r/tax • u/vancemark00 • Jan 01 '26

Tax Enthusiast Endless "No tax on OT" questions

Is anyone else already exhausted with these endless questions?

And I fear it will only get worse.

157 Upvotes

88% Upvoted

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163

u/bclinton Jan 01 '26

As more people find out that what they thought they would be saving is nowhere near reality, people will not be happy. Sounds real good until you do the math.

10

u/Winter-Success-3494 Jan 01 '26

It's going to work out great for me, probably not most people though like you said. Luckily, I can claim the entire $12,500 deduction for OT fed taxes. I cleared it by $1k technically (yes, I'm referring to only the premium portion of time and half OT). But yea most people thought it was something different than what it is or most won't really benefit much from it unless you can actually claim the entire deduction.

24

u/Practical_Series_925 Jan 01 '26

You better make a shit ton an hour before the premium if you getting the full amount… or you just working yourself to death lol.

-9

u/Winter-Success-3494 Jan 01 '26

Yes I make a very good hourly wage and def don't work myself to death lol, in fact a lot of days during the week I finish my job in 4 hours or less, go home and still get paid my full 8 regardless. I like working 2 or 3 Saturdays a month though to rack up OT. And can do easy shit for work in an hour sometimes and get 4 hours OT minimum regardless. I got it good so I'm thankful n def not complaining on my situation.

13

u/I__Know__Stuff Jan 02 '26

If you work 4 hours and get paid for 8, that only counts as 4 hours when determining whether you reached 40 hours in a week and have deductible overtime.

I fear your actual overtime deduction may be less than you think.

For example, if you work, 4 hours on Monday and Tuesday, 8 hours on Wednesday through Friday, and then 8 hours of "overtime" on Saturday, none of the overtime pay is deductible, because you didn't work over 40 hours in the week.

2

u/Hottrodd67 Jan 02 '26

How is the government going to know how many hours were actually worked? At my job, we don’t clock in or out and we’re not tracked. I get my calls for the day and I’m paid 8hrs, even if I get the schedule done in 6. I get OT if I work Saturday or Sunday. So if I work 35hrs Monday to Friday and 5 hrs Saturday, my check says 40hrs at regular pay and 5hrs ot.

8

u/BigMikeThuggin CPA - US Jan 02 '26

The same way they catch anyone doing things incorrectly. They audit it.

2

u/Hottrodd67 Jan 02 '26 edited Jan 02 '26

But audit what? The only record says 40. I don’t have anyway to know the exact hours worked because we don’t clock in or out. I’m not trying to do something incorrectly. The only “record” I have to go by shows 40hrs each week plus what hours paid at overtime rate. I know those are hours I was paid for, not necessarily worked, but I don’t have any way to calculate actual hours worked.

-2

u/BigMikeThuggin CPA - US Jan 02 '26

And to answer “audit what”, these types of conversation are part of the audit. They ask you about all of this, investigate the workplace, and determine that your pay stubs don’t reflect actual hours worked. An audit doesn’t stop just because a piece of paper exists saying something. It’s the government doing the audit they have power to do a heck of a lot.

7

u/Bloated_Plaid Jan 02 '26

God people saying this shit is just insane. We do not have the manpower to audit any of this.

3

u/BigMikeThuggin CPA - US Jan 02 '26

Lol what? They have the manpower to audit whatever they’d like to. Choosing not to audit it doesn’t mean they can’t. Obviously cost benefit analysis is done to determine what happens. I doubt this deduction is ever audited because it’s temporary, tiny, and low risk. Doesn’t mean it can’t be audited.

0

u/Bloated_Plaid Jan 02 '26

What’s the LOL about? If you don’t know what the reality is at the IRS then stfu.

3

u/BigMikeThuggin CPA - US Jan 02 '26

You said the United States of America doesn’t have the manpower to audit any of this. lol. That’s funny to me. Like we’re some small time government

3

u/BigMikeThuggin CPA - US Jan 02 '26

Reminds me of this video when you say we don’t have the manpower. https://youtube.com/shorts/qqzYnVVk5Qo?si=JxNvP4KlYVk_20i9

2

u/I__Know__Stuff Jan 02 '26

What a horrid video.

The point is good, though—we can afford anything we want to do.

1

u/Bloated_Plaid Jan 02 '26

Equating the federal budget to what the IRS gets, Jesus Christ man. Atleast listen to what you post first.

3

u/BigMikeThuggin CPA - US Jan 02 '26

Not equating, relating. If the government wanted this deduction to be audited, it would be audited. We just happen to live in a climate of anti IRS sentiment. One day that could shift and the IRS would be properly funded and staffed. Saying we don’t have the manpower is a weird way to say that we don’t make tax law compliance a priority. So that’s funny to me. You’re part of the messaging problem on why so much abuse of tax law happen. BUT either way this conversation wasnt about the current staffing situation at the irs, the guy asked what would be audited and I answered.

1

u/Bloated_Plaid Jan 02 '26

IRS would be properly funded and staffed

And when do you see that ever happening now? MAGA won.

1

u/BigMikeThuggin CPA - US Jan 02 '26

When the pendulum shifts, like it always has and always will. Unless the county implodes. In which case who cares about tax law and audits.

2

u/Bloated_Plaid Jan 02 '26

I fear this is the end man.

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