Hey Dave,
To increase the business offerings at my mailbox rental business, I became a Notary Public this year. So far I made about $1,000 from my notary service. Should I include the notary fees on my tax return as income received by the mailbox rental income?
Jackson
Jackson,
Notary fees are treated a bit differently than other sole proprietor business income in that they are not subject to self-employment taxes. Because of this difference − and to make it easier − you might want to consider creating a separate Schedule C (Profit or Loss from Income) just for your notary business, indicating in your tax program that the income is not subject to self-employment taxes.
And if you do decide to include the notary fees on your mailbox business income schedule, be sure to adjust your self-employment tax schedule for the notary fee amounts. Most tax programs provide an easy way to make these self-employment tax adjustments. There are just a few positions for which a taxpayer would not be required to pay self-employment taxes on self-employment income, and this is one of those unusual situations.
Best of luck in your new business endeavor!
Deductibly Yours,
Dave