Q When does the IRS consider someone self-employed?
A The main issue comes down to control, said Ted Sarenski, a certified public accountant, personal financial specialist and certified financial planner.
“When a person performs services for a business when they choose to, where they choose to and if they choose to, they would probably be considered self-employed and not be an employee,” he said.
The self-employed person normally performs services for many different businesses and does not usually work exclusively for one entity.
When a business sets someone?s hours, gives them a place at their site regularly to perform the services, has the ability to request the services be performed a specific way, etc., the person performing the services would probably be considered an employee, Sarenski said.
A self-employed person reports income for their services and is able to deduct any expense related to the production of that income ? including any direct costs as well as indirect costs such as automobile expenses or depreciation on an office in home, he said.
