So what is the Self-Employment Tax? Well, the self-employment tax is a tax consisting of Social Security and Medicare taxes primarily for individuals who work for themselves. It is very similar to the Social Security and Medicare taxes withheld from the pay of most wage earners.
For you to be able to pay self employment tax, you would need to have a Social Security Number. If you are, then you can apply for an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number instead.
Here are some steps for you to know how much you would be paying for your taxes:
I. Know Your Net and Taxable Income
1.) Sum up the amount of money that your business is receiving.
2.) Sum up the expenses of your company as well. The amount should be reflected on a Schedule C form.
3.) After getting your expenses, subtract that amount from the overall earnings of your company. The result would be your net income.
4.) Whatever your net income is, multiply it by 92.35% (.9235) to get your taxable net earnings from self employment. The result would be your taxable income and this would be the amount that you are going to pay as your taxes.
II. Know One’s Tax Liability
1.) Go to the World Wide Web and visit the official website of the IRS. Look for the latest rates of self employed earnings. This should help you save up and pay your taxes on time.
2.) Take note of the self employment rates’ earning limits. As of the year 2011, a 13.3% (10.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare) tax is imposed on anyone who has an income of $106,800 or less than that amount for the year. Income you make after $106,800 will not be subject to the Social Security tax.
3.) You can deduct the employer-equivalent portion of your self-employment tax in figuring your adjusted gross income. This deduction only affects your income tax. It does not affect either your net earnings from self-employment or your self-employment tax.
III. Create an Account in the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System or EFTPS
1.) Register on the EFTPS or Electronic Federal Tax Payment System. Fill out all the needed fields for you to receive the instructions on how you can get your account password.
2.) Log in into the system for you to send request for deposit and payment. You should be able to complete the online form for your request at the maximum of 24 hours before the deadline.
3.) You can pay with the use of your credit card or checking account so make sure that you have your bank information beforehand.
4.) Once your screen displays a confirmation message after your transaction, then immediately take a screen shot of the message. You may have the image printed if you want to.