When it comes to filing taxes in Chicago, many residents believe that they don’t have to file taxes because they were not paid via a W2, 1099, or with cash payments. However, even if you don’t receive cash in exchange for work done, if you receive property or you “bartered” services, you have to report the FAIR MARKET VALUE of the service/property as SELF EMPLOYMENT INCOME!
For example, let’s say one of my baker friends wanted to pay me with cakes (a girl can dream can’t she?) to prepare her taxes, and I agreed to take 5 $50 cakes in exchange for my tax preparation services. Once our transaction was done, the IRS would expect me to report the value of those cakes, and pay self employment taxes on the value of the services/property that what we bartered! Don’t believe me? Read the law for yourself below.
Per the IRS: “Bartering is an exchange of property or services. You must include in your income, at the time received, the fair market value of property or services you receive in bartering. If you exchange services with another person and you both have agreed ahead of time on the value of the services, that value will be accepted as fair market value unless the value can be shown to be otherwise. Generally, you report this income on Schedule C (Form 1040) or Schedule C-EZ (Form 1040). However, if the barter involves an exchange of something other than services, such as in Example 4, later, you may have to use another form or schedule instead.”
FACT CHECK me with IRS publication 525 PAGE 19. I’ve included the link to the IRS tax publication here: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p525.pdf
Although we’ve given you the basics, this is not an all-inclusive article. Should you have tax debt help questions, need Chicago business tax preparation, business entity creation, business insurance, or business compliance assistance please contact us online, or call our office toll free at 1-855-743-5765 or locally in Chicago or Indiana at 1-708-529-6604. Make sure to join our newsletter for more tips on reducing taxes, and increasing your wealth.
Never miss another tip again! Join our newsletter, to receive tax reduction/wealth building tips delivered right to your inbox!
SMALL BIZ TAX LADY 