Self Employment Tax Lawyers in La Marque

In the U.S., including in La Marque, Texas, taxes are placed on employees, which are usually 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.

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 La Marque, Texas

If you own a sole-proprietorship, or work primarily as an independent contractor, you need to pay the "self-employment tax" if you derive any significant amount of income from self-employment. You must pay these taxes if your income from self-employment is more than annually.

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 acquiring, 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 La Marque, Texas are responsible for making the employer AND employee contributions to those programs, effectively doubling what they would have to pay if they were employed by someone else.

The total self-employment tax (note that this is completely distinct from the income tax) is set at 15.3%, if your income from self-employment in La Marque, Texas exceeds . However, half of this tax is deducted from your income, for income tax purposes. So, 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 additional deductions for which you may be eligible. This means that, effectively, the self-employment tax rate is only 14%, as opposed to 15.3%

Can a La Marque, Texas Tax Attorney Help?

If you work for yourself in La Marque, you have to stay on top of your self-employment taxes, to avoid facing serious legal and financial issues later on. This means you need to keep excellent records of all your income and expenses, in case you need to seek the advice of a tax attorney: the more information you can provide your lawyer, the better he or she can help you.

That said, if you are having trouble figuring out exactly how much self-employment tax you owe in La Marque, Texas, 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.