Self Employment Tax Lawyers in Rochester
In Rochester, New York, a few different taxes are imposed on employees, and subtracted from their gross pay during each pay period. The examples that most people are familiar with are the taxes imposed to fund Medicare and Social Security, which get their funding mostly from these relatively small pay deductions.
But what if you're self-employed? You're still required to pay these taxes, since you will also be eligible for those retirement programs. It's also your responsibility to determine what your tax liability is.
Typically, the employer makes all the necessary calculations and deductions from a person's paycheck. If you are self-employed, however, you are required to make this determination, and to ensure that it's accurate.
Self-Employment tax obligations in Rochester, New York
If you primarily work as an independent contractor, or are the owner of a sole proprietorship, you have to pay what's commonly referred to as the "self-employment tax," if your annual income from self-employment is over .
Workers who are employed by someone else enjoy at least one perk that the self-employed do not: their employer matches their Social Security and Medicare contributions, effectively doubling the amount of money that's contributed to these funds on the employee's behalf.
But, self-employed workers in Rochester, New York must make both the employee and employer contributions. So, this means that the Medicare and Social Security tax liabilities apply doubly to the self-employed.
Currently, the self-employment tax rate in the United States is 15.30% of all income earned from self-employment in Rochester, New York. However, half of your hypothetical self-employment tax liability can be deducted from your income. This means that you only pay self-employment tax on about 92% of your income, which creates an effective self-employment tax rate of just over 14%.
Can a Rochester, New York Tax Attorney Help?
Self-employed individuals in Rochester must ensure that they keep good, thorough financial records. This makes it much easier to determine what you owe, and, if you need a tax attorney, it makes it easier for them to help you with your legal tax issues.
If you have any difficulty calculating your self-employment tax liability, an experienced Rochester, New York tax attorney would probably have very little trouble helping you figure it out. A good lawyer can also give you practical legal advice, which can help you avoid more serious tax law issues in the future, by dealing with them before they become problematic.