DO NOT have your taxes prepared by H&R Block unless you want a letter from the IRS two years later due to THEIR mistakes, have to find your own tax breaks and get ghosted after they get their fees. They are robots who plug in boxes and don't understand how to get you the best refund. Read on...
I had my taxes prepared by H&R Block in 2018 and during the process I found multiple mistakes. Initially, she entered my 1098T for my tuition but it didn't reduce my tax bill due to the cap on income. When I went to pay, I noticed I was getting charged for the tuition which hadn't affected my taxes AT ALL. I was consulting 70 hours a week on top of completing my MBA so I just pointed out the mistakes and moved on.
In 2019, desperate after she sent me a completed return with $10k due in taxes (after paying quarterly estimated taxes), I set out on my own research. I realized that as an independent contractor I could use tuition as a business expense based on guidelines provided by the IRS. That saved me about $7K!! Had I not spent my own time after paying them $600 in fees, I would have been out all that money. After finally understanding I wanted to put it on Schedule C, she promised to do an amendment for 2018. That amendment is yet to be done as of 10/7/2020 and 5 phone calls to H&R Block and I can't get anyone to fix her mistakes.
Now, I also have a letter from the IRS stating I owe an additional $19k in taxes, $4k in penalties and $1.6k in interest. When I reviewed her work, I found multiple discrepancies and missing information. I am so beyond frustrated with these "tax professionals" who were supposed to be the experts and now I'm having to redo my own taxes, educate their staff and find their mistakes.
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