Registering as a business

[deputy6512]

Do you HAVE to do this for tax purposes? I have my tax ID, but I was just wondering if I will have to be registered come tax time.

[firstlady]

I would think you have to as a business, yesterday i called the county clerk office and asked her about me registering the name i wanted to put on my tarts, candles, i wanted everything legal and she asked me if i was going to incorparate this into a business with a bank account and such, i told her no i was at time anyway just going to sell to friends & etc... wasn't setting up shows or web site's. that it was more of just a hobby. so i didn't have to do anything but if you sell as a business and since you have a tax # i'm assume you do. i think you need to register , i 'm just going by what the lady told me yesterday at the clerk office but others here has their own business's so i'm sure they will help you.

[RobinInOR]

There's a bunch of rules, different for each state of course. They can't make it easy.

You have to at a minimum register your name as a "doing business as" or "ficticious name" or whatever your area calls it, if your full legal personal name isn't in it. That's so people doing business can find an actual person. In many states getting a tax ID so you can collect sales tax might take care of that, some states need a separate registration besides the tax ID. You'd have to double check. But it's a consumer protection thing. Of course if you were going for a more elaborate business structure, this would be part of all that.

Your income you can just do under your SSN, nothing special really required there if you're small.

Since OR doesn't have sales tax, the minimum I would have had to do is register the DBA, and use my SSN to file income tax.

[deputy6512]

Thanks guys...I am VERY small and don't intend to get awhole lot bigger anytime soon. Guess the next thing I need to do is get with my accounting friend and ask her. I do have a tax ID, and nothing was said about needing to do anything else at that time. Thanks so much, you are all sooo helpful!