Posts Tagged ‘self-employed’
Health Insurance for the Self-Employed
Wednesday, May 7th, 2008
Although being self-employed offers many advantages - being your own boss, enjoying all the profits, etc - there are also some downsides. For example, you no longer receive sick pay from your employers should you fall ill. Obviously this can pose problems, especially if you have mortgage payments to meet and other monthly outgoings, since without any sick pay, you don’t have any income when not working. Thankfully, there are options to take out health insurance if you’re self-employed.
Exploring the Options
The first thing you need to do when arranging self-employed health insurance is to compare the different insurance providers. One of the problems with being self-employed when it comes to health insurance is that it can often be more expensive to arrange than if you were fully employed by a company. However, if you look around and compare your options, you should be able to find providers that offer rates that are comparable to full-time employed benefits.
You can either do this via calling health insurance providers in your local area, or for more options use a search engine like Google to find online providers. An excellent resource to use is Health Insurance Info , which offers details on what health insurance plans are available in your particular state. Additionally, it also informs you of potential high-risk industries, as well as the providers that specialize in different areas.
Other options available to you include the Small Business Service Bureau , or SBSB, which not only offers advice on health insurance cover for the self-employed, but also general business tips for running your own business. Having a site that combines all this information onto one dedicated portal can make running your business a lot easier.
Perhaps one of the best websites for dedicated advice on where to arrange your self-employed health insurance is eHealth Insurance . Here you can compare up to 70 health insurance providers, with policies to suit your particular needs. If there’s any drawback to this site, though, it’s that it doesn’t cover all US states - if your business is in Rhode Island, North Dakota, Massachusetts, Maine and Vermont, you won’t be able to take out insurance.
Additionally, the policies are only for one person - so, if you’re running a business yourself you’ll be fine, but if you employ people they won’t be covered. You can get round this by only employing sub-contractors, who would then have to take care of their own health plans and taxes, etc.
If you’re unsure, the best option is to speak to your local Chamber of Commerce. These can advise what options are available in your state, and you may even be able to receive self-employed health insurance cover via a Municipal Employees Health Insurance Program. Although traditionally for employed workers, some states will allow this to cover small business owners as well, so make sure you find out if it’s applicable where your business is.
Tags: danny brown, health insurance, health insurance info, home based business, self-employed, small business service bureau, Starting a Business
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Tax Deductions for the Self Employed
Wednesday, April 9th, 2008
There are many benefits of being self employed. Independence, flexibility in work schedule, getting to do what you love, and enjoying some nice deductions from the IRS that lower the amount of tax you pay. Lowering your tax means increasing your income and your net cash flow so make sure you take advantage of every legal deduction you can take.
It is important to know that while seeking the help of professionals is advisable, you always want to make sure to do your own research and check for deductions on your own. Make sure that if there is any ambiguity in an IRS regulation that you check with a tax professional or with the IRS before you take a questionable deduction. No matter how great the deduction may be it is not worth getting audited over.
A great place to start is at IRS.gov where there are several publications written in a readable style to help you learn what expenses are considered tax deductible for the self employed. Form 1518, IRS Tax Calendar for Small Businesses and Self-Employed and form 535, Business Expenses, are two excellent informative publications to help you get started learning about deductions.
Making sure you follow the IRS instructions is very important and you need to be aware there are several keys that can lead to your getting audited. Claiming your house as a deduction is the number one alert to the IRS that can lead to an audit. That is not to say that you cannot deduct the correct portion of your house, just make sure that you do it within the guidelines of what the IRS allows.
Travel is another area you want to be very careful about when deducting as a business expense. The IRS has very specific guidelines regarding what is considered business travel and what traveling expenses are eligible for deductions according to the regulations.
Supplies and equipment for your business are deductible and health insurance also may be deducted. If only one member of your family is self employed be aware that you may only be eligible to deduct the self-employed family member’s healthcare costs. If the other family member is eligible for benefits through their employer then you cannot claim the cost of those benefits as a deduction.
Clothing can be deductible but only if it is usable for the business purpose exclusively. If you have a coat that can be worn when you aren’t working then it would not be considered deductible. If however, it is something like a specific fire proof jacket is needed and it isn’t possible or pragmatic to wear it when you aren’t working then that fireproof jacket would be considered tax deductible.
Studying the forms and guides provided by the IRS is a great place to start but also include a visit to your CPA who can take what you have learned and apply their knowledge and experience to maximize your deductions for the upcoming year’s tax liability you face as a self-employed business person.
Tags: Accounting, Finance and Accounting, larry Slusser, self-employed, small business, tax deductions, tax write-offs, taxes
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