Tax Deduction Tips for the Self-Employed

February 7, 2008

In this Issue

• Personal Note From India
• Recommended VA Resource
• VA Job Leads
• VA Profit Tip - Self-Employed? Tax Deduction Tips and Strategies You Can Use
• Virtual Assistant Industry News - Industry News and Announcements

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===>Personal Note from India

Hi,

I hope you’re doing well. You may have noticed if you’ve been to the website recently that it has a new look. I hope you like it.

It’s that time again. Time to prepare and file your taxes that is. I’ve decided to save some money this year and do our taxes myself. I bought a software program that you might be familiar with called Turbo Tax. I must admit I was a little leary of doing our taxes myself, but Turbo Tax made it quite easy. It walks through the process step by step. It also helps you maximize all possible deductions as a business owner.

This week’s featured article discusses some tax tips for for the self-employed. In upcoming newsletters I’ll be sharing with you some more tax tips.

Wishing you all the best,

India Jordan
Your Fellow Virtual Assistant
Virtual Assistant Business

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===>Recommended VA Resource

TurboTax Home & Business 2007 is designed for taxpayers who own their own business and includes everything you need for your self-employment and personal income taxes. It helps you maximize business expenses, home office deductions, and more. You can even create W-2 and 1099-MISC forms for your employees and contractors. For more information or to buy Turbo Tax click here.

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===>VA Job Leads

Medical Transcriptionists
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Freelance Editor/Proofreader
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Area Administrative Assistant for Executive Services Firm
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Technology Editor for Online Publication
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Professional Fee Medical Coder
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Junior Admin Assistant/Bookkeeper (san jose downtown)
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High Tech PR contractor
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===>Featured Article

Self-Employed? Tax Deduction Tips and Strategies You Can Use

If you are self-employed, there are a lot of things you can do to control how much taxes you pay. What many don’t know is that when it comes to tax advantages and savings, self-employment is one of the best tax strategies there is.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) knows exactly the many advantages that individuals with self-employment status have so they tend to keep a close eye on this area.

Know that as a self-employed individual, your tax situation is completely in your hands; you have full command. Knowledge of tax laws gives you greater control over how much taxes you pay. Thus, the first thing you need is to do is gain adequate knowledge on tax laws. Next, study all the tax forms the IRS provides you. Read the instructions carefully. If there is anything in the forms and instructions that you are unsure of, ask your accountant or a professional tax preparer for help.

Below are some specific tax deduction tips and strategies you can use come tax filing season:

• Keep a complete, thorough and accurate record of anything and everything relating to your business. Keep your receipts and have documentation available as you’ll need them if you should be questioned about your tax deductions.
• If you have children, you can claim childcare costs as tax deductions. You don’t have to work in an office building for a company in order to claim childcare costs. Even if you work from home or for yourself, be aware that there are deductions allowed for this type of expense.
• Do family members help you with your business? If so, make it legitimate; hire them. Their medical expenses can be deducted from your taxes.
• If you work from home, you can claim the area where you work as a tax deduction. Whether your workspace is one room in your house or a small corner in your basement, you can claim it as a tax deduction. You’ll need to determine the percentage of your workspace is in relation to your home, and then you can deduct the percentage from your mortgage or rent, as well as utilities.
• Keep in mind that although you can’t create a loss as a self-employed solely through home office expenses, you can get your income down to zero, thereby lowering your income tax and self-employment tax. In addition, you can carry over to the next year any expenses you don’t claim in the current year.
• If you use your car to conduct your business, especially if you work from home, you can claim it as a tax deduction. For instance, you use your car to buy office supplies, meet clients and make bank deposits. Basically, any driving you do that is related to your business is a tax deduction.

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===>Virtual Assistant Industry News