Does the electronic version work the same for filing? My tax guy always wants the "official" form and I'm worried the electronic one won't count.

The electronic version is exactly the same as the paper one for tax filing purposes - it contains all the same information and is considered an "official" form by the IRS. Your tax preparer can use it just like the paper version. I actually find the electronic ones better because there's no risk of faded print that scanners can't read properly. Plus you can download it as a PDF and keep it stored safely without worrying about losing the physical copy. Just make sure you save it somewhere secure since it has your Social Security number on it.

Last year mine had the wrong state tax withholding amount. Double check all the numbers against your final paystub of the year! Box 1 (wages) and Box 2 (federal tax withheld) are the most important to verify. If there's a mistake, contact HR immediately for a corrected W-2.

At what income level do you need to start doing the quarterly payments? I'm just starting out and made like $800 last year from my art channel.

The general rule is if you expect to owe $1,000 or more in taxes for the year (after accounting for any withholding from other jobs), you should make quarterly payments. At $800 total income, you're probably fine waiting until tax time, especially if you have another job with withholding. But as your content income grows, keep an eye on it. Many creators don't realize they need to start making these payments until they get hit with penalties. I recommend setting aside 25-30% of your creator earnings for taxes just to be safe.

You don't need to track each individual deposit for tax purposes. What matters is the total income for the year. However, keeping a spreadsheet of your deposits can help you reconcile your total earnings against what the platform reports. What I do is download the annual tax summary from Etsy, which shows gross sales, fees, shipping costs, etc. That's the document you'll use for your Schedule C, not your bank deposits (which won't show fees taken out).

That spreadsheet approach sounds really helpful! Do you have any template or example you could share? Also, does your spreadsheet account for the half-year convention that applies in the first year for most MACRS assets?

I don't have a shareable template, but I can describe how I set it up. I created columns for: Asset Description, Date Acquired, Cost Basis, Recovery Period, and then a row for each year of depreciation showing the percentage and calculated amount. Yes, my spreadsheet definitely accounts for the half-year convention! That's one of the most important aspects of MACRS. For 7-year property, I use the standard MACRS percentages: 14.29% in year 1 (reflecting half-year convention), 24.49% in year 2, 17.49% in year 3, and so on. The spreadsheet automatically applies these percentages to the basis amount.

This is only partially correct. The 50% rule doesn't automatically force you to use ADS. It limits your Section 179 expensing, but you can still use regular MACRS for depreciation. The actual rule is that if business use drops BELOW 50%, then you must switch to ADS.

Thank you for mentioning this! I had no idea about this rule. Neither of us has enough deductions to itemize currently, but that's really good information to have. Would this apply even if only one of us has student loans? Or is that not related to the itemizing issue?

The student loan situation itself doesn't directly affect the itemizing rule. This rule only applies when one spouse chooses to itemize deductions - then the other spouse MUST also itemize, even if it's not beneficial. The student loans come into play in your decision about whether to file jointly or separately. If you file separately to keep your loan payments lower, then this itemizing rule could potentially become relevant if either of you has enough deductions to make itemizing worthwhile.

Did filing separately affect your ability to buy a house? We're in a similar situation but planning to apply for a mortgage next year and I'm worried that filing separately will make it harder to qualify.

What about things like beauty treatments, fitness expenses, etc for adult content creators? Are those considered legitimate business expenses? My friend says she deducts her hair salon visits but that seems risky.

For beauty treatments, fitness expenses, etc., it really depends on whether they're "ordinary and necessary" for your business. This is somewhat of a gray area and varies by individual circumstances. Hair styling specifically for photo/video shoots can often qualify, but regular maintenance haircuts typically don't. The key is whether these expenses are directly tied to your business rather than personal care. For example, if you're marketing yourself as a fitness model and your workouts are specifically to maintain that brand image, you might have a case for deducting some gym expenses. However, you should maintain very good documentation and consider consulting with a tax professional who specializes in entertainment/performance professions, as these deductions can be audit triggers if not properly substantiated.

I was audited last year after 3 years of content creation. The key was having detailed records of EVERYTHING - all income, all expenses with receipts, dates, descriptions. I used a separate bank account and credit card for all business transactions which helped tremendously. The IRS didn't care about the nature of my work AT ALL. They just wanted to verify my income reporting and expense documentation. Having a mileage log for travel to shoots and a dedicated space for my home office deduction was super important. The audit was stressful but I came through fine because my documentation was solid.