I can't pay the IRS
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2017 TOTAL YEARLY INCOME: $12,798
Amount owed to IRS (fed): $157
Refund from State: $16
2018 TOTAL YEARLY INCOME: $18,229
Total paid in quarterly: $829
Amount owed to IRS (fed): $2,036
Amount owed to State/Local: $690
2019: Total amount owed by April 15 for 1st quarter: $868
I had the same job both years. What is wrong with this picture?
These new tax changes were bad for me. In 2017 I earned a little over $1,000 per month however, I was still in school and still able to live off of my student loans. I graduated in 2018 and have earned through self-employment $18,229 which represents only $5,431 more than the previous year but now for some reason I owe close to $3,000 between Fed and State. I was able to pay $829 throughout the year quarterly but am not really earning enough to live on in addition to paying in 35% of my monthly income.
What do I do?
I am self-employed. I teach English online to children in China. I am a 1099'd independent contractor with no benefits. As a result of being an independent contractor, I am subject to a higher tax rate of approximately 15% on top of my 20% base tax rate. I use Quickbooks self-employed to track all expenses and I do get the home office deductions, etc. My taxes were prepared by a CPA so I know they are accurate. I have never gotten a huge tax return at any point in my life - but this is the first time I have ever had such a huge tax bill. Yes, we are requesting a payment plan over 5 years, but it will only keep accumulating year after year.
I work for a reputable company and am very familiar with the online English market. The two companies I remain active with were chosen for the fact they offer the most opportunity for work hours. (Some companies only offer a 3 - 4-hour window daily. I log about 35 to 45 hours a week working around the clock. I am paid $20 per hour but after taxes and self-employment tax it comes out to a little less than $12 per hour. There is no overtime.
I have been actively looking for a job since finishing my master's degree. I have been rejected for jobs in my field (ESL teaching) due to not having experience. I apply to retail, bookstores, grocery stores, etc. but am not having any luck. I can not do factory anymore at this point in my life due to having issues with my back and not being able to handle repetitive motion. I left retail in favor of teaching online because of the unpredictability of scheduling. Sometimes I would only be scheduled for 10 hours a week. I failed the physical test for a car manufacturer in my area.
I am losing hope.
I apply for jobs on Indeed, Zip Recruiter, and every other job board I come across. I have in the last two weeks had to turn down interview requests because the jobs were in Colorado and they need someone to start right away and I don't have the money to move yet. but I really need to leave this area.
I have no family. My husband was mentally ill and selfishly left our home in 2016. Honestly, I have been suffering since then. I stayed in school simply because I could not afford to live. He left me holding the bag for everything and I currently have $90,000 student loan debt. I am 52 years old. I will never be able to stop working until the day I die. I had this hope that going to school would magically change things for me. I graduated from HS in 1985 and did not go to college then for a variety of reasons. I never had issues working with just a HS diploma until I had to file bankruptcy in 2007. I got tired of working minimum wage jobs, got tired of being stuck in the dead-end cycle - but by this time a college degree was an absolute necessity for most jobs. I started in 2011 and went till 2018 working very hard all while living in a highly toxic marriage.
I am sinking further and further into a deep hole that I cannot climb out of. I need help. I don't want to file bankruptcy again - that is not a good option anyway because student loans cannot be discharged. I just need some help. I have been suffering from PTSD for the last 2.5 years. I have been trying very hard but things changed so drastically in my life from what I thought they would be. When I started school I was doing it for my husband because I knew he was not happy living in the US and I thought if I just get a degree we will have a chance to move abroad again. Going abroad is no longer an option because I will not leave my dogs and it is hard now. My health took a rapid downturn in the last 2 years due to the PTSD. My eyesight is suffering from working online - sometimes when I teach everything goes dark in front of me and I can't see at all. I have chest pains, back spasms, and I'm grinding my teeth so badly my fillings are eroding away.
I just really need some help with this.
I just really need some help.
I need a job that pays a living wage with steady full-time hours so I can continue teaching from 3 am to 7 am.
I need help with this IRS debt because It is only going to get worse.
I don't have anything valuable, but I have been selling things to supplement my income as well.
Amount owed to IRS (fed): $157
Refund from State: $16
2018 TOTAL YEARLY INCOME: $18,229
Total paid in quarterly: $829
Amount owed to IRS (fed): $2,036
Amount owed to State/Local: $690
2019: Total amount owed by April 15 for 1st quarter: $868
I had the same job both years. What is wrong with this picture?
These new tax changes were bad for me. In 2017 I earned a little over $1,000 per month however, I was still in school and still able to live off of my student loans. I graduated in 2018 and have earned through self-employment $18,229 which represents only $5,431 more than the previous year but now for some reason I owe close to $3,000 between Fed and State. I was able to pay $829 throughout the year quarterly but am not really earning enough to live on in addition to paying in 35% of my monthly income.
What do I do?
I am self-employed. I teach English online to children in China. I am a 1099'd independent contractor with no benefits. As a result of being an independent contractor, I am subject to a higher tax rate of approximately 15% on top of my 20% base tax rate. I use Quickbooks self-employed to track all expenses and I do get the home office deductions, etc. My taxes were prepared by a CPA so I know they are accurate. I have never gotten a huge tax return at any point in my life - but this is the first time I have ever had such a huge tax bill. Yes, we are requesting a payment plan over 5 years, but it will only keep accumulating year after year.
I work for a reputable company and am very familiar with the online English market. The two companies I remain active with were chosen for the fact they offer the most opportunity for work hours. (Some companies only offer a 3 - 4-hour window daily. I log about 35 to 45 hours a week working around the clock. I am paid $20 per hour but after taxes and self-employment tax it comes out to a little less than $12 per hour. There is no overtime.
I have been actively looking for a job since finishing my master's degree. I have been rejected for jobs in my field (ESL teaching) due to not having experience. I apply to retail, bookstores, grocery stores, etc. but am not having any luck. I can not do factory anymore at this point in my life due to having issues with my back and not being able to handle repetitive motion. I left retail in favor of teaching online because of the unpredictability of scheduling. Sometimes I would only be scheduled for 10 hours a week. I failed the physical test for a car manufacturer in my area.
I am losing hope.
I apply for jobs on Indeed, Zip Recruiter, and every other job board I come across. I have in the last two weeks had to turn down interview requests because the jobs were in Colorado and they need someone to start right away and I don't have the money to move yet. but I really need to leave this area.
I have no family. My husband was mentally ill and selfishly left our home in 2016. Honestly, I have been suffering since then. I stayed in school simply because I could not afford to live. He left me holding the bag for everything and I currently have $90,000 student loan debt. I am 52 years old. I will never be able to stop working until the day I die. I had this hope that going to school would magically change things for me. I graduated from HS in 1985 and did not go to college then for a variety of reasons. I never had issues working with just a HS diploma until I had to file bankruptcy in 2007. I got tired of working minimum wage jobs, got tired of being stuck in the dead-end cycle - but by this time a college degree was an absolute necessity for most jobs. I started in 2011 and went till 2018 working very hard all while living in a highly toxic marriage.
I am sinking further and further into a deep hole that I cannot climb out of. I need help. I don't want to file bankruptcy again - that is not a good option anyway because student loans cannot be discharged. I just need some help. I have been suffering from PTSD for the last 2.5 years. I have been trying very hard but things changed so drastically in my life from what I thought they would be. When I started school I was doing it for my husband because I knew he was not happy living in the US and I thought if I just get a degree we will have a chance to move abroad again. Going abroad is no longer an option because I will not leave my dogs and it is hard now. My health took a rapid downturn in the last 2 years due to the PTSD. My eyesight is suffering from working online - sometimes when I teach everything goes dark in front of me and I can't see at all. I have chest pains, back spasms, and I'm grinding my teeth so badly my fillings are eroding away.
I just really need some help with this.
I just really need some help.
I need a job that pays a living wage with steady full-time hours so I can continue teaching from 3 am to 7 am.
I need help with this IRS debt because It is only going to get worse.
I don't have anything valuable, but I have been selling things to supplement my income as well.
Organizer
Iman Elwan
Organizer
Evansville, IN