I get the whole thing about taxes, but I recall seeing a statement from Secretary Mršić suggesting that whatever incentive the IRS provides should be paid out alongside the actual salary amount. And that would happen every single month.
That’s why I’m asking; if I don't have to pay out a salary, then fine. 🙂
My main priority is just settling my obligations to the government so I know I'm totally squared away, especially since monthly earnings fluctuate so much. Sometimes they're higher, sometimes they're lower.
I'll probably check in with the unemployment office to see what they have to say about it.
What’s the legal minimum pay an independent contractor should be drawing to stay fully compliant?
I mean, if someone is receiving $6167 in contributions through their business, that amount just ends up being cycled right back to the government via taxes. I'm trying to figure out how much actually needs to hit the bank account each month. I've heard some talk that it should basically match the contribution amount—like, maybe $1,800 from the state and another $1,800 earned directly from the business itself.
You might want to head down to the unemployment office and talk to your caseworker about putting together a business plan to apply for self-employment grants. It might be your smartest move to set up a sole proprietorship, since you can get an 18% $167 discount on your payroll taxes. Of course, that all depends on whether they actually approve your business plan and what you intend to do. You should probably register the business as a contractor for construction services, home renovations, or something along those lines. If you check the U.S. Chamber of Commerce website, you can find a list of which construction trades qualify as small businesses, so it’s best to look there for specifics regarding that field.
As for setting up an LLC or a corporation with $3.25 capital, I honestly don't know much about that side of things; other people on this forum who have gone that route will know the details better than I do. Personally, though, I suspect a sole proprietorship is better for you from a tax and payroll contribution standpoint than an LLC.
I’ve honestly learned more on this forum than I ever did from calling actual government agencies. It’s a massive step forward that various federal departments and even the IRS have an official presence on Facebook now, so at least you can try to get some answers there. I see people posting about all sorts of issues; everyone is trying to make things work, but progress is still pretty slow.
Exactly. That’s why I spend my time reading through everyone's experiences on this forum and taking notes. I’ve been thinking about starting my own small business, but there always seems to be some new hurdle popping up. The bigger issue is the exchange system, which makes it nearly impossible to actually get anything done. The rates and the whole structure are poorly designed, and for instance, if I need to attend a training session, I have to travel all the way to Indiana. If a seminar is held in Washington, D.C., neither I nor anyone else can participate unless we happen to live in D.C. or the District of Columbia.
It honestly feels like most of these systems are rigged to prevent people from getting off the ground right from the start.
The real issue is how fragmented the federal bureaucracy is. You end up hunting through ten different departments just to track down a single document. Their online portals are practically useless; you can't even submit a basic request to an agency digitally. It’s not quite an apples-to-apples comparison, but an English person can set up a small business within 48 hours and handle almost everything through a website.
Today, Secretary Maras announced that businesses will finally be allowed to register their names in English. This should hit the floor of the US Congress for a vote by June. Up until now, you were strictly limited to using American or Latin—though Greek was also an option.🙂
It seems like most institutions have absolutely no interest in actually replying to emails. I’ll give credit where it's due, though. For instance, I've reached out to the advisory services at the US Chamber of Commerce a few times now, and they've always gotten back to me within two or three days. I also have relatively decent experiences with the New York Stock Exchange. I usually get their responses after about five or six days.