According to the IRS, a sole proprietor or independent contractor, has to file an income tax return if net earnings from self-employment were $400 or more in the year.
Sole proprietorships, partnerships, S corporations, and Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) do not pay income taxes. Unless a specific election is made by a small business to be taxed as a C corporation, the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) considers these various entity types to be “pass-through” entities.
When you have a side hustle, the IRS has different rules for you. Technically, if you earn more than $600 in a calendar year, you have to report that income on your taxes. Most likely, the company you're side hustling for will send you a taxable income form to report (usually a 1099-K or 1099-MISC).
The IRS will allow you to leave profits in your corporation, up to a limit: Most corporations can safely keep a total of $250,000 (at any one time) in the corporation without facing tax penalties (some professional corporations may not retain more than $150,000).
One of the best ways to reduce taxes for your small business is by hiring a family member. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) allows for a variety of options, all with the potential benefit of sheltering income from taxes. You can even hire your children.
If you're self-employed and you use your cellphone for business, you can claim the business use of your phone as a tax deduction. If 30 percent of your time on the phone is spent on business, you could legitimately deduct 30 percent of your phone bill.
An LLC with multiple owners can't choose to be taxed as a sole proprietor, for instance. The IRS will automatically tax an LLC as a partnership if it has more than one owner. You can learn more about rules for taxing LLCs from the IRS backgrounder on Form 3402, covering taxation of LLCs.
Earn less than $75,000? You may pay nothing in federal income taxes for 2021. At least half of taxpayers have income under $75,000, according to the most recent data available. The latest round of Covid stimulus checks, as well as more generous tax credits, are the main drivers of lower taxes for some households.
Federal law requires a person to report cash transactions of more than $10,000 to the IRS.
Single filing status: $12,550 if under age 65. $14,250 if age 65 or older.
Forms You'll Need To File for Your Side Hustle Income
In addition to Form 1040, to which all your income and deductions flow, you'll need to file a Schedule C for your side gig business. You'll also need to file Form SE to report your self-employment taxes.
If you fail to report all your cash income, you might be on the hook for penalties. These amount to a 50% penalty on the late FICA taxes, and up to 25% on late income taxes — plus any additional interest. Of course, these penalties are only assessed if you actually owe tax.
If you don't file your tax return by the deadline (provided you haven't filed for an extension), the penalty is 5% of the unpaid tax for each month that return is late. If you don't pay your owed tax on time, the standard penalty is 0.5% of the unpaid tax amount for each month it remains unpaid.
If you earn less than $10,000 per year, you don't have to file a tax return. However, you won't receive an Earned-Income Tax Credit refund unless you do file.
Income under $500. —A single person with less than $500 income should file a return to get a refund if tax was withheld. A married person with less than $500 income should always file a joint return with husband or wife to get the lesser tax or larger refund for the couple.
If an employer is caught paying cash in hand, you are putting yourself at risk of substantial fines. Employees who accept cash in hand payments risk losing employment rights such as Statutory Maternity Pay and Statutory Sick Pay and could be called upon to pay the back-dated Tax and National Insurance Contributions.
Every transaction in a business must be recorded, and all income, including cash income, must be reported to the IRS and taxes must be paid on that income. If your business accepts cash in payment for goods or services, you must have some way to record that cash payment.
You don't need any proof of your income to file your tax return, but State or IRS can send a notice of intent to audit you. The best way to prove your cash income is your accounting records. Any time when you receive the money you can deposit cash into your bank account.
You can't avoid self-employment taxes entirely, but forming a corporation or an LLC could save you thousands of dollars every year. If you form an LLC, people can only sue you for its assets, while your personal assets stay protected. You can have your LLC taxed as an S Corporation to avoid self-employment taxes.
But even though an inactive LLC has no income or expenses for a year, it might still be required to file a federal income tax return. LLC tax filing requirements depend on the way the LLC is taxed. An LLC may be disregarded as an entity for tax purposes, or it may be taxed as a partnership or a corporation.
Individuals who own a business or are self-employed and use their vehicle for business may deduct car expenses on their tax return. If a taxpayer uses the car for both business and personal purposes, the expenses must be split. The deduction is based on the portion of mileage used for business.
If you drive a car for both personal and business reasons, you may deduct your insurance costs from your taxes for the percentage of the time you use your car for business. If half the time you use your car for business, then you may deduct 50% of the yearly auto insurance costs on your taxes.
You have the option to deduct internet and phone bills incurred while conducting business, such as while working from your home office. If you use either service for both work and personal use, you should only deduct the portion associated with your business.