Legality of Being an Internet Marketer

Talk to a lawyer in your country who knows the law on this subject.

What is an employment support officer and why does he need you to be self-employed?

You need to declare yourself self-employed for tax purposes in order to declare your income. That doesn't necessarily mean you need to be registered as a business.

You usually need to have a registered business with a tax-exempt form to be eligible to purchase wholesale through a distributer.

If your employment support officer is some kind of agent to help you qualify for unemployment subsidies, welfare, government assistance, or other program, then having the business registered may be a condition of the program.

It depends on your tax laws. In Canada you can work for yourself as the sole-proprietor of an unregistered business and simply declare all the income as personal income. There is no requirement to be registered as a business.

If you make a lot of money, it may be to your benefit to register as a business to take advantage of business tax benefits and reduce personal liability for some business risks.

You don't have to worry too much about this issue if you are not yet making money in your country. But it will be something to consider down the road if you plan on making sufficient income.

I am in Canada and you don't need a registered business but it is an asset. The government over here just wants us to report all income earned.

However, I do have an incorporation and a professional 'Certified Chartered Accountant' who does my tax preparation.

Keep in mind that I was a 'self employed' truck driver before coming into IM. So I needed the corp. I still use it now.

Just like Tsnyder said, speak to a lawyer in your country or a tax specialist to better understand the rules there.

I'm in the UK too.

If you're earning any income from "internet marketing" then yes, you need to register as self-employed with HMRC (this can be in addition to a full time job) and complete a tax return each year.

You don't need to "register as a business" unless you're earning above £81,000 per year, at which point you need to register to pay VAT. https://www.gov.uk/vat-registration/when-to-register

In the UK, people generally register as self-employed if they're working for themselves and not on the full-time payroll of someone else's business. If you're working for yourself, you can be classed as a sole proprietor, a partnership, or you can form a limited company. Each option has its own benefits and requirements, so speak to an accountant or a qualified legal agent about your own situation.

That's not really an alternative. If you're receiving any payments for services or products you provide, you'll need to declare them (once you're registered as self-employed, you'll be required to submit an annual tax return). Unless your annual earnings are below the taxable limit, they're subject to income tax. If you're serious about your business, you should go and discuss your situation with a tax accountant.


Frank

Anyone can "work in Internet marketing." What he's talking about relates more to earning income, paying taxes, and legally working out of your home.

In the U.S., you have to claim personal income and you do that be declaring a structure for your business. Even if you just receive PayPal payments from eBay or elsewhere, once your income from that effort reaches a certain level, you are considered "in business" and must account for that somehow.

And usually, if you work out of your home, your local jurisdiction (city) and state (for registration and state taxes) will also want you to have a business license.

So yes, the best thing to do is talk to a legal professional and complete the steps to setting up a legal business (wherever you live).

Steve

Always talk to a tax professional and never listen to anybody that doesn't own a successful internet business or isn't a professional at handling home based business law. This guy can say anything doesn't mean he knows what he is talking about. Eventually when your business online starts growing you can turn in into an LLC for tax purposes. You don't need a business license to be in business, or to sell products and services online but you will probably have report your income earned depending on wherever in the world you are.