Self Employment Tax Lawyers in Glen Head

In Glen Head, New York, a few different taxes are enforced on employees, and subtracted from their gross pay during each pay period. The examples that most people are acquainted with are the taxes imposed to fund Medicare and Social Security, which get their funding mostly from these relatively small pay deductions.

It's essentiall to be aware of one fact: if you're self-employed, you still have to pay these taxes. And it's your responsibility (or the responsibility of someone you hire for this purpose) to figure out exactly how much you owe.

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 usually very simple, and any decent payroll software can automate this process. But the self-employed are responsible for figuring this out for themselves, or hiring an accountant to do it.

Self-Employment tax obligations in Glen Head, New York

If you are an independent contractor, or run a sole proprietorship (a company which you own, and which is not incorporated as a separate legal entity), you must pay the so-called "self-employment tax" if your income from self-employment is greater than per year.

People who are not self-employed, and work for another person or company, have their contributions to Medicare and Social Security matched by their employers. This means that these programs are obtaining, on your behalf, twice as much money as what's deducted for your paycheck, with your employer covering the other half.

But, if you are self-employed in Glen Head, New York, you are liable to pay both the employee and employer share of the employment tax. Effectively, this means that the employment tax for self-employed individuals is double what it would be for regular employees.

In Glen Head, New York, self-employed business owners pay a self-employment tax rate of 15.3%. This is, of course, separate from, and additional to, whatever they pay in income tax. In an effort to partially offset this further tax burden, half of what one pays in self-employment taxes can be deducted from their income when filing their income taxes. This means that the self employed pay income taxes on, at most, 92% of their income. And it's probably less, thanks to all the other deductions they might qualify for. This deduction lowers the effective self-employment tax rate to 14%, rather than the "official" rate of over 15%.

Can a Glen Head, New York Tax Attorney Help?

If you are self-employed in Glen Head, it's extremely important for you to be diligent in keeping records of your income and expenses, to ensure that you pay all the self-employment taxes that you owe (and also to make sure you don't over-pay). You may one day need a tax attorney to help you with a legal issue, and they can help you far more efficiently if you are able to quickly present them with all the relevant information.

If you have any difficulty calculating your self-employment tax liability, an experienced Glen Head, New York tax attorney would likely have very little trouble assisting you figure it out. A reputable lawyer can also give you practical legal advice, which can help you avoid more significant tax law issues in the future, by dealing with them before they become problematic.