A subscriber asked a question the other day.
It’s one of those “I’m a bit nervous about answering” kind of ones.
They asked if they’d have to pay US taxes.
You see… they’re living in a European country… but billing US-based clients.
I don’t know the precise situation. But I looked into this ages ago for myself… because I’m based in New Zealand.
For me… I don’t need to pay US tax because I’m not a US citizen or company.
But of course I pay tax on that income in my own country.
If you’re also in New Zealand… that might be helpful to know.
Otherwise…
Please do your own homework about your tax obligations
It’s an important area for us freelancers to be confident with…
But is one minefield I don’t want to venture into in these emails.
The thing is:
There’s a variety of rules and regulations from one country to another. Even from one state to another.
And I ain’t no accountant or tax expert.
For both our sakes…
I don’t want to be giving you any sort of advice about tax or accounting.
I’ll happily talk about billing clients… pricing strategies… and suggest things to buy 😉
Otherwise, the best I can do is point you toward your own government’s tax rules.
Plus:
Getting some advice — maybe even someone to do it for you — isn’t a bad idea.
Especially if dealing with money is not a strong area for you.
It’s not for me. So I use an online service in my own country. It allows me to easily invoice and be paid by clients. They charge a 1% fee that I’m very happy to pay.
All my accounting and end-of-year tax returns are done for me. I just submit expenses when I buy things. That’s it.
It’s a solution that works great for me. You’ll need to find one for you.
Just know…
If you’ve not got something in place already… there’s bound to be an easy system out there for doing your accounting and tax.
I keep hearing FreshBooks mentioned by other freelancers. So maybe it’s an option? (That’s not a recommendation, BTW — I’ve never used it).
No doubt there’s other possibilities.
Whatever your choice… it’s not an area to take lightly.
The last thing any freelancer wants is a knock on the door from the taxman
But doing a little research — maybe asking other freelancers in your country what they do — can help you enjoy the process of earning…
While ticking all the right tax boxes 😊
Have a great weekend!
Ready to build your email list? Go here…
EmailForTheWin.com
Chris Milham