Do you have to pay income tax on money made from feetfinder? Tax question for side hustle
So I've been thinking about making some extra cash on the side and a friend told me about feetfinder as an option. I've heard you can make decent money but I'm confused about the tax situation. If I start making money from selling pics on feetfinder, do I need to report that on my income tax? I've never had income outside my regular job before so I have no idea how this works. I'm in Alberta and wondering if there's like a minimum amount I need to make before I have to claim it? Or do I have to report every dollar regardless? Also, would this be considered self-employment income? I don't want to get in trouble with the CRA but also don't want to overcomplicate things if it's just a few hundred bucks. Anyone have experience with this or similar side gigs and how they handle the tax situation? Thanks!
24 comments


Yara Elias
Yes, you absolutely need to report income earned from feetfinder or any similar platform on your taxes. In Canada, all income is taxable regardless of the source, with very few exceptions. There's no minimum threshold - technically even if you make $20, it's supposed to be reported. This would be considered self-employment income, which means you'd report it on the T2125 form (Statement of Business or Professional Activities) as part of your personal tax return. The good news is you can deduct legitimate business expenses against this income - things like a portion of your internet costs, any special equipment or props you purchase specifically for this business, and possibly a portion of your phone bill if you use it for the business.
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QuantumQuasar
•What about if the platform doesn't send any tax forms? Like does the CRA even know about this income if feetfinder doesn't report it to them?
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Yara Elias
•Whether or not you receive tax forms from the platform doesn't change your obligation to report the income. In Canada, we have a self-reporting tax system, meaning it's your responsibility to report all income regardless of whether anyone issues you documentation. While the platform may not send information directly to the CRA, there are many ways the CRA can discover unreported income - bank deposits that don't match reported income, information from payment processors, or even lifestyle audits if your spending doesn't match your reported income. Additionally, if you're making substantial money and ever get audited, unexplained deposits would be a red flag.
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Keisha Jackson
I've been in a similar situation with a different type of online content, and I found taxr.ai super helpful for sorting out these gig economy tax questions. I was totally confused about what counted as business income vs hobby income and what expenses I could claim. I uploaded my payment screenshots from the platform to https://taxr.ai and their AI analyzed everything and gave me a clear breakdown of what I needed to report and what expenses were legitimate deductions. It even showed me how to properly categorize everything on my return, which was way easier than trying to interpret the CRA website.
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Paolo Moretti
•Does it actually work with Canadian taxes too? I thought most tax tools were just for US taxes and wouldn't understand CRA rules.
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Amina Diop
•I've heard about these AI tax tools but I'm skeptical. How does it actually know what counts as a legitimate business expense? Like could I deduct my pedicures if I'm selling feet pics?
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Keisha Jackson
•Yes, it definitely works with Canadian taxes! I was pleasantly surprised that it understood all the CRA-specific rules and forms. It even explained the GST/HST registration requirements which was something I hadn't even thought about. Regarding business expenses, it's actually quite sophisticated in understanding context. It analyzes what you're doing and recommends appropriate deductions based on your specific situation. For something like feet content, it would likely recognize that pedicures could be a legitimate expense since they directly relate to your product, but it would also warn you about reasonable limits and documentation requirements. It provides a "confidence score" for different deductions so you know which ones might be riskier in an audit.
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Paolo Moretti
Just wanted to update after trying taxr.ai that the previous commenter mentioned. I was shocked at how helpful it was with my Canadian side hustle tax questions! I've been making money on a few different platforms and was totally lost on how to report it. The tool gave me a complete breakdown of everything - from how to report the income on my T2125 to which expenses were deductible. It even flagged that I might need to register for GST/HST if my income goes over $30,000 in a 12-month period (which I had no idea about). Ended up saving me a ton in legitimate deductions I wouldn't have known I could claim!
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Oliver Weber
After struggling to get through to the CRA for WEEKS about my self-employment reporting questions, I finally tried https://claimyr.com and it was a game-changer. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I had so many specific questions about reporting my online platform income and what documentation I needed to keep. Instead of waiting on hold for hours or getting disconnected, Claimyr got me connected to a CRA agent in about 15 minutes. The agent walked me through exactly how to report my side hustle income and what records I needed to keep.
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Natasha Romanova
•How does this even work? The CRA phone lines are always jammed... there's no way to skip the queue, right?
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NebulaNinja
•This sounds like a scam. You're telling me you pay someone else to call the CRA for you? They probably just take your money and never actually connect you.
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Oliver Weber
•It's actually pretty clever how it works. They use an automated system that keeps dialing the CRA for you and navigating through all those annoying menu options. Once they get a spot in the queue, they call you and connect you directly with the CRA agent. You're talking directly to the CRA, not to some third party. They can't actually "skip" the queue, but their system is persistent and efficient at getting through when the lines are less busy. For me, it saved literally hours of frustration and holding time. I was able to just go about my day until they called me when an agent was on the line.
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NebulaNinja
I'm back to eat my words about Claimyr. After seeing multiple people recommend it, I decided to try it myself since I had some complicated questions about my online income that the CRA website didn't answer clearly. I was 100% convinced it wouldn't work, but I got a call back in about 20 minutes and was connected directly to a CRA agent. The agent confirmed that yes, all platform income needs to be reported regardless of amount, and walked me through exactly how to report it as self-employment income. They also explained which expenses would be considered legitimate for my specific situation. Saved myself hours of hold music and got exactly the information I needed. Definitely worth it when you have specific tax questions that need official answers.
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Javier Gomez
I sell stuff on various platforms and here's my understanding: In Canada, you need to report ALL income, period. But there's a difference between a hobby and a business. If you're doing this occasionally just for fun and happen to make a few bucks, it might be considered a hobby. But if you're regularly trying to make money from it, that's a business and definitely taxable. Keep good records of everything - all income and expenses related to your feetfinder activities. Save receipts for anything you buy specifically for this purpose. You'll thank yourself at tax time!
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Emma Wilson
•But how do you prove something is a hobby vs a business? Is there like an official definition or is it just whatever you decide to call it?
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Javier Gomez
•The CRA looks at several factors to determine if something is a business or a hobby, and it's not just what you decide to call it. They consider things like: whether you're pursuing the activity in a businesslike manner, whether you're trying to make a profit, how much time you devote to it, whether you have the knowledge to carry out the business, and whether you expect to make a profit now or in the future. If you're regularly posting content, actively marketing yourself, and intending to make ongoing income, it would likely be considered a business even if you're not making much money yet. Hobbies typically don't have profit as their primary goal - they're activities you do primarily for personal enjoyment where any income is incidental.
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Malik Thomas
Don't forget that if you're making money through these sites, you might need to register for a GST/HST number if you hit $30k in revenue in any 12-month period. This applies to most self-employment income in Canada. Also keep in mind that you'll need to make quarterly tax installments if you owe more than $3000 in taxes in consecutive years. Lots of side-hustlers get surprised by this requirement!
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Isabella Oliveira
•Wait what??? I've been making like $3500 a month on various platforms and never registered for GST/HST. Am I in trouble??
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NeonNinja
•@Isabella Oliveira If you re'making $3500/month consistently, you ve'definitely crossed the $30k threshold and should have registered for GST/HST. You need to register within 30 days of exceeding that amount. The good news is you can still register now - the CRA generally prefers voluntary disclosure over discovering it themselves. You ll'need to start charging GST/HST on your services going forward and file quarterly returns. I d'recommend contacting the CRA ASAP to get this sorted out - they re'usually more lenient when you come forward voluntarily rather than waiting for them to find out.
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Connor O'Brien
Just to add to what others have said - I work as a tax preparer and see this situation a lot with gig economy workers. The key thing to understand is that in Canada, ALL income is taxable regardless of source or amount. There's no "minimum threshold" before you have to report it. For FeetFinder specifically, this would definitely be considered self-employment income since you're providing a service/product for payment. You'll report it on Form T2125 as part of your personal tax return. One thing people often miss is that you can deduct legitimate business expenses against this income - things like photography equipment, props, a portion of your internet/phone bills, and yes, even personal grooming expenses if they're directly related to your business. Just make sure to keep all receipts and that the expenses are reasonable. Also, don't forget about CPP contributions - you'll need to pay both the employee and employer portions on your self-employment income, which can be a surprise for first-time self-employed folks. Plan to set aside about 25-30% of your earnings for taxes and CPP.
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Miguel Silva
•This is super helpful info! I'm new to all this tax stuff and had no idea about the CPP contributions part. When you say set aside 25-30%, is that just a general rule or does it depend on your regular job income too? Like if I'm already in a higher tax bracket from my day job, would I need to set aside more from my side hustle earnings?
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Sydney Torres
•@Miguel Silva Great question! Yes, your marginal tax rate from your day job absolutely affects how much you should set aside. The 25-30% I mentioned is a general starting point, but if you re'already in a higher tax bracket, you ll'need to set aside more. For example, if your day job already puts you in the 30% marginal tax bracket, then your side hustle income will also be taxed at that rate plus (CPP contributions .)So you might need to set aside 35-40% or even more depending on your province. The key is that your side hustle income gets added on top of your regular employment income, so it s'taxed at your highest marginal rate. I always recommend my clients calculate their marginal tax rate including (provincial tax and) add about 10% for CPP contributions to get a better estimate of what to set aside. Better to overestimate and get a refund than to owe money at tax time!
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Liam Murphy
Just wanted to add a practical tip that's helped me a lot - open a separate bank account specifically for your side hustle income and expenses. This makes tracking everything SO much easier at tax time. I deposit all my platform earnings into this dedicated account and use it to pay for any business-related expenses. At the end of the year, I just need to look at one account statement instead of trying to sort through all my personal transactions to find the business ones. Also, consider using a simple spreadsheet or app to track your monthly earnings and expenses as you go. I learned this the hard way after my first year when I had to dig through hundreds of screenshots and receipts trying to piece everything together. Now I just spend 10 minutes each month updating my records and tax time is a breeze! The key is setting up good systems from the start rather than trying to organize everything retroactively.
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GalaxyGlider
•This is such solid advice! I wish someone had told me about the separate bank account thing when I first started. I spent hours last tax season trying to categorize transactions and figure out which purchases were actually business-related vs personal. Do you have any recommendations for which bank to use for this? I'm wondering if there are any that don't charge monthly fees for business accounts, or if I should just open a second personal account and use that instead?
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