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Income tax calculator for
Freelance Photographer in California
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Self Employed Freelance photographer Taxes
These SE taxes are used to pay:
- Federal Income tax
- State income tax
- Self-employment taxes
- Social security
- Medicaid/medicare
Apart from these above-mentioned taxes, freelancers and self-employed workers also have to pay for:
- Capital gains taxes: both short term and long term gains
- AMT or Alternative Minimum Taxes for those earning over $100k annually
According to the IRS, self-employed workers who earn less than $400 annually don't have to pay the Self Employment tax.
Moreover, the self-employment tax is considered a tax-deductible expense. Although the tax is charged on a taxpayer’s business profit, the IRS counts the 'employer' half of the self-employment tax, or 7.65% (calculated as half of 15.3%), as a business deduction for purposes of calculating that taxpayer's income tax.
Tax rates for Freelance photographers in California
The state of California requires you to pay taxes if you are a resident or nonresident that receives income from an California source. California has a flat income tax, which means that everyone, regardless of income, is taxed at the same rate.
The income tax rate in California is 4.95%, after an increase from 3.75% in 2017. California also has higher-than-average sales taxes and property taxes.
The following table represents the California Income Tax Brackets and Rates:
Single Filer/Married Filed Separately
Married Filing Jointly
Head of Household
Single Filer/Married Filed Separately
A single filer represents the person who is unmarried and does not qualify for any other filing status. Generally, the tax rates and brackets that apply to single filers also apply to individuals who are married but file their taxes separately.
Married Filing Jointly
Married filing jointly represents the tax filing status available to married couples who were married by Dec. 31 of the tax year. Couples who file their taxes as Married Filing Jointly, get the most tax breaks.
Head of Household
Head of Household is a filing status for single or unmarried taxpayers who keep up a home for a Qualifying Person (child, relative, boyfriend/girlfriend, or any dependent). The Head of Household filing status has some major tax advantages over the Single filing status such as a lower tax rate and a higher standard deduction.
Deductions & Credits
The following table represents the California state tax standard deduction rate based on one’s filing status:
If you are dependent within the state of California, you can claim a personal exemption of up to $1,000.
FlyFin’s California Freelance Tax Calculator can help you figure out your tax liability with ease.
Personal exemption
According to the IRS, a personal exemption refers to an amount that a resident taxpayer is entitled to claim as a tax deduction against personal income in calculating taxable income and consequently federal income tax.
Freelancers in California
- California have a freelance population of 44,720 and have a market cap of $1.6bn in 2019
- On an average freelancers spend 25 hour a week at their work in USA. 40% works fewer than 20 hours per week and 6% work more than 50 hour per week
- In the period from 2012-2017 revenue from freelance contractors has grown to 6% and number of freelancers have grown to 4%
44,720
Freelance
population
$1.6 bn
Revenue
Income
1% of the GDP
freelancers in 2022
independent
contractor
earn $50,000
Freelance
growth
Revenue
growth
Freelance photographer Tax Deduction in California | FlyFin
The following represents some of the top tax deductions for Freelance photographers in California
Photography equipment
As a photographer, any photography-related equipment such as cameras, lenses, tripods, etc., are deductible
Creative and Editing software
As a photographer, you can deduct the cost of editing software like Lightroom and Adobe Premiere
Online advertising
Any advertising and marketing expenses are deductible such as promotional and public relations expenses, online activities, producing advertising materials, costs of advertising events, etc
Print advertising
Posters, banners, and pamphlets used for advertising purposes are deductible. Any newspapers and magazine advertisements are also deductible
Electronics
Use of phones, laptops, and other electronic devices for your photography business is deductible
Studio expenses
If you have a studio, whether at home or some designated place, all the expenses associated with it are deductible. You can deduct a portion of your home office expenses such as rent, utilities, mortgage, etc. This freelance photographer tax deduction is highly beneficial.
Creative assistance costs
If you hire an editor, designer, or set assistant to help you, you can write off their wages
Business cards
Any expenses incurred while developing your business cards are deductible. So your business cards and pamphlets are all deductibles
Conferences & classes
If you decide to attend a conference or online program that happens to help you in your trade, you can deduct its fees. Similarly, you can deduct the tuition fees for any course you pursue related to your profession
Data storage
The cost of an external hard disk, SD tablet, cloud storage is a legitimate business expense
Phone & accessories
Generally, your cell phone is only partially deductible because of personal use. However, if you only purchase a separate mobile phone for business use, it'd be 100% tax-deductible
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