First place to start is to realize that as a dancer you are highly likely to fall into the tax classification of Independent Contractor - Sole Proprietor Business.
The basic form you have to file is form 1040. The IRS has instructions available at
http://www.irs.ustreas.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040gi.pdf . However, because you work as an independent contractor - sole proprietor business, you need to file additional forms since the 1040 form itself is geared towards employees who receive paychecks.
Your dancing income gets reported on an additional form called Schedule C - the IRS has instructions for Schedule C at
http://www.irs.ustreas.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040sc.pdf . It is basically a substitute allowing you to figure out the total income you had for the year, something that employers automatically figure out for employees receiving paychecks and report on a W2 form (which you won't receive).
One good thing about being considered an Independent Contractor and not an employee is that you're allowed to write off expenses against your Schedule C income by including another form called 2106. The IRS has instructions for this at
http://www.irs.ustreas.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f2106.pdf
Besides the basic income tax on your earnings, you'll also have to pay a Self Employment tax, which requires an additional form as well. The IRS has an applicable basic instruction sheet at
http://www.irs.ustreas.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p533.pdf . This is basically a substitute for the Social Security tax withheld from employee paychecks.
And besides filing a tax return and paying income taxes once a year, you'll also have to file estimated tax forms and pay estimated taxes every three months. The IRS has instructions at
http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-fill/f1040e03.pdf . This is basically a substitute for employees having ordinary income tax withheld from their paycheck every week and having that money automatically sent to the IRS by their employer.
If you've never filed income taxes before, I highly recommend investing in a program called TurboTax. Not only does it automatically fill out all of these forms for you, but it also prompts you to think of all sorts of potential business expense write-offs and other tax deductions. Best of all, it keeps you from doing anything stupid or forgetting anything essential, which could potentially send up a red flag for an IRS audit. It's sold directly from the company's website at
http://www.intuit.com , or all of the discount retailers have it also. But make absolutely sure that you get the version called "Turbo Tax Premier Home and Business" - the regular cheap version for individuals does not handle independent contractor - sole proprietor businesses, and the deluxe business version has stuff for Corporations, LLC's etc which you don't need ! Also be sure to get the matching state income tax program at the same time, because every state with an income tax of its own requires that you fill out and file a rough State equivalent form to all of the IRS federal forms.
PS you can write off the cost of TurboTax as a business expense!
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