M.S. Bellows, Jr.
@drahardja @blogdiva Don't you get deductions for charitable contributions or travel? What if you're self-employed?
Dec 9 at 3:31amWeb
Show threadBenAvelingDec 9
If you have deductions / unreported income you report it and get a refund/pay the extra.
Doesn’t it just work today that way everywhere?🙀
@blogdiva @drahardja @msbellows
Show threadCiarán FerrieDec 9

@msbellows @drahardja @blogdiva in Ireland, if you make a charitable donation the charity gets the tax benefit, not the donor.

Self-employed people do their own tax returns though (or, more likely, engage an accountant to do it for them).

Show threadCiarán FerrieDec 9
@msbellows @drahardja @blogdiva Employees have their income tax and social insurance deducted by their employer before being paid so there is very little to worry about at the end of the year.
Show threadSteggyDec 9

@ccferrie @msbellows @drahardja @blogdiva When we lived in the UK as US citizens, it was an absolute nightmare. One year, our US tax return was 120 pages. 120 PAGES.

Vs. our UK taxes, for which we had to do a Self-Assessment. That took about 30 minutes and was about 6 pages. US tax filing is beyond stupid.

Show threadM.S. Bellows, Jr.Dec 9
@ccferrie @drahardja @blogdiva That's true in the US, too.
Show threadLaloutreDec 9
@msbellows @drahardja @blogdiva hi. France here, I think the system is similar to Norway. On the "click a box to validate your tax" website, they ask you a few questions first before displaying the box, such as did you marry/divorce this year, change address, etc... if you say you got special income (independant worker for exemple), or expense (deductible home repair, charity stuff) , you have the corresponding page of the form to fill before the final "ok" box.
Show threadCoach Pāṇini ®Dec 9

@Laloutre @msbellows @drahardja @blogdiva

What if—stay with me here—the U.S. system was designed to be enshittified from the get-go?

Show threadPonygirlDec 9
@paninid @Laloutre @msbellows @drahardja @blogdiva...by the filthy rich.
Show threadM.S. Bellows, Jr.Dec 9

@Ponygirl @paninid @Laloutre @drahardja I mean, we had to pass a constitutional amendment to allow income tax in the first place, and the rich opposed that. They liked it better before, when the federal government's income came primarily from...

... tariffs.

Huh. Seems familiar.

Show threadM.S. Bellows, Jr.Dec 9
@Laloutre @drahardja @blogdiva That makes sense to me.
Show threadSteggyDec 9
@msbellows @drahardja @blogdiva in the UK, at least, if you are self-employed, you fill out something called a Self-Assessment. It’s about 5 pages long. Pretty easy to fill out as long as you keep good records.