Self Employment Tax (Part 2)

The self-employment tax is calculated as a percentage of your net self-employment earnings. In 2014, the self-employment tax amounts to 15.3 percent of net earnings and consists of two parts:

• 12.4 % for Social Security
• 2.9 % for Medicare

Before you can figure your self-employment tax, you need to calculate your net self-employment earnings for the tax year. In most cases, net earnings are the same as net profit from self-employment. Net profit is calculated using income tax form Schedule C: Profit or Loss from Business. Net profit is the difference between gross income and any deductible business expenses. If your net profit is at least $400, you need to pay self-employment tax.

The instructions for calculating the self-employment tax are found on IRS form Schedule SE: Self-Employment Tax:

1. Refer to your Schedule C (or Schedule Cs if you have multiple small businesses) and enter the
   
   total amount of net profit (if less than $400, stop).
2. Multiply that amount by 92.35 % (you are not taxed on your full earnings).
3. For earnings less than the Additional Medicare Tax threshold, multiply the amount by 15.3%
4. If you earned more than the threshold amounts found on the 1040 Schedule SE instructions, then a .9% Additional Medicare Tax may apply.  Social security is capped, but all earnings are subject to Medicare. 

Here's some good news. The IRS gives self-employed workers a tax break to make up for the fact that employed people only pay half of their FICA contributions (their employers cover the other half). The IRS let's self-employed individuals deduct half of the cost of the self-employment tax from their taxable income. The calculation is simple:

1. Multiply your self-employment tax by .50
2. Enter that figure on line 27 of form 1040 in the section labeled "Adjusted Gross Income"

Now that you've calculated how much you owe in self-employment tax, there's only one (sad) thing left to do: pay it. 

Here's a little-understood fact about the United States tax system: While most of us think of April 15 as Tax Day, the government is actually collecting income tax and other taxes year-round. That's how it keeps government programs funded and makes interest payments on the national debt.

If you work for someone else, your employer withholds income taxes and employment taxes — another name for Social Security and Medicare contributions — from each paycheck and deposits the funds in Federal Reserve banks. If you're self-employed, you also have to pay taxes year-round in the form of estimated taxes.

Estimated taxes consist of three parts:

• Federal income tax
• State income tax (unless you live in Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington or Wyoming)
• Self-employment tax

For the purposes of this article, we're going to focus on the self-employment tax portion of estimated taxes. When you file your federal tax return in April, you will be instructed to calculate your estimated self-employment tax for the next tax year. Basically it's an educated guess based on what you earned this year and whether you expect your earnings to grow or shrink in the upcoming year.

Follow the instructions on IRS form 1040-ES: Estimated Tax for Individuals to calculate your estimated tax payments for the coming year. The process is almost identical to the one used for calculating this year's self-employment tax, except the amount due is divided into four equal payments. Estimated taxes are due quarterly.

The estimated tax due dates for 2015 are:

• April 15, 2015
• June 15, 2015
• Sept. 15, 2015 
• Jan. 15, 2016 (for fourth quarter 2015)

Estimated taxes must be paid by April 15 for the first quarter, by June 15 for the second quarter of the year, by September 15 for the third quarter and by January 15 for the fourth quarter, in order to avoid penalties. The fourth quarter deadline is extended to February 2 for people who file a year-end tax return and pay the entire balance due at the same time.

If your total estimated self-employment tax for the upcoming year is less than $1,000, you don't have to pay estimated taxes. But if you owe more than that amount and you fail to make estimated payments, you will be penalized a small percentage (3 % in 2014) of the amount unpaid each quarter.

You can pay estimated taxes online using a credit card or direct bank account transfer through IRS E-Pay. If you prepare your income taxes using tax preparation software, the program will automatically generate four estimated tax vouchers that you can mail in with your estimated tax payment each quarter. There are different mailing addresses for each state, so check out the instructions for Form 1040 SE for the location nearest you.