Another kick in the face from LL

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Sudane Erato
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Another kick in the face from LL

Post by Sudane Erato »

https://community.secondlife.com/blogs/ ... inden-lab/

Yet once again Linden Lab, the owners of Second Life, kicks its customers in the face. I am absolutely fuming, no... REALLY angry..., about this latest development. That they would suddenly announce issuing 1099s to all residents who collect more that US$20,000 in L$ transactions... never having done this before... with no advanced notice (they are issuing them for 2018) is the height of disdain for its customers.

Nothing wrong with issuing 1099s. Its done throughout the country by payers who pay money to others. But it assumes that those others are operating a business (we ARE!) and are tracking the business expenses so they can fairly and accurately file income tax returns which properly present BOTH income AND expenses to the IRS... you are, of course, taxed on the profit, not the income.

Did LL let us know at the beginning of 2018 that they were planning to file 1099s for the year? No. They make a sudden announcement now that they are filing this info with the IRS. So now, unless we've been carefully recording expenses throughout the year, we are stuck. A big chunk of income reported to the IRS, and no way to document the expenses which we incurred in generating that income.

With the CDS, there's no problem... we are in fact very well documented since our $$ founding in 2005. But my records in New England are much more sparse, meant only to calculate tier discounts for my EMs. I'm really very angry. Indeed, I'm a bookkeeper in RL, so I'll figure out a way to make this work. But consider the hundreds, and probably thousands, of residents who run businesses here, who are not bookkeepers... who really ARE shafted.

Once again, LL announces that its customers can go to hell.

I'll be happy to talk more about this sad development with anyone who is confused and mystified by my opinion.

Sudane...................

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Re: Another kick in the face from LL

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Re: Another kick in the face from LL

Post by Sylvia Tamalyn »

I read the thread and it looks like a bit of a misunderstanding that's all sorted now. :)

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Re: Another kick in the face from LL

Post by Sudane Erato »

Certainly not sorted out that I can see, scanning through the whole thread. The idea of sending 1099s for L$ transactions is completely new (the person who said that she had to provide tax info years ago also is the one who claims that what LL means is 1099s for the "process credit" transactions, which are not L$ sales at all). I've been in SL for many years now, and probably for 10 years at least have had L$ transactions exceeding US$20,000 per year. Rudeen (i.e. the CDS) alone "sells" over US$1000/month, and SLNE has over twice the volume of CDS. But I don't take $$ out of SL, i.e. "process credits". I've never been contacted to provide my tax information.

So probably the bottom line is to see what LL does now. At the very least, we can see that LL is a really terrible communicator.

And I apologize. This is a very esoteric issue, probably, for anyone other than those of us who worry about money and taxes. As I've mentioned, I'll be fine. My profession is bookkeeper! But there are hundreds and maybe thousands of residents who might fall into this new category who are not familiar with these issues, and as with anyone dealing with the IRS or its equivalents in other countries, not being money professionals puts us at a severe disadvantage. It's really, at bottom, an issue of fairness. About which LL has a proven track record of dismal failure.

Sudane.............

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Re: Another kick in the face from LL

Post by Sylvia Tamalyn »

Ah, the last time I looked at the thread, it had seemed resolved as referring only to those who make a profit selling lindens. I see you all started debating again since I posted here! I do hope LL will offer a more complete explanation since I would assume this is all based on some tax law, and I have read plenty of complaints about tax changes for this year, so yet another bad change wouldn't surprise me in the least.

*offers Sudane some ouzo*

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Re: Another kick in the face from LL

Post by Sudane Erato »

Sylvia Tamalyn wrote: Tue Feb 05, 2019 4:52 pm

*offers Sudane some ouzo*

Accepted! :)

And do I recall that you're an attorney? In which case, you'd totally understand the issues at stake!

Sudane..........................

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Re: Another kick in the face from LL

Post by Sylvia Tamalyn »

I am, though thankfully not an expert on tax law... I think I'd lose my mind! :lol:

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