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sammii
01-21-2012, 04:25 AM
I agree. Melonie is a sweetheart; she always takes the time to answer my questions about taxes.

Melonie
01-21-2012, 04:37 AM
with encoders (which many major sites (LJ, cams.com, SM) push heavily and penalize for not using them with crappy placement, etc.) the sites servers are not even involved with your stream anymore. It goes directly from your encoder to the flash page cust is viewing. OK, I'm not an expert but from what I gather it's like using an IM program where both parties communicate directly within the program without any intermediary servers in between.

Yes this is yet another reaction to higher bandwidth costs ... webcam hosts 'off-loading' bandwidth requirements to the camgirl and her ISP via establishing direct camgirl to customer video streaming. Unfortunately, more and more ISP's are starting to react to rapidly increasing bandwidth usage by supposedly 'residential' customers via instituting monthly bandwidth 'caps', by introducing graduated monthly ISP bills for different bandwidth 'cap' levels, by instituting 'overage' charges for bandwidth used beyond the amount of the 'cap' etc. Some ISP's are more subtle, in that they now deliberately 'slow down' transmission rates once the 'cap' has been exceeded to make HD webcam uploads or HD video downloads ( i.e. Netflix ) annoyingly slow. From an economic standpoint, this approach will also gradually weed out 'marginal' camgirls ... once they are faced with having to pony up $250+ a month in ISP charges out of their own pocket for unlimited bandwidth high speed ISP service. The AT&T's, Time Warners, British Telecoms, Verizons etc. of the world are already pushing very hard for regulatory approvals in this regard. I give them a year before unlimited bandwidth high speed ISP service for $50 a month becomes a permanent relic of the past !!!



Well spoken, highly knowledgeable, and huge knockers! No wonder the guys love you.

With a few notable exceptions, guys generally react better when I play the dumb blonde with huge knockers ! And I would never have had the 'learning experience' of listening to countless stockbrokers / bankers / businessmen / politicians talk 'shop' with each other in Manhattan VIP rooms if those guys had any idea that the big boobed blonde squirming on their lap also understood every single word they were saying !



she always takes the time to answer my questions about taxes

After learning about taxes myself the HARD way ... I consider it sort of my 'duty' to try and help the next generation of girls to avoid running into the same pitfalls that I did. And both the tax situation as well as the 'adult industry' work situation in general have become become far more complex than they were when I first started, making the potential 'pits' much deeper and darker.

kikiwiki
01-21-2012, 06:43 AM
Thanks Melonie! You ROCK! Can we please make this thread a sticky? You've given us tons of valuable info that will save us bucketloads of $$$!

On a side note, one of my subs bought your "Boobs" dvd for me off my wishlist for x-mas! Loved it! And I love your boobs! xoxoxo

alys
01-21-2012, 09:30 AM
when melonie mentions that


The 2011 tax return 'season' will be the first time that these newly added IRS resources will be 'unleashed' ...

does that mean that this year (2012) they're going to be examining camming (and others) sites more closely tax wise?

Cam_chick
01-21-2012, 09:53 AM
Again, I think someone should make a thread with as much of this info concisely worded so that new cam girls can see it without having to sift through some of the cross talk. If someone else doesn't do it soon I'll do my best, but I know others who are more informed might do a better job. I'm going to PM isobel about it :)

Thank you so much for the info Melonie. I'm still going to hope one day that SM starts paying more, but I now I can see at least part of the reason they don't which makes me feel a bit more positive.

Melonie
01-21-2012, 10:19 AM
The 2011 tax return 'season' will be the first time that these newly added IRS resources will be 'unleashed' ...

does that mean that this year (2012) they're going to be examining camming (and others) sites more closely tax wise?


Well, the IRS has announced that they will be focusing targeted enforcement towards 'cash' businesses ... which could include anything from cab drivers to exotic dancers. And for a fact the IRS was authorized under the National Health Care law to hire thousands of additional agents last year. And the IRS has also announced that it will now be paying a LOT more attention to 'foreign' financial transactions involving US citizens as the result of the UBS Swiss Bank secrecy / tax evasion affair. As to whether or not that will specifically result in increased IRS scrutiny towards the adult webcam industry this year versus previous years, I have no way to know for sure. But logic at least dictates that the level of IRS scrutiny isn't likely to be reduced !!!


On a side note, one of my subs bought your "Boobs" dvd for me off my wishlist for x-mas! Loved it! And I love your boobs! xoxoxo

Thanks ... that DVD probably wasn't what you expected, was it ? Actually the most difficult part of making that DVD was 'clearing out' a strip club to shoot the stage footage without having to deal with photo releases from every club customer. That DVD was also my last major 'project' before my retirement. I'm still hoping that SkinaMax or another cable channel will pick it up ... that would be a nice 'retirement bonus'. In case anybody else is wondering what we're talking about, see ( shameless plug )

PS love your boobs as well !!! How can you not love boobs that are capable of can crushing LOL !!!

alys
01-21-2012, 11:21 AM
did you guys know ron paul wants to abolish income tax & irs ?
whether or not he has capabilities of doing so might be questionable...

Melonie
01-21-2012, 11:40 AM
^^^ yes that's part of the 'libertarian' philosophy. It's also part of America's history, in that the country existed without an income tax for the first 150 years or so.

But going back to that would also force the end of many gov't programs that were instituted after the US income tax was created, and which are funded by the income tax ... among them medicaid, food stamps, welfare, low income housing / FHA, wall street bailouts, green energy subsidies / DOE, and a long list of others ... which in turn would ( again ) force both individual Americans and American businesses to directly bear the consequences of their actions ( or lack thereof ). But this line of discussion is probably not permitted under the SW politics ban.

And in any case, with some 16% of Americans now dependent on food stamps, with some 47% of Americans not being required to actually pay income taxes, and with something approaching 20% of American workers' paychecks now being derived from gov't tax coffers ( direct gov't employees, gov't contractors, etc. ) there is no realistic possibility that the US income tax will be voted out of existance. In fact, with 47% of Americans not actually being required to pay an income tax, and with something approaching 20% of Americans being dependent on income tax revenues to fund their paychecks, the odds favor an INCREASE in future US income tax rates. The principle is referred to as 'tyranny of the majority' and is discussed in detail at An applicable quote from that link is (snip)“The government who robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul”(snip)

Political overtones aside, the pertinent point in this thread is that the 'minority' of self-employed American business persons ... including exotic dancers and camgirls ... have been, and will continue to be, prime targets for high tax rates !!! Unlike 'silicon valley', we are not in a position to lobby the gov't for special tax 'loopholes'. Unlike the aerospace or green energy industries, we do not derive any significant portion of our incomes from gov't spending. And unlike the auto industry or direct gov't workers, we do not have major unions ( nor millions in union dues for political contributions ) to influence gov't tax policy. Historically speaking, self-employed American business persons are the closest thing to the 'original' American entrepreneur spirit that still exists today. And that is precisely the reason that we'll remain prime targets for high tax rates !!!

goreantx
01-22-2012, 11:31 PM
There is no limit to how much you can make doing this job. Just make way more than you could ever spend, and writing that tax check won't seem so bad anymore. Don't make enough to pay your bills, make way more than that.

Breee
01-24-2012, 09:14 AM
this job has literally been a dream come true. but i failed to think of taxes, luckily i've just been saving saving saving, but its sad now that my savings arent going to be as much as i hoped >.< I would love it if someone had some advice on taxes in canada... I've only done taxes once and it was for a retail job and was straight forward easy. this seems a lot harder and considering it is 'adult' work, i'm not sure just any tax person you can hire to help would really know all the ins&outs

Melonie
01-24-2012, 04:04 PM
I'm not all that familiar with Canadian taxes, but two things do stick in my mind. The first is that you must register as a Canadian Business ... and failure to do so involves hefty fines. The second is that the combined tax rate on camgirl business earnings will be higher in Canada than it is in the USA ( the figure of 40% was mentioned ).

Of course, in exchange for that 40% effective tax rate, Canadians also get 'free' health care !

sammii
01-25-2012, 05:03 AM
Of course, in exchange for that 40% effective tax rate, Canadians also get 'free' health care !
Wow, sweet deal. I wish the US would follow suit.

CocoLovesYou
01-25-2012, 09:17 PM
I'm in college and my tuition is completely taken care of. I cam to save money for grad school and to use as "pocket money." Camming is completely worth it in regards to my situation. However, if camming were to be a full time job then I would have to make WAY more money for me to consider it a worthwhile job. But older, more established people always tell me "a job isn't worth having if you don't love it."

Milaa
01-28-2012, 06:21 AM
For me, camming is absolutely worth it.
I make a nice amount of money every week, I'm not a top cam model on any website I'm on but I sure can live off it and go out for drinks and go shopping every month if I
don't spend ridiculous amount of money.

I live in Europe so the taxes might be different for me, but I still make more money that someone who has a 9 - 5 office job,
I make my own hours, work from home, and decide when I take hours or a day off.
It might not make a millionaire, but I can live off it and have a lot of freedom to decorate my life the way I want it, so that is worth a lot to me.

MissKatie
01-28-2012, 07:09 AM
I just found out that we have to pay our first year taxes and then MORE (An extra 50%) the second year in UK! What the hell? How crazy is that. It actually penalises new business in my opinion.

Fridays
01-28-2012, 09:09 AM
MissKatie, Finally I can tell you too : welcome to camming !! :P

Vlodina
01-29-2012, 03:39 AM
I just found out that we have to pay our first year taxes and then MORE (An extra 50%) the second year in UK! What the hell? How crazy is that. It actually penalises new business in my opinion.

I was absolutely horrified when I discovered that too. I never read anything about that when I was reading up on taxes earlier in the year. Only found out when doing the self assessment! Thankfully, the year I just filed for only included being self employed (as PSO) for a couple of weeks while still working elsewhere (was employed the rest of that year period) so I ended up only owing £24 tax and no advance payment on the next year. Phew.

Melonie
01-29-2012, 04:33 AM
^^^ again, businesses in general ... and small businesses like self-employed camgirls in particular ... are a very popular 'target' for high tax rates !!! If you live in the US or other major countries that do NOT have national health care, you're probably going to wind up paying something in the 30% ballpark. If you live in the UK or Canada or other major countries that DO have national health care, you're probably going to wind up paying something like 40%. There 'ain't no such thing as a free lunch'.

Incantatious
01-29-2012, 08:27 AM
Wait... What is all this about 2nd year UK taxes? They charge more the 2nd year?? Oh sweet Jesus.
Anyone got any links about this? :(

MissKatie
01-29-2012, 05:36 PM
Melonie, in UK 40% is higher rate tax band which you only fall into if your total income from all sources after deductions is over £35,000 i believe. I've been working out how much I need to earn and there is a very fine line between the two tax bands, especially if you have a very good year! However, I believe you can always make a pretty large purchase for the business before the tax year ends and thereby bring it back under the threshold again;D

Incantatious I actually don't know myself, still researching. I will let you know when i find out.

katamarilover
01-31-2012, 01:48 AM
Hi,

I'm new here but have found a goldmine of info thus far. I have a pretty significant question regarding camming and the legality of it considering my situation. I've read through several threads about taxes and camming, including a thread that held a topic close to mine, but not close enough for me to be comfortable accepting the information as true.

I live in the U.S. but I am not a legal resident. No green card, citizenship, visa, etc, but I did enter the country legally. I am originally from Australia and am wondering if it's at all possible for me to be able to cam without IRS issues or any other legal issues because of my residential status (or lack there-of)? The idea of being paid through an Australian bank account crossed my mind, but pretty sure that IRS will flip out about that. I realize I may have to abandon the idea, just wanting to know if there's a workaround or not before I do.

I'm hoping that it's possible, thanks ladies!

sammii
01-31-2012, 04:00 AM
^ You're going to need a work permit if you're a non-resident working in the US.

Edit: Nevermind, listen to Melonie. :)

Melonie
01-31-2012, 04:10 AM
I am originally from Australia and am wondering if it's at all possible for me to be able to cam without IRS issues or any other legal issues because of my residential status (or lack there-of)? The idea of being paid through an Australian bank account crossed my mind, but pretty sure that IRS will flip out about that.

A similar issue was raised in regard to a US citizen camgirl who was planning to visit ( and cam from ) a European country. While I'm certainly not an attorney or accountant, the general 'take-away' was this. Camming from a foreign country is not a violation of that country's work visa laws as long as none of the camming money earned is brought into that foreign country. In your particular case, this would probably mean that you can cam from America to your heart's content as long as the money you earn is being deposited in an Australian bank.

However, that leaves you with a second issue of how to 'legally' transfer that money into the USA to meet your living expenses etc. You can legally 'carry in' US $9,999 at a time via Qantas ! You can legally make purchases in the USA using an Australian bank backed credit / debit card. You can legally wire transfer funds from an Australian bank to a US bank ( but not directly to an individual US bank account ).

BritishBecky
01-31-2012, 04:30 AM
For the UK girls
yes the tax year runs April to April. But, because the date for filing and paying is January, which is more than six months later, they make you pay a half year on top of the April-April. It's not actually in advance - you have already earned the money subject to the tax payment because this money was made from the April at the end of the last tax year to the October prior to the January you are filing and paying in. It's complicated - but it's not an advance payment. If you set aside each month then it works out right. (and yes, I've done this wrong before and ended up with a huge bill!)

In relation to tax bands. Don't forget, the advertised tax bands DO NOT include mandatory national insurance - which is an additional 8%.

amberose
01-31-2012, 06:12 PM
Another thing to keep in mind is that camming is especially "worth it" if you have the motivation and interest to make this a career, especially if you also combine this with other forms of online "adult entertainment" and address it with a professional attitude. It's up to you...do you want to make 30k a year or 80k a year (post taxes)? You're only limited by your creativity, resourcefulness and the amount of time you want to put into it (not including disabilities or other obligations, of course, in which case camming may just be very convenient).

SunShines_City
01-31-2012, 08:38 PM
Everything that you said makes a lot of since. Thank goodness for good genes, but the truth is I'm on barrowed time, and I'm building a business of my own that I love.So camming is funding the other business and taking care of the bills.

naturalbeautyDDD
02-01-2012, 03:54 AM
Kinda sounds like you might want to switch things up or change sites, I have been camming for about 4 months and usually make at least 40 an hour, and if I go on from 3am - 7am california time I can usually make 60.
Totally worth it for me even after taxes, don't forget to use everything for tax deductions....keep receipts for internet, any electronics used for camming, toys, outfits....EVERYTHING!!!!
It's really nice to be in control of how much I work, when, and to an extent how much I make. I was a bartender before this and had to deal with way more BS for a lot less money and worry about Bar owners firing me if I had a couple shitty shifts or if a fight broke out on my shift etc.
I'm very thankful for camming, I love the independence and security it gives me!

goddessc
02-06-2012, 03:13 PM
Hi ladies. I just got my taxes done and thought what I learned might help some others out. I'm in the US btw
First of all I went to Liberty Tax and they charged me $300! Yikes!
If you do get a 1099 AND worked a non self-employed job (one where you get a W-2) in 2011 you may owe very little or get a small refund back!
Regarding the quarterly estimate tax payments: As I understand it, if you think you will owe more than $1000 in taxes for the entire year then you need to pay quarterly. The IRS charges you 8% APR interest in penalties if you dont! But if you have another non-self employed job then you most likely will not need to make quarterly payments.
Also, the more complex your return is the more the tax service charges! I just had a 1099, a W-2; single, no dependents, and didn't want to do any deductions and it came to $315 in fees : /
I asked the taxman what my return would have looked like if I didn't have a W-2 and he said I would have owed approx 22% of what I made on the 1099.
Also be prepared to tell the taxperson what you would like your occupation listed as and what kind of business the 1099 was issued from lol.

Melonie
02-06-2012, 03:19 PM
I asked the taxman what my return would have looked like if I didn't have a W-2 and he said I would have owed approx 22% of what I made on the 1099.

That's the right ballpark for 'part time' camming earnings.

CinnimonKiss
02-06-2012, 07:02 PM
Hey i have a question for anyone who uses turbotax. I have only made roughly like $6000 for 2011, and I was wondering do i need to use the "home/ business" package or could I use the "deluxe". The reason im asking is because i made so little this past year (started camming in OCT) and the home/business one costs like $80.00 and im wondering if i can do what i need to do with the cheaper deluxe package?

fallout_grrl
02-06-2012, 07:18 PM
^^ Cinimon, I use the personal + business editions.

Melonie
02-07-2012, 12:26 AM
for whatever tax prep software you choose, if you have 1099 income it MUST be able to do Schedule C. For TurboTax, the least expensive version that can do Schedule C is 'Home & Business'.

yyyrrrrtt
02-12-2012, 12:08 PM
If you have income below $31,000 (income net of IRA and moving expenses) I would try using the free version first and see if it works for you
e.g. http://turbotax.intuit.com/taxfreedom/
They advertise as a 1040 thing but do support schedule cs, 1099s and other forms. (just click on the right to see the " federal forms supported" or just click through a mock run of the free website to see it works.

Some business deductions could be:
- Based on $ Sq Footage: Portion of rent, internet, utilities (this set is usually the biggest)
- Portion of car (for trip to buy equipment, clothing etc.)
- Computer, speakers and software
- Furniture for your "home office" (desk, chair, table etc)
- You might be able to expense clothing purchases that are "not everyday attire"
- Job hunting expenses (if you traveled to any auditions, interviews etc.)
- Moving expenses (if you moved this year)

The "Home and Business" one I think provides the most guidance but it's also $$$s so only if you need to..



Hey i have a question for anyone who uses turbotax. I have only made roughly like $6000 for 2011, and I was wondering do i need to use the "home/ business" package or could I use the "deluxe". The reason im asking is because i made so little this past year (started camming in OCT) and the home/business one costs like $80.00 and im wondering if i can do what i need to do with the cheaper deluxe package?

Holly_xoxo
02-13-2012, 02:59 PM
I used the TurboTax standard version and it looks like I'll actually get about 400$ back. I didnt make much last year since I was camming part time but was still worried that I would owe.
At first it said I did owe close to 700 but there was a section for "working income tax benefit" that was over 1000....they deducted what I owed from that and it left me with a few hundred...phew! that was a relief.
I am in Canada so I'm not sure if other countries have that tax benefit

Fridays
02-14-2012, 07:58 AM
Melonie, I have a question for you.. hope you;re reading this..
I will see an accountant on thurs. and I willl ask them , I researched a bit online but could not find the answer quick and clear..and im so anxious to find out..
If I make a real estate investment abroad ( house, apart), with the purpose of having a cam studio there, is this tax deductible and how?
I remember from my accounting classes in college... you cant deduct all of it... maybe lets say 10% first year , for 10 years..
BUT.. Im planning to " retire" from camming in 1-2 years, can I deduct 50 % and 50 %?
How does this work?
Thank you..

Melonie
02-15-2012, 03:46 AM
^^^ unless you are incorporated in a foreign country, or living as an expatriate, involving an 'offshore' business property is going to be extremely difficult. The reason stems from the fact that camming income earned via that 'offshore' business property may be subject to the US foreign income exclusion ... and the IRS hates having to allow deductions against incomes they are not ( legally ) collecting income taxes on !

Fridays
02-15-2012, 08:01 AM
thank you Melonie :)

CinnimonKiss
02-15-2012, 11:43 AM
Hey to anyone who has yet to file their taxes do it with H&R block online(just like TurboTax). Its great! My husband and I used the "Deluxe" package, filed jointly and everything went fine, we didnt need to upgrade to the "Premium" package for my self employed part, but my income for 2011 was low, so maybe thats why it was alright using the Deluxe instead of the Premium. Also we actually filled all our taxes out with TurboTax and our return was going to be a few hundred lower then when we got our result with H&R Block!! I dunnoo why ?? but haha thats why I'm recommending them. :) Very pleased.

Fridays
02-17-2012, 08:20 AM
so I went to this one accountant yesterday and when he saw my 1099;s he asked
" wow.. and u did not get audited yet"?
I was like.." wtf ,.. why would I"
-
going back to my last year's accountant who did not ask me this stupid question and did not constantly say " red flags" when talking to me...

Fridays
02-18-2012, 07:18 AM
Melonie, are the money that I spent with other models in private..... considered " research", therefor tax deducible..?
Because thats what I was actually doing..researching..

its around $200 for the whole year...

thank u..

Melonie
02-18-2012, 11:25 AM
^^^ you can TRY to deduct just about anything as a 'business expense'. Whether or not the IRS agrees with your interpretation or not is a whole 'nuther story.

GlamourRouge
02-18-2012, 06:39 PM
are the money that I spent with other models in private..... considered " research", therefor tax deducible..?
Because thats what I was actually doing..researching..

I would think, yes, you can deduct it. If you have the receipts (or credit card statement) for it, you can deduct it as long as you can argue its purpose toward your business. But I'd ask your tax person IMO.

alys
02-19-2012, 12:10 PM
so I went to this one accountant yesterday and when he saw my 1099;s he asked
" wow.. and u did not get audited yet"?
I was like.." wtf ,.. why would I"
-
going back to my last year's accountant who did not ask me this stupid question and did not constantly say " red flags" when talking to me...

red flag? why? what were you doing wrong?? why would they audit u????

Fridays
02-19-2012, 08:22 PM
red flag? why? what were you doing wrong?? why would they audit u????
I dont know. I am not doing anything wrong.,
I will update here when I see my other accountant ...................

Melonie
02-20-2012, 04:26 AM
'Red Flags' waving at the IRS generally stem from excessive claims of business expense tax deductions, comparatively low levels of reported income versus automatic reports of high spending that the reported income level can't explain etc.

Fridays
02-20-2012, 10:46 AM
My business related expenses, this year are about 13% of the total income..
Im not an accountant but this does not seem "high" to me..

Crustyz
02-20-2012, 03:45 PM
Could someone please tell me where to find the tax forms? Are they at the post office?

Melonie
02-20-2012, 03:57 PM
Could someone please tell me where to find the tax forms? Are they at the post office?

If you really want to do this 'on paper', you can find every tax form at your local public library. However, if you go with Turbo Tax for Home and Business, or another tax prep program, the program will generate all of the necessary tax forms.

Also, if you live in a state that levees its own income tax, you may now have a problem with doing taxes 'on paper'. Some states will now ONLY accept e-filed tax returns.

Fridays
02-20-2012, 04:59 PM
Melonie, your amazing!:)

DominicanDream
02-21-2012, 12:08 PM
I've been reading this thread and it's very informative. I know little to nothing about this because it's my first time ever filing for camming.

I made about 8500 this year from camming, and after deductions, I will have around 6000 or less of taxable income. It isn't as bad as I thought it would be, I'll owe about 1500...which, in reality, I can make in about a week. So I'm keeping things in perspective.

I can make what I owe (this time) in taxes for the YEAR in a week or two. Obviously next year will be different because I will have made significantly more. So this time, I'll be sure to actually put money to the side. Lesson learned.