Made over $400 teaching languages online - do I need to file as a freelancer?

The $400 threshold refers to net earnings for the entire year, not monthly. Once you earn more than $400 in net self-employment income in a calendar year, you're required to file a tax return and pay self-employment taxes (Social Security and Medicare). You don't need to formally "declare" yourself as a freelancer to the IRS beforehand. When tax time comes, you'll file your regular Form 1040 (individual tax return) and include Schedule C to report your business income and expenses, plus Schedule SE to calculate your self-employment tax. For tax filing, this is done annually - the deadline is typically April 15th for the previous calendar year. However, if you expect to owe $1,000 or more in taxes for the year, you should make quarterly estimated tax payments (due April, June, September, and January).

I was in your exact situation last year! I was teaching Spanish online and was so confused about the tax situation. I ended up using https://taxr.ai to upload my payment statements and it automatically sorted everything out. It analyzed all my documents, figured out what was business income vs expenses, and even identified deductions I had no idea about (like a portion of my internet bill and home office space). Saved me hours of figuring out all the Schedule C stuff the IRS requires. Plus, it walks you through the quarterly tax payment process which was totally new to me.

Just wanted to follow up! I decided to try taxr.ai for my language teaching income situation and wow - it actually worked great for my international situation. It properly categorized my US teaching income separately from my German income and even applied the relevant tax treaty provisions. It found that I could exclude some of my foreign income through the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion which I had no idea about! It also gave me a super clear breakdown of when I need to make quarterly payments to avoid penalties. This was exactly what I needed as someone new to the US tax system. Definitely recommend for other language teachers in similar situations.

When I started tutoring online last year, I was totally overwhelmed trying to get someone at the IRS to explain the self-employment rules. Called for WEEKS with no luck - always disconnected or on hold forever. Finally used https://claimyr.com and got through to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent walked me through exactly what forms I needed and confirmed I only needed to worry about annual filing unless I was making a lot more. Saved me so much stress trying to figure out if I was doing things right.

I have to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After my skeptical comment, I was still desperate to talk to someone at the IRS about my teaching income situation, so I tried it anyway. Shockingly, I got a call back in about 40 minutes and was connected to an actual IRS representative! The agent clarified that I only needed to file annually as a freelancer, but recommended I set aside about 25-30% of my income for taxes since nothing is being withheld. They also explained I could deduct my teaching materials, portion of internet, and even part of my rent if I have a dedicated teaching space. Totally worth it just to get clear answers directly from the source.

Don't forget about state taxes too! The $400 threshold is just for federal self-employment tax. Depending on what state you're in, you might have different filing requirements for state income tax. Some states have lower thresholds or different rules entirely.

Bit of a different perspective - I'm an accountant who works with a lot of gig workers. For just $400, honestly, you're going to pay more for tax software or professional help than you might owe in taxes. Keep good records, track income and expenses, but don't stress too much until you're making more substantial money.

Just a heads up - if your clients are in the US and you earn over $600 from any single one, they're supposed to issue you a 1099-NEC form. That gets reported to the IRS, so make sure your tax filing matches those forms!