Better to get compliant now than deal with potential reclassification and penalties later. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this kind of real-world guidance is so much more helpful than trying to parse through IRS publications!

This is such a great thread - I've learned so much from everyone's experiences! I'm in a similar situation with my S-Corp (started in 2022, sole owner, reinvesting everything) and had been putting off the salary question hoping it would somehow resolve itself. What really stands out to me from all these responses is the consistency of the message: the IRS doesn't care whether you take distributions or not - if you're actively working in the business, you need reasonable compensation as an employee. The documentation aspect everyone mentions makes total sense too. I think the key insight for those of us in cash-tight growth phases is that "reasonable" doesn't necessarily mean "full market rate." It sounds like you can justify a lower salary based on business financial constraints, but it needs to be genuinely reasonable - not artificially low to dodge payroll taxes. For the OP's situation with $33k in profit after expenses, setting aside $25-30k for salary (as several people suggested) seems like a good balance between compliance and cash flow management. The remaining amount stays in the business for growth, and you can always increase the salary as revenue grows. Thanks to everyone who shared their real experiences - especially those who dealt with IRS audits or got professional guidance. This kind of practical advice is invaluable for navigating S-Corp compliance!

Just wanted to share my experience with this exact situation! I had multiple Roth IRA contributions throughout 2023 and then got hit with a surprise year-end bonus that pushed me over the income limit. The key thing I learned is that you absolutely need to act quickly - the deadline is firm. My broker (Schwab) was actually really helpful once I got to the right department. They have a specialized team that handles excess contribution returns and they did all the earnings calculations for me using the method described above. One thing that wasn't immediately clear to me: when you withdraw the excess contribution plus earnings, the contribution amount comes back to you tax-free (since it was post-tax money), but the earnings portion gets added to your taxable income for the year you receive the distribution. So make sure you're prepared for that tax hit! Also, if you're close to income limits in the future, definitely consider the backdoor Roth strategy mentioned by others. It's a bit more paperwork but saves you from this whole headache.

I went through this same situation last year with Fidelity! You're absolutely right that the calculation can be confusing, especially with multiple contributions. Here's what I learned from my experience: Fidelity does have a specific form called "Return of Excess Contribution" that you can find in their forms library online. When you call, ask specifically for the "retirement account excess contribution department" - they'll transfer you to specialists who handle this all the time and actually know the calculation methods. Regarding your question about tracking each contribution separately - you don't need to! The IRS allows you to use the account value immediately before your first contribution for the tax year as your starting point, then your current balance as the ending point. The formula you mentioned is correct. One important thing I discovered: if you're doing this for 2024 contributions, you have until your 2024 tax filing deadline (including extensions) to fix it without penalty. But don't wait - the earnings calculation keeps changing as your account value fluctuates. Also, just to echo what others said about the tax implications - the contribution itself comes back tax-free, but any earnings on the excess contribution will be taxable income in the year you receive the distribution. Fidelity will send you a 1099-R showing the earnings portion.

Thanks everyone for all the great suggestions! I'm definitely going to try a few of these options. The automatic document scanning feature that @Ethan Clark mentioned with taxr.ai sounds really appealing since I hate manually entering all those 1099 boxes - I always worry I'm going to mess something up. I'm also intrigued by the VITA program @Emma Johnson suggested. I didn't know that was a thing! Having someone walk through everything with me in person might be worth it for peace of mind, especially since this is my first year dealing with multiple 1099s. Quick question for anyone who's used these services - do any of them handle estimated tax payments for next year? Since I'll probably have similar 1099 income next year, I want to make sure I don't get hit with underpayment penalties.

I've been in a similar situation and ended up using a combination approach that worked really well. For the actual filing, I went with FreeTaxUSA since it truly handles all 1099 forms for free (federal), but I also used one of those document scanning services mentioned here to extract all the data first, then manually entered it into FreeTaxUSA. This gave me the best of both worlds - the accuracy of automated data extraction without worrying about hidden fees. The scanning caught details I probably would have missed, and FreeTaxUSA's interface made it easy to double-check everything was entered correctly. One tip: if you do go the manual entry route with any software, take photos of all your forms with your phone first. That way if you get interrupted or the software times out, you don't have to dig through all your paperwork again. Also, most of these services will save your progress, so you can take breaks if it gets overwhelming. For estimated taxes next year, definitely set those up - the IRS has an online payment system (EFTPS) that makes quarterly payments pretty painless once you're registered.

I actually went through this last year with my S-Corp. Something important I learned - if your new owner is a non-US citizen or certain types of entities, you could accidentally terminate your S election! Make sure your new member is a qualified S-Corp shareholder. Also, depending on your state, you might need to file amended articles of organization with the state. In California, for example, we had to file a Statement of Information update when our ownership changed.

One thing to keep in mind that I haven't seen mentioned yet - when you take distributions as an S-Corp, they need to be proportional to ownership percentages. You can't just decide to give one owner more distributions than another based on their contribution or work in the business. Also, make sure you're both taking reasonable salaries as W-2 employees if you're both actively working in the business. The IRS scrutinizes S-Corps that try to avoid payroll taxes by taking everything as distributions instead of salary. The salary requirement applies to all owner-employees, not just the original owner. For your specific situation with the mid-year ownership change, document everything thoroughly - the date of the change, the reason for it, how you determined the new ownership percentages, and keep copies of all amended corporate documents. This documentation will be crucial if you ever face an audit.