Working for yourself : law & taxes for independent contractors, freelancers & gig workers of all types

The all-in-one legal and tax resource every IC (and gig worker) needs

Ready to be your own boss? Whether you_re starting a full-scale consulting business or booking gigs on the side, Working for Yourself provides all the legal and tax information you need in one place. This excellent, well-organized reference will show you how to:
decide the best form for your business(sole proprietor, LLC, or other) make sure you_re paid in full and on time pay estimated taxes (and avoid trouble with the IRS) take advantage of all available tax deductions(including home offices) choose health, property, and other kinds of insurance keep accurate records in case you get audited, and write legally binding contracts and letter agreements.
Tired of doing endless web searches for legal and tax information? Want one easy-to-use and authoritative resource for everything you need to start and run your business? This book is for you.

• Welcome to the World of Self-Employment: Introduction to Working for Yourself p. 1
• A Golden Age for the Self-Employed p. 1
• Six Things You May Not Know About the Self-Employed p. 5
• 1 Working for Yourself: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly p. 7
• Working for Yourself: The Good p. 8
• Working for Yourself: The Bad p. 10
• Working for Yourself: The Ugly p. 11
• How This Book Will Help You Succeed at Self-Employment p. 13
• 2 Choosing the Legal Form for Your Business p. 15
• Sole Proprietorships p. 16
• Corporations p. 22
• Partnerships p. 44
• Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) p. 46
• 3 Choosing and Protecting Your Business Name p. 53
• Choosing a Legal Name p. 54
• Choosing a Trade Name p. 55
• Choosing a Trademark p. 61
• Choosing an Internet Domain Name p. 65
• Conducting a Name Search p. 66
• 4 Home Alone or Outside Office p. 69
• Pros and Cons of Working at Home p. 71
• Restrictions on Home-Based Businesses p. 76
• Deducting Your Home Office Expenses p. 82
• Pros and Cons of an Outside Office p. 95
• Leasing a Workplace p. 96
• Deducting Your Outside Office Expenses p. 99
• 5 Obtaining Licenses, Permits, and Identification Numbers p. 101
• Business Licenses p. 102
• Employer Identification Numbers (EINs) p. 105
• Sales Tax Permits p. 106
• 6 Insuring Your Business and Yourself p. 109
• The Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare") p. 111
• Disability Insurance p. 129
• Business Property Insurance p. 131
• Liability Insurance p. 134
• Car Insurance p. 139
• Workers' Compensation Insurance p. 140
• Other Types of Insurance p. 143
• Ways to Save on Insurance p. 144
• 7 Pricing Your Services and Getting Paid p. 147
• Pricing Your Services p. 148
• Getting Paid p. 159
• 8 Taxes and the Self-Employed p. 183
• Tax Basics for the Self-Employed p. 184
• IRS Audits p. 196
• Eight Tips to Avoid an Audit p. 200
• 9 Reducing Your Income Taxes p. 203
• Reporting Your Income p. 206
• Income Tax Deduction Basics p. 211
• Business Use of Your Home p. 224
• Cost of Business Assets p. 224
• Car Expenses p. 236
• Travel Expenses p. 242
• Entertainment and Meal Expenses p. 246
• Health Insurance p. 249
• Retirement Accounts p. 253
• Startup Costs p. 253
• 10 The Bane of Self-Employment Taxes p. 255
• Who Must Pay p. 256
• Self-Employment Taxes p. 256
• Earnings Subject to SE Taxes p. 258
• Paying and Reporting SE Taxes p. 259
• Outside Employment p. 260
• 11 Paying Estimated Taxes p. 261
• Who Must Pay Estimated Taxes p. 262
• How Much You Must Pay p. 264
• When to Pay p. 272
• How to Pay p. 274
• Paying the Wrong Amount p. 276
• 12 Rules for Salespeople, Drivers, and Clothing Producers p. 279
• Statutory Employees p. 280
• Statutory Independent Contractors p. 286
• 13 Taxes for Workers You Hire p. 287
• Hiring People to Help You p. 288
• Tax Concerns When Hiring Employees p. 290
• Tax Concerns When Hiring Independent Contractors p. 302
• 14 Record Keeping and Accounting Made Easy p. 309
• Simple Bookkeeping p. 310
• How Long to Keep Records p. 330
• If You Don't Have Proper Tax Records p. 331
• Accounting Methods p. 333
• Tax Year p. 338
• 15 Safeguarding Your Self-Employed Status p. 339
• Who Decides Your Work Status? p. 340
• What Happens If the Government Reclassifies You? p. 341
• Determining Worker Status p. 344
• The IRS Approach to Worker Status p. 346
• Tips for Preserving Your IC Status p. 354
• 16 Special Concerns for Gig Workers p. 363
• Introduction to the Gig Economy p. 364
• Your Contract With the Hiring Platform p. 365
• Your Worker Status p. 368
• Your Taxes p. 370
• Your Insurance p. 375
• Other Legal Requirements for Gig Workers p. 376
• Where to Find Gigs p. 376
• 17 Copyrights, Patents, and Trade Secrets p. 379
• Intellectual Property p. 380
• Copyright Ownership p. 384
• Patent Ownership p. 394
• Trade Secret Ownership p. 395
• Using Nondisclosure Agreements p. 395
• 18 Using Written Client Agreements p. 409
• Reasons to Use Written Agreements p. 411
• Reviewing a Client's Agreement p. 414
• Creating Your Own Client Agreement p. 415
• Putting Your Agreement Together p. 418
• Changing the Agreement After It's Signed p. 423
• 19 Drafting Your Own Client Agreement p. 427
• Essential Provisions p. 430
• Optional Provisions p. 450
• Sample Client Agreement p. 463
• Using Letter Agreements p. 463
• 20 Reviewing a Client's Agreement p. 477
• Make Sure the Agreement Is Consistent With the Client's Promises p. 479
• Make Sure the Contract Covers at Least the Basics p. 480
• Provisions to Avoid p. 481
• Provisions to Consider Adding p. 491
• Client Purchase Orders p. 491
• 21 Help Beyond This Book p. 493
• Mediation and Arbitration p. 494
• Filing a Lawsuit p. 497
• Bankruptcy for the Self-Employed p. 500
• Finding and Using a Lawyer p. 501
• Help From Other Experts p. 503
• Doing Your Own Legal Research p. 505
• Researching Federal Tax Law p. 505
• Appendix
• Using the Downloadable Forms on the Nolo Website p. 509
• Editing RTFs p. 510
• List of Forms Available on the Nolo Website p. 511
• Index p. 513