Member-only story
Scared of Self-Employment Taxes? Don’t Let Fear Ruin Your Side Hustle Goals
Tax time isn’t as bad as you might think for freelancers and gig workers
My friend lost her job, her husband, and her savings account. She was close to losing her home as well since her job applications weren’t getting any hits. Panicked, she asked if I knew how she could make some fast cash.
“Have you thought about gig work?” I asked her.
“Oh, like Instacart or something?”
I nodded, then launched into a quick explanation of gig life. “I’ve got a crazy number of side hustles so I don’t get burned out from my writing career. I love DoorDash and Instacart. I’ve heard good things about GrubHub and Uber, but I’ve never tried them. I have friends making thousands a month from those gigs. In fact, you can start working in just a few days since our area is so busy. Apps are always accepting new drivers here.”
“Oh, I could never do that type of work,” my friend responded, explaining, “Self-employment is like working for free because of the taxes.”
I stared at her in surprise before saying, “I’ve been self-employed for more than 15 years. Taxes aren’t as bad as you think.”
