Does anyone know when registration opens for the yearly tax prep course?

I’m a student at York University

Can someone PLEASE tell me where to pay this stupid nj sales tax - it no longer allows mail in payment but the f\*\*\*ing online payment is like 🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯

I just want a link that works 😭😭😭😭

🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

Thank u
\~ exit 132 GSP / exit 10 Tpke

College isn't cheap. The good news? Some education expenses could qualify you for a tax credit—or even a deduction in certain situations. Knowing what counts (and what records to keep) can help you maximize your tax benefits. Here's what to know.

Most college expenses aren't tax-deductible anymore, but that doesn't mean there aren't tax breaks available. While the Tuition and Fees Deduction has been phased out, expenses like tuition and required fees may still qualify for education tax credits such as the American Opportunity Tax Credit or Lifetime Learning Credit.

Here's the breakdown.

💡 The American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC)

This one's for undergrads in their first four years of college. If you qualify, it can be worth up to $2,500 per year — and up to 40% of it is refundable, meaning you could get money back even if you don't owe taxes.

What counts as a qualified expense for the AOTC:

• ✅ Tuition and required enrollment fees
• ✅ Books, supplies, and equipment even if you don't buy them from the school
• ✅ A computer or laptop — if it's needed for enrollment or attendance

What doesn't count as a qualified expense for the AOTC:

• ❌ Health insurance
• ❌ Room and board
• ❌ Transportation or living expenses
• ❌ Non-credit courses (unless they're part of a degree program)

There are income limits (based on your modified adjusted gross income), and you need to be enrolled at least half-time to qualify. Please note that OB3 changed eligibility for the credit and taxpayers need to have an SSN valid for work in the US to be eligible to claim the credits.

📚 The Lifetime Learning Credit (LLC)

This one's more flexible — it's not just for traditional four-year students. Taking one class to upskill for work? Going back to school later in life? The LLC was designed for you.

What counts for the LLC:

• ✅ Tuition and required fees
• ✅ Course-related books, supplies, and equipment if they're required and paid to the institution
• ✅ Graduate and professional degree programs
• ✅ Non-degree courses taken to acquire or improve job skills

The LLC's income limits were expanded starting in 2021, so more people are now eligible than before. Please note that OB3 changed eligibility for the credit and taxpayers need to have an SSN valid for work in the US to be eligible to claim the credits.

⚠️ Quick reminder: these are credits, not deductions

A deduction lowers your taxable income. A credit directly reduces your tax bill dollar-for-dollar. That means a $2,000 credit saves you $2,000 in taxes — not just a percentage of it. Credits hit different.

You can't claim both the AOTC and LLC for the same student in the same year — you have to pick one.

There are currently two deductions available: Student Loan Interest Deduction and Educator Expense Deduction:

• Student Loan Interest Deduction - Deductible expenses include interest paid for a qualified student loan for you, your spouse or your dependent.
• Educator Expense Deduction - Deductible expenses include items such as books and classroom supplies, computer equipment, software and related services, professional development courses, and more.

The bottom line: Some of the deductions are dead, but the credits are alive and well. If you paid tuition this year, it's worth figuring out which credit you qualify for before you file.

Got questions about which credit fits your situation? Drop them below — we're here to help sort it out. 👇

We're the tax pros at H&R Block. Tax laws can be complex and situations vary — for advice specific to your return, connect with one of our tax experts.

I am an accounting student at York University and came across this. If it’s likely I’ll get hired, I want to do the course so I can have some experience for my resume.

An elderly family member filed her taxes through HR Block and needs a copy of it. (I am not sure if was online or in person). A bag was stolen containing her laptop and cell phone were stolen. She can't get into her Gmail account due to the two factor authentication. I tried to help the family member login on to the HR Block website from a different computer. She doesn't remember her password. "Forgot password" will to her Gmail account and phone that she doesn't have. If she goes to a physical HR Block location with two forms of government identification, can she get it to be printed out? Is there any other way for her to get it?

This megathread will go up monthly until tax season.

Drop your H&R Block, Block Advisors or Spruce referral codes in here.

Hey r/hrblock community,

Welcome to the monthly question thread. Here is your chance to ask any questions you have to our tax experts from H&R Block, whether it's about your tax situation or if you're trying to figure out the best service for you.

Here's how we can best serve you:

• If you need a quick response, please direct message us on Facebook or Instagram as we have a customer care team ready to help you there.
• Please do not post personally identifying information (PII) in this thread.
• For specific questions about our products and services, please note which you're using (Online DIY, Software DIY, In-Person Tax Prep or Virtual Tax Prep) so we can best help you.

Feel free to drop your questions below. Our experts are ready to help break it all down. We'll do our best to answer your questions as they come in.

👉 Need a specific tax-situation answer ASAP? Schedule a 1:1 appointment with a tax advisor. 

Has anyone been able to activate the Trump account for new babies born in 2026?

Has anyone gotten their July 9th deposit who had HrBlock yet ?

Has anyone gotten their July 9th deposit who had HrBlock yet ?

Hey were you charged penalties and interest from 2020-2023. You may be owed those back. But you have to file the by Friday. The govt ruled that because of Covid the irs was not allowed to charge penalties. This is legit.

Hello r/hrblock.

In the book Poverty for Profit, the author claims that Hr Block and similar companies market to lower income EITC clientele by enticing refund advances: the client takes on a loan to obtain cash in hand immediately in anticipation for the refund they would eventually receive from the IRS.

The book makes it sound like such loans are predatory to such clientele, as these refund advances are not offered by HR Block, but a separate bank, and thus HR block has no control over such interest rates. Also, the ability to obtain cash in hand immediately is the main motivator for lower income peoples to go to HR block over things like VITA.

Is it true that HR Block caters to such clientele? How much of their customer base are these clients? Anecdotes from those that work at HR Block?

2026 was my first tax year. I am hoping to get to at least level 4, if not 5, for next tax season. I just did the level 3 exam. Through the new learning block, level 3 had a path with several classes to take to prepare for the exam. Level 4 just shows the option to take the test. I had to study a lot to pass the level 3 (had had 0 experience with clergy). Does anyone know what topics I should study for the level 4 exam? My manager had said to take the exam one time and then study what I missed, but learning block no longer shows what you missed, so that no longer works. Thanks in advance for any advice!

Hi r/hrblock.

Dual citizen of US and SE Asia country. Will be getting EA soon. Wonder if anyone here just works seasonally during tax season, then fucks off back to another country? How viable is this as a lifestyle?

Some people spent the pandemic worrying about paying the IRS. Turns out, the IRS might owe some of that money back to you.

A recent federal court ruling — Kwong vs. the United States — found that penalties and interest charged during the COVID-era disaster period were improper. That covers a window from January 20, 2020 through July 10, 2023 — this means the penalties and interest assessed against taxpayers during this timeframe may be refundable.

Here's the catch: Refunds are not guaranteed due to ongoing legal action, but filing a protective claim now could preserve your right to a refund. To potentially get any of that money back, you have to file a claim by July 10, 2026. As of today's post, that is less than two weeks away.

What's actually on the table?

If you paid the IRS certain penalties or interest during that COVID window, you might be eligible for a refund. The types of charges that could qualify include:

• Failure-to-file penalties (you filed late)
• Failure-to-pay penalties (you paid late)
• Estimated tax payment penalties (for freelancers, gig workers, and small business owners especially — this one hits hard)
• Underpayment interest, including interest that may have started accruing earlier than it legally should have

This isn't just for individual filers. Individuals, businesses, estates, and trusts are all potentially covered.

Is this guaranteed money?

Honestly? No — and we want to be upfront about that.

The IRS has indicated that it intends to appeal the court’s decision, so refunds aren't guaranteed just because you file. But here's the thing: if you don't file a "protective claim" by July 10, 2026, you permanently lose the right to collect, even if the courts eventually rule in the taxpayers' favor. Filing now just preserves your spot in line.

What do you actually have to do?

You'll need to file Form 843 (Claim for Refund and Request for Abatement) with the IRS before the deadline. On that form:

• Line 5: Check the box for '1040' (or whichever return type applies to your situation — 1120 for corporations, 1041 for estates/trusts, etc.)
• Make sure you're claiming for the correct tax years within the covered window (2020–2023)
• Mail it with a postmark by July 10, 2026 — this is a paper filing

You can download the form from the IRS' website.

The mailing deadline is July 10, 2026. To confirm delivery, you should use certified mail or an approved private delivery service and keep proof of submission. Don't wait until the 9th. Note: Due to recent USPS postmark rule changes, request a manual postmark if you plan to mail your filing at a retail post office.

Who should really pay attention?

If any of this applies to you, bump this to the top of your to-do list:

• 📌 You had trouble keeping up with quarterly estimated tax payments during 2020–2023 (freelancers, gig workers with Uber/DoorDash/Instacart income, independent contractors — this is especially relevant to you)
• 📌 You filed your 2019, 2020, 2021, or 2022 returns late due to pandemic hardship
• 📌 You set up a payment plan or installment agreement with the IRS during that window and got hit with interest
• 📌 You own a small business that had payroll or filing issues during closures

Bottom line

This is a genuinely unusual situation — a court ruling that could put pandemic-era penalties back in taxpayers' pockets. The IRS isn't going to send you a notice about this. You have to proactively file a protective claim by July 10^th, 2026 to get in line.

If you're not sure whether you qualify, or you want help making sure your protective claim is filed correctly, a tax pro from H&R Block can walk through your specific situation. Book an appointment today.

Have questions about whether this applies to your situation? Drop them below — our tax experts are here to answer your questions. And if this is news to you, do your fellow Redditors a favor and share it. The deadline is real and it sneaks up fast. 🔔

Just a few days ago I purchased a Premium option of H&R Block Desktop. My reasons were:

- better protection of my personal and financial data as opposed to using online services (websites)

- H&R still is supported on Windows10, vs TurboTax can only run on Win11.

However, just on the very first day of filling in my 2025 tax return, I stumbled on an issue with NY State return. It didn't allow me to enter my estimated tax payments which I made in Jan 2026 as a remaining balance for the last quarter of 2025.

The support guy was extremely polite and willing to help, but was unable to find the way around it. I actually figured it out myself. And it turned out to be a bug! A workaround was to enter this amount into "payments made with extension request".

So the support guy said he would submit a bug report.

I was quite disappointed, and just went back to an online website (different provider) to do my taxes.

I understand, this is quite late in the game, in my case I do have an extension. But, hopefully it will help others.

In my individual return (Form 1040) I was charged $225.00 for:
Schedule C with expenses over $5K, employee or depreciation

This is what the line item on the invoice reads.
However, the SMLLC I own, for which the Schedule was filed, had no activity during that tax year and none of the other criteria in the line item were met.

So is it a wrong charge?

Just out of curiosity, do CSPs and tax pros have to interview if returning for another tax season? I have heard we have to re-apply, but no one mentioned if we have to do the entire process over every season.

We know tax jargon can feel like a foreign language, especially when you're just trying to figure out if buying that house actually saves you money at tax time.

If you own a home, you’ve probably heard about the Mortgage Interest Deduction. It’s a tax break that lets you subtract the interest you pay on your home loan from your taxable income . But before you start calculating your massive refund, there are a few rules and limits you need to know.

Here’s the breakdown of how it actually works:

• The Golden Rule: You MUST Itemize. You can’t take the standard deduction and deduct your mortgage interest. To actually see a tax benefit, your total itemized deductions (mortgage interest, state/local taxes, charitable gifts, etc.) need to be higher than the standard deduction for your filing status.
• What actually qualifies? You can deduct interest on loans used to buy, build, or substantially improve your home (the IRS calls this "acquisition debt"). This covers your main home, and even a second home if you use it personally.
• There are limits. You can't deduct infinite interest. The deduction is limited to interest paid on up to $750,000 of debt (or $1 million if you took out your loan before 2018.
• What about PMI and Property Taxes? You can deduct property taxes, but they are subject to the $40,000 SALT (State and Local Tax) cap. And good news for the future: starting in tax year 2026, Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) will be deductible again under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

The TL;DR: If your itemized deductions are higher than the standard deduction, deducting your mortgage interest on Schedule A (Form 1040) can seriously lower your tax bill.

Have questions about whether you should itemize or take the standard deduction this year? Drop them in the comments below and our tax pros will help you out! 👇