Bill, thanks for your input. Yes, I said I "volunteered" to teach English, but I guess I used that semantic distinction only because the Spanish school calls us volunteers. I could just as easily have said I "bartered" teaching English, because that's what I did. I would not have done it if not for the room and board in a very nice hotel in a beautiful part of Spain. It was hard work tutoring for long days, sometimes into the evening, most days. Staying there for free, and eating excellent food in a top notch restaurant for free, was the "profit" motive. I exchanged a service in exchange for their accommodations.
In any case, I'm not so sure I would say that a profit motive is the test for whether volunteering is taxable. From the IRS: "...income or reimbursements you receive for volunteering — such as stipends, education awards, bonuses and allowances — may be considered taxable income..."
(<a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="
https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-utl/oc_aug_volunteers_pay_taxes_072911_02.pdf">https://www.irs.gov/pub/i...And the IRS says this about bartering: "Bartering is the trading of one product or service for another. Usually there is no exchange of cash. The IRS reminds all taxpayers that the fair market value of property or services received through a barter is taxable..." income<a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="
https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/four-things-you-should-know-if-you-barter">https://www.irs.gov/newsroom...> ."
But I think we're all trying to think this through as we go along, lacking iron-clad definitive information, so I thank you (and the others) for taking the time to contribute your viewpoint, Bill. Maybe one day the IRS will simplify and then people like me can stop biting their nails over whether they're doing the right thing.
The last thing I want to do is run afoul of the IRS/SSA rules as I don't want to risk SS benefits being canceled after I start receiving them (thank you, TomD8). I'm sure it's possible to carelessly overstate income to earn SS credits, or even purposely"defraud" the SSA. That's ***exactly*** what I'm trying to avoid by gathering information on the various activities I mentioned in my original question that I *think* qualify as bartering, and doing some thorough tax planning. Hence my question on this board.
I've also talked to two tax accountants who couldn't give me definitive answers while saying basically, just do what you think is right and you'll find out if and when you ever get audited. Needless to say, that's not good enough.
TomD8, I wasn't aware of that email address for the IRS (and I've done a lot of digging!). I tried to call them a few weeks ago, but apparently they don't take phone calls any more. I'll email them my questions now that I have that address and consider their answers along with those here. Thanks.
