Tax Exam Prep

Ran Chen, EA, CFP®
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Tax Exam Prep is a daily podcast designed to help future tax professionals pass their tax certification and licensing exams with clarity and confidence. Built and operated by OpenExamPrep, this podcast breaks down major tax exams into focused, easy-to-digest episodes covering the CPA & Enrolled Agent (EA) Exam, including Part 1 (Individuals), Part 2 (Businesses), and Part 3 (Representation, Practices, and Procedures). Each episode targets one key tax concept, common exam trap, or high-frequency test topic—making it ideal for studying during commutes, workouts, or short study sessions. Created by Ran Chen, EA, CFP®, a financial professional and exam specialist who has personally passed multiple professional licensing exams, Tax Exam Prep was developed from firsthand experience with how complex—and often poorly explained—tax exam material can be. The goal is simple: make tax exam preparation clearer, more accessible, and more effective through structured explanations and modern learning tools. Whether you’re preparing for the EA Exam, transitioning into a tax career, or reviewing before test day, this podcast is designed to guide you step by step—one concept at a time. Free practice tools, AI-powered explanations, and additional exam prep resources are available at: https://open-exam-prep.com/

  1. 9H AGO

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 46, Retirement Savings Contributions Credit

    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • The Saver's Credit is a non-refundable credit with a maximum of $1,000 for single filers and $2,000 for married couples filing jointly. • Eligibility requires being age 18 or older, not being a dependent, and not being a full-time student for five or more months. • The credit is calculated on the first $2,000 of retirement contributions per person ($4,000 for a joint return), not the total contribution amount. • The credit percentage (50%, 20%, or 10%) is strictly determined by the taxpayer's AGI and filing status, which must be referenced carefully. • A critical exam trap is reducing qualifying contributions by any recent retirement plan distributions taken by the taxpayer. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

    4 min

  2. 1D AGO

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 45, Education Credits - Lifetime Learning Credit

    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • The Lifetime Learning Credit is capped at $2,000 per tax return, not per student. • Qualified expenses are strictly limited to tuition and fees required for enrollment, differing from other education credits. • The LLC is a non-refundable credit, meaning it can only reduce tax liability to zero and no portion is paid out as a refund. • Unlike the AOTC, the LLC can be claimed for an unlimited number of years, making it suitable for graduate or professional development courses. • Taxpayers cannot claim both the LLC and the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC) for the same student in the same tax year. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

    3 min

  3. 2D AGO

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 44, Education Credits - American Opportunity Credit

    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • The AOTC is worth up to $2,500 per student, calculated as 100% of the first $2,000 and 25% of the next $2,000 in expenses. • Qualified expenses include tuition, fees, and required course materials, but specifically exclude room, board, and transportation. • The credit is only available for a student's first four years of post-secondary education and they must be enrolled at least half-time. • If a student is a dependent, only the taxpayer who claims them can receive the AOTC, regardless of who paid the expenses. • Up to $1,000 (40%) of the AOTC is refundable, meaning a taxpayer can receive it even if they owe no tax. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

    3 min

  4. 3D AGO

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 43, Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)

    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • EITC is the largest refundable tax credit, providing a refund even with zero tax liability. • The 2025 investment income limit is a strict $11,950 cliff; exceeding it by one dollar means zero credit. • A qualifying child must meet four specific tests: Relationship, Age, Residency, and Joint Return (R-A-R-J). • Taxpayers must satisfy separate limits for both their earned income and their Adjusted Gross Income (AGI). • Taxpayers without a qualifying child can be eligible, but they must be between the ages of 25 and 65. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

    3 min

  5. 4D AGO

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 42, Child and Dependent Care Credit

    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • A qualifying child must be under age 13; expenses stop qualifying on their 13th birthday. • Expenses must be for care, not education; overnight camps and school tuition are common non-qualifying examples. • The credit is limited by the lower of the two spouses' earned incomes. • A non-working student or disabled spouse is deemed to have earned income of $250 or $500 per month. • The maximum expenses used for the credit are $3,000 for one qualifying person and $6,000 for two or more. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

    3 min

  6. 5D AGO

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 41, Child Tax Credit and Additional Child Tax Credit

    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • The Child Tax Credit for 2025 increases to $2,200 per child under the One Big Beautiful Bill. • How to apply the "CARES" mnemonic to determine if a child is a qualifying child for the credit. • How the credit is reduced by $50 for every $1,000 of income over the $200,000 (Single) or $400,000 (MFJ) thresholds. • The rules for the refundable Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC), which is capped at $1,700 per child. • That a taxpayer must have at least $2,500 in earned income to claim the refundable portion of the credit. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

    3 min

  7. 6D AGO

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 40, QBI Deduction - Limitations and Phase-Outs

    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • The critical 2025 QBI income thresholds ($197,300 Single / $394,600 MFJ) that trigger the complex limitations. • How the QBI deduction for a Specified Service Trade or Business (SSTB) is completely eliminated if taxable income exceeds the phase-out range. • The two-part calculation for the W-2 wage and unadjusted basis of qualified property (UBIA) limitation for taxpayers above the threshold. • The common exam trap of choosing the lesser of the 20% QBI calculation and the greater of the wage/property limitation formulas. • The conceptual purpose of the aggregation rule, which allows combining businesses to potentially increase the QBI deduction. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

    2 min

  8. FEB 23

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 39, Qualified Business Income (QBI) Deduction

    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • How to calculate the basic Qualified Business Income (QBI) deduction. • The critical 'lesser of' limitation that determines the final deduction amount. • Why taxable income before the QBI deduction is a key figure in the calculation. • The specific role of net capital gains in reducing the taxable income limitation. • A common exam trap where test-takers forget to apply the taxable income limitation. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

    4 min
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About

Tax Exam Prep is a daily podcast designed to help future tax professionals pass their tax certification and licensing exams with clarity and confidence. Built and operated by OpenExamPrep, this podcast breaks down major tax exams into focused, easy-to-digest episodes covering the CPA & Enrolled Agent (EA) Exam, including Part 1 (Individuals), Part 2 (Businesses), and Part 3 (Representation, Practices, and Procedures). Each episode targets one key tax concept, common exam trap, or high-frequency test topic—making it ideal for studying during commutes, workouts, or short study sessions. Created by Ran Chen, EA, CFP®, a financial professional and exam specialist who has personally passed multiple professional licensing exams, Tax Exam Prep was developed from firsthand experience with how complex—and often poorly explained—tax exam material can be. The goal is simple: make tax exam preparation clearer, more accessible, and more effective through structured explanations and modern learning tools. Whether you’re preparing for the EA Exam, transitioning into a tax career, or reviewing before test day, this podcast is designed to guide you step by step—one concept at a time. Free practice tools, AI-powered explanations, and additional exam prep resources are available at: https://open-exam-prep.com/

Information

  • Creator
    Ran Chen, EA, CFP®
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    46
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 Ran Chen, EA, CFP®
  • Show Website
    Tax Exam Prep

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