Self Employment Tax Lawyers in Rock Hill
In the U.S., including in Rock Hill, South Carolina, taxes are imposed on employees, which are normally deducted from their paychecks. The ones that most people are familiar 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.
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.
Usually, 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 Rock Hill, South Carolina
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 larger than per year.
Individuals 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 getting, on your behalf, twice as much money as what's deducted for your paycheck, with your employer covering the other half.
However, the self-employed in Rock Hill, South Carolina 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 Rock Hill, South Carolina. 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 Rock Hill, South Carolina Tax Attorney Help?
If you are self-employed in Rock Hill, 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 assist you with a legal issue, and they can help you far more effectively if you are able to quickly provide them with all the relevant information.
That said, if you are having trouble figuring out clearly how much self-employment tax you owe in Rock Hill, South Carolina, a competent tax attorney shouldn't have any trouble helping you on that front. Likewise, if you end up in a dispute with the government over your self-employment tax obligation, a good tax attorney can give you the best possible chance of getting a favorable result.