Just a curious thought. I was wondering about US income taxes on sites that generate revenue or sites that sell for more than xxx amount. Does one need to pay any taxes whether it be site revenue or a sale of a site? I thought that anything generating over $500 had to file something. Someone told me that I didnt need to pay any taxes because it is done via internet which is technically "international space" and cant be touched. My services were never the physical goods nature. Which sounds good to me as well as to anyone else. lol
I do not know of any country which would buy the argument that because the internet is "international space" that income is not taxable. If you live in the United States or Canada you must report all income from all sources on your income tax. However, you also get to deduct any costs which go into earning business income. Remenber, you cannot earn money without spending money. Your business might be making les than $500 per year right now, but it might be costing you more than that to earn that money. A little time with a tax accountant might help you see the advantages of having a small, home based business. And, you are home based even if your sites are josted in another state or country You still work from where you live. The cheapest way to take advantage of your "small business" is to register a sole proprietorship company. This can often be done without the help of of lawyers. With your little company in hand, you should take a room in your house or apartment and dedicate that to your business. If that is impractical, you should have a defined area -- used only for business. I live in Canada, so I do not know how applicable this is to you in the United States. But, I am allowed to deduct a percentage of the cost of heat, light, water, mortgage interest, etc as a business expense. If I was renting I would be able to deduct a share of the rent in exactly the same way that I would deduct rent for an office in another building. Since I operate an online business, all the expense related to maintaining an internet connection and ISP hosting costs for the website(s) are tax deductible. Since my computers are dedicated to the business, they are tax deductible, as are repairs, and consumables such as ink. Software bought for the business is deductible as a business expense. Interest in credit card debt solely relating to the business is tax dedictible. When I had losses and was working for other people -- that is, running my registered business part time -- I was able to deduct any business losses from my regular income! I have had a home-based business for most of the past 30 years and it was the smartest tax decision I ever made.
In the USA, if your business is costing you more than it makes, after a few years,not sure how many years,I think its 4years, Its no longer tax dedicatable, it will be consider a hobby.
Are you serious asking this question? If you live is the US, you already should know you have to pay income tax on ANY money you make....profit! It continues to boggle my mind how people can go into business without knowing what their obligations are. Jim
If you play you must pay. Any earned income is taxable in most countrys, unless you live in the Cayman Islands.
Thank you for you advice and suggestions. I knew we had to file taxes and now I have sent her a link to this thread to prove to her. I had known this and wanted to prove my point in the discussion we had on this topic. So thank you for all your comments and advice.
I know. That's why I asked. Because I knew people would reply to this thread with some advice or comment that I could carry for proof to her. But hey live and let live. Everyone gets a little misdirected or given the wrong information via the net. One could say the sky is blue. And one would say no it is not. And if you look at it. Where do these users live at? One may live in the US and the other in the South Pole. What it really comes down to is, yes one needs to pay taxes on any generated revenue. Especially in the US. No if's but's or and's about it. No squirming out of you duty of paying your taxes and or dues.