Self Employment Tax Lawyers in Tulsa
In the U.S., including in Tulsa, Oklahoma, taxes are enforced on employees, which are typically deducted from their paychecks. The ones that most people are acquainted with are the Medicare and Social Security taxes. The idea is that workers pay into these programs during their entire working lives, and then enjoy the benefits they provide once they retire.
Individuals who are self-employed are still responsible for these taxes, and are responsible for figuring out how much they owe.
Most frequently, employers handle all of these calculations. With regular salaried and hourly employees, this is an easy procedure, and any decent payroll computer software can do it automatically. But, if you work for yourself, it is your responsibility to figure out precisely what you owe.
Self-Employment tax obligations in Tulsa, Oklahoma
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 higher than per year.
Employees in a regular employer/employee relationship do enjoy one substantial perk that the self-employed do not: their Social Security and Medicare contributions are matched by their employers. So, if you pay in Social Security and Medicare taxes with every paycheck, your employer has to match that. This essentially doubles your contribution to these programs, without doubling their financial burden on you.
However, if you are a self-employed business owner in Tulsa, Oklahoma, you are liable for both the employee and employer contributions to Medicare and Social Security. This essentially doubles your self-employment tax rate.
The total self-employment tax (note that this is totally distinct from the income tax) is set at 15.3%, if your income from self-employment in Tulsa, Oklahoma exceeds . But, half of this tax is deducted from your income, for income tax purposes. Thus, this means that, at most, the self-employed only have to pay income on 92% of their total income, and that amount may be lowered with further deductions for which you may be eligible. This means that, essentially, the self-employment tax rate is only 14%, as opposed to 15.3%
Can a Tulsa, Oklahoma Tax Attorney Help?
If you are self-employed in Tulsa, it's imperative that you keep good records of your income and expenses, because a tax attorney will only be able to advise you to the extent that you help yourself.
If you have any difficulty calculating your self-employment tax liability, an efficient Tulsa, Oklahoma tax attorney would likely have very little trouble assisting you figure it out. A reliable 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.