What does it mean to be self-employed? How do I prepare my tax return? What is a Schedule C? SE? Learn the pro’s and con’s of self employment.
When an owner of a small business operation transfers money from the business bank account to their personal bank account the transaction is commonly referred to as a ‘Draw’. There are other terms but this is the traditional word used. The technical definition is: ‘A transfer of earnings from the business on behalf of the owner is referred to as a draw’.
In the normal taxpayer relationship with the Internal Revenue Service, the taxpayer is an employee and via withholding, taxes are paid the U.S. Government by the employer. Basically the employer pays the tax after each payroll run on behalf of all the employees and the corresponding mandated matching taxes (Social Security and Medicare). But in the small business world, this is not the normal relationship.
The highest prized benefit of owning your own business is independence. You rely on your skills and have to report to no one but yourself. This is the allure of becoming a real estate agent. Imagine, making a lot of money and working when you want to work. Very appealing to just about anyone, wouldn’t you say? Well, it is all hogwash!
A fair profit for a small business is between 9% and 37%.
Form 941 is the employer’s quarterly federal tax return. It reports how much federal income taxes were withheld; Social Security taxes and Medicare taxes that are due and how much was paid in deposits to the Internal Revenue Service. The report is filed every three months for each of the four calendar quarters.
When an entrepreneur starts a new business operation, one of the first questions (s)he deals with is the form of business existence. There are a multitude of entities that the law allows. This article describes the four main types and the decision making model that an entrepreneur should follow in determining the best for the business.
