FTB sent refund check for 2011 during audit; Does this really mean that whole audit is over for 2011?
Not it doesn't, and yes they can. If the audit is closed, you should have received invitation to attend the closing conference, and get the summary of decisions from that meeting in writing. I suggest you check with your tax representative about this refund check before cashing it.
Having a large state return also means that there is a potential income tax liability created at the federal level for the following year, as the situation resulted from the deduction of more on one's federal return than should have been deducted. The state refund is treated as federal income in the year it is refunded. http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tips/is-my-state-tax-refund-taxable-and-why-90/ Assuming the US, if a human assessor audited you, could you show a future profit motive or will they conclude you are expensing a hobby? If you answer yes, you are likely to only be deducting limited expenses this year, carrying forward losses to your profitable years.  See the examples in pub 535: http://www.irs.gov/publications/p535/ch01.html#en_US_2014_publink1000208633 It's my understanding that the grace period is only for filing - the actual procedure/purchase must be performed CY2011 to be paid out from the 2011 FSA money, etc. Well, if you were a business, and your food and rent and travel expenses were business expenses, and you paid out less money than you earned, you *would* get a refund.  If you can prove that an expense is tax deductible, then that's just what it is.  For businesses, a net operating loss is tax deductible. Not correct. First - when you say they don't tax the reimbursement, they are classifying it in a way that makes it taxable to you (just not withholding tax at that time).  In effect, they are under-withholding, if these reimbursement are high enough, you'll have not just a tax bill, but penalties for not paying enough all year.  My reimbursements do not produce any kind of pay stub, they are a direct deposit, and are not added to my income, not as they occur, nor at year end on W2.  Have you asked them why they handle it this way? It's wrong, and it's costing you. "It is not allowed to pay refunds to anyone other than the taxpayer. This is due to various tax return fraud schemes that were running around. Banks are required to enforce this. If the direct deposit is denied, a check will be issued. In her name, obviously. What she does with it when she gets it is her business - but I believe that tax refund checks may not be just ""endorsed"", the bank will likely want to see her when you deposit it to your account, even if it is endorsed. For the same reason." Your argument with elvendude happened because your comment makes it appear that you think that if a business has less cash at the end of a year than at the beginning, the business does not need to pay taxes. elvendude is trying to show you that this isn't true. I am no expert on the situation nor do I pretend to act like one, but, as a business owner, allow me to give you my personal opinion. Option 3 is closest to what you want. Why? Well: This way, you have both the record of everything that was done, and also IRS can see exactly what happened. Another suggestion would be to ask the GnuCash maintainers and community directly. You can have a chat with them on their IRC channel #gnucash, send them an email, maybe find the answer in the documentation or wiki. Popular software apps usually have both support people and a helpful community, so if the above method is in any way inconvenient for you, you can give this one a try. Hope this helps! Robert Here is an article that claims to know something about it. Here are a selection of quotes: The IRS says there are several ways a return can be selected for audit and the first is via the agency's computer-scoring system known as Discriminant Information Function, or DIF. The IRS evaluates tax returns based on IRS formulas, and DIF is based on deductions, credits and exemptions with norms for taxpayers in each of the income brackets. The actual scoring formula to determine which tax returns are most likely to be in error is a closely guarded secret. But Nath, a tax attorney in the Washington, D.C., area, says it's no mystery the system is designed to screen for returns that could put more money in the government Treasury. So what is likely to trigger a discriminant information function red flag? The money in the checking account was already taxed. It was income this year or last, or a gift from somebody, or earned interest that will be taxed. If it was a deductible IRA you would declare it next April and get a refund from the government. um, yes. the point of an audit is verification. you could have claimed to have bought fax machines and pocketed the money, and giving them a list claiming you had bought 5. without them physically inspecting, how would they know the difference?  its amazing your level of distrust for government yet trust of others "I had the same thing happen to me in late 2010.  I contacted the big company's bored-sounding payroll department - after wading through the phone menu, and more than one ""all of our operators are busy, please call back later <click>"" - and told them I had this extra money.  The guy in India told me that my petition would be investigated and that a ticket would be opened.  I heard nothing for a couple of weeks.  I followed up with payroll.  They said that my petition investigation had determined that I did indeed get paid extra, and they'd be sending me a letter demanding the overpayment. I received no letter, and a month later (January 2011) I got a W-2 with the paycheck included on it.  I decided that I'd spent enough of my own time and effort on it, and if they wanted it back, the ball was in their court.  I changed my bank account numbers to prevent them from auto-debiting my account, and spent the money as if it was mine.   I have not heard anything about it since then. From what I was able to determine, once I'd made a good-faith effort to return it, I was in the clear. And for what it's worth, it's not like you can just ""return"" it.  Among other things: I certainly wasn't just going to mail the company a check and hope for the best." "Now today I received another refund in the same amount for the same property. What can legally happen if I cash it? Legally the money is not yours. The best course for you is to return the check via certified mail, notifying them that you were already paid. Just because someone made an error, does not mean the money belongs to you. If you don't and rather cash the check; sooner or later depending on the amount, it would be found out by the company as part of reconciliation/audit; they will/can then demand the same back from you.  It is up to the company to decide if simply refund is sufficient; or refund plus some interest or start a legal proceeding against you as ""intentional theft""." To be to ally fair, the audit that is done on the Fed every year does not include foreign bailouts, foreign swaps, gold reserves and their leasing or sales, it does not include loans to Primary Dealer Banks. In fact it doesn't include anything that would let us see the extent or type of transactions that are taking place. Ironically, anyone can say anything, but it doesn't make it true. In normal times, the IRS can audit you for 3 years, or up to 6 for certain cases of fraud - From the IRS site -  How far back can the IRS go to audit my return? Generally, the IRS can   include returns filed within the last three years in an audit. If we   identify a substantial error, we may add additional years. We usually   don’t go back more than the last six years. HSA spending is reported each year, just like any Schedule A deductions. Each year, I have my charitable receipts, and they are not sent in. They are there in case of audit. I don't need to save them forever, nor does one need their medical bills forever. 3 years. 6 if you wish to be paranoid. The EOBs should be enough.  The HSA is unique in that you deposit pretax dollars (like a traditional IRA or 401(k)) yet withdrawals for qualified expenses come out tax free (like a Roth).  In my opinion, as long as your medical plan qualifies you for an HSA, I'd maximize its use. The older you get, the more bills you'll have, and at some point, you'll be grateful to your younger self that you did this.