Self Employment Tax Lawyers in Natchitoches

In Natchitoches, Louisiana, some taxes are placed on employees, and deducted from their paychecks. Most people are aware of the Medicare and Social Security taxes - which fund those two programs by taking a small percentage of every paycheck an employee receives.

It's extremely important to know that, if you are self-employed, you still have to pay those taxes, and it's also up to you to figure out clearly how much you owe, to ensure that you don't pay more or less than you are obligated to.

In most cases, employers make all the necessary calculations to determine how much needs to be deducted from an employee's check to pay these taxes. It's normally very simple, and any decent payroll software can automate this process. But the self-employed are accountable for figuring this out for themselves, or hiring an accountant to do it.

Self-Employment tax obligations in Natchitoches, Louisiana

If you primarily work as an independent contractor, or are the owner of a sole proprietorship, you have to pay what's typically referred to as the "self-employment tax," if your annual income from self-employment is over .

For normal employees, Social Security and Medicare payments are made in equal parts by the employee and employer. This basically means that every employee's contribution to his or her future Medicare and Social Security benefits is matched by the employer.

However, the self-employed in Natchitoches, Louisiana are responsible for making the employer AND employee contributions to those programs, basically doubling what they would have to pay if they were employed by someone else.

The self-employment tax rate is 15.3% of all self-employment income, assuming your income from self-employment exceeds per year in Natchitoches, Louisiana. But half of your self-employment tax liability can be deducted from your income tax. This results in a slightly lower income tax bill, which partially offsets this additional tax burden. It essentially means that the self-employment tax only applies to 92% of your income, as opposed to all of it. This means that your effective self-employment tax rate is about 14%, as opposed to over 15%.

Can a Natchitoches, Louisiana Tax Attorney Help?

If you are self-employed in Natchitoches, it's necessary that you keep good records of your income and expenses, because a tax attorney will only be able to assist you to the extent that you help yourself.

If you have any difficulty calculating your self-employment tax liability, an accomplished Natchitoches, Louisiana tax attorney would probably have very little trouble helping you figure it out. A brilliant lawyer can also give you practical legal advice, which can help you avoid more severe tax law issues in the future, by dealing with them before they become problematic.