self-employed

Generally, you are self-employed if any of the following apply to you.

• You trade or operate a business as a self-employed person or as an independent contractor.
• You are a member of a partnership that exercises or operates a trade or business.
• You are otherwise in business for yourself (including a part-time business).
• What are my tax obligations as a self-employed person?
• As a self-employed person, you are generally required to file an annual return and pay quarterly estimated taxes.

Self-employed individuals generally have to pay self-employment tax (SE tax) as well as income tax. The SE tax is primarily the Social Security and Medicare tax for individuals who work for themselves. It is similar to the tax withheld from wage earners for Social Security and Medicare taxes. In general, whenever the term “self-employment tax” is used, it only refers to Social Security and Medicare tax, and not to any other type of tax (such as income tax).

Before you can determine whether you are subject to self-employment tax and income tax, you must calculate the net of income or net of loss from your business. You determine this when you subtract your business expenses from your business income. If your expenses are less than your income, the difference is the net profit and is part of your income on page 1 of Form 1040 or 1040-SR. If your expenses are more than your income, the difference is a net loss. You can usually deduct your loss from gross income on page 1 of Form 1040 or 1040-SR. But in some situations your loss is limited.