Self Employment Tax Lawyers in Neenah
In the U.S., Neenah, Wisconsin included, almost everyone who is employed during most of their adult life is suitable for Social Security and Medicare benefits when they retire. These programs are supported by taxes deducted from the paychecks of most employees.
It's essential to note that if you are self-employed, you're still responsible for those taxes, and it's your responsibility to figure out what you owe.
Normally, 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 Neenah, Wisconsin
If you mainly work as an independent contractor, or are the owner of a sole proprietorship, you have to pay what's regularly referred to as the "self-employment tax," if your annual income from self-employment is over .
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.
But, if you're self employed in Neenah, Wisconsin, or anywhere else, you are obliged to make the employee AND employer contributions to Social Security and Medicare, essentially doubling your employment tax liability.
The self-employment tax rate is 15.3% of all self-employment income, assuming your income from self-employment exceeds per year in Neenah, Wisconsin. But half of your self-employment tax liability can be deducted from your income tax. This results in a slightly reduced 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 Neenah, Wisconsin Tax Attorney Help?
If you are self-employed in Neenah, 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.
Thus, if you have some trouble figuring out what you owe in self-employment taxes, for whatever reason, chances are good that a knowledgeable tax attorney in Neenah, Wisconsin can advise you with much trouble, and can provide you with good legal and financial advice, which can help you head off much more significant legal and financial issues.