If you sell content on FeetFinder, your earnings are self-employment income: you owe regular federal income tax on your net profit plus a 15.3% self-employment tax, and no one withholds any of it for you. FeetFinder taxes work the same way they do for any independent contractor. You report revenue and expenses on Schedule C, pay quarterly throughout the year, and lower the bill through business deductions, the 20% qualified business income deduction, and self-employed retirement contributions.
How the IRS Sees Your FeetFinder Income
FeetFinder doesn’t withhold income tax, Social Security, or Medicare from what it pays you. That makes you an independent contractor operating as a sole proprietor, even if you never filed paperwork to start a business.1Internal Revenue Service. Gig Economy Tax Center Every dollar of revenue and every business expense goes on Schedule C (Profit or Loss from Business), which attaches to your Form 1040. The net profit line at the bottom of Schedule C is the number the rest of your taxes are built on.2Internal Revenue Service. About Schedule C (Form 1040) – Profit or Loss from Business
A single-member LLC doesn’t change this. The IRS treats a one-owner LLC as a “disregarded entity,” so your income still flows through Schedule C and you still pay self-employment tax the same way.3Internal Revenue Service. Single Member Limited Liability Companies The LLC may give you state-law liability protection, but it won’t shrink your federal tax bill on its own.
You owe tax on every dollar you earn selling content whether or not any information form arrives in the mail. The reporting duty is yours.
Self-Employment Tax: The 15.3%
Self-employment tax is what most new sellers don’t see coming. A regular employer pays half of your Social Security and Medicare contributions; when you work for yourself, you cover both halves. The combined rate is 15.3%: 12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare.4Internal Revenue Service. Schedule SE (Form 1040) – Self-Employment Tax You owe it once your net self-employment earnings hit $400 for the year.5Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 554, Self-Employment Tax
The 15.3% doesn’t apply to your full net profit. You multiply net earnings by 92.35% first, which mirrors the payroll tax break traditional employers get on their share. The Social Security portion applies only to earnings up to $184,500 in 2026.6Social Security Administration. Contribution and Benefit Base Medicare has no cap. If your total self-employment income tops $200,000 ($250,000 for married filing jointly), an additional 0.9% Medicare tax kicks in on the amount above that threshold.7Internal Revenue Service. Questions and Answers for the Additional Medicare Tax All of this is calculated on Schedule SE.
One built-in break: you deduct half of your self-employment tax on your 1040 when calculating adjusted gross income. That doesn’t lower the self-employment tax itself, but it reduces the income the regular income tax is applied to.5Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 554, Self-Employment Tax
Income Tax and the 20% QBI Deduction
After the self-employment tax half-deduction, your remaining net profit joins any wages, investment income, or other income you have to form your total taxable income. Federal income tax is progressive: your first dollars are taxed at 10%, with higher portions moving through 12%, 22%, 24%, and up.
Sole proprietors also qualify for the qualified business income deduction, which lets you deduct up to 20% of your net business income before figuring income tax.8Internal Revenue Service. Qualified Business Income Deduction If Schedule C shows $30,000 in net profit, you could potentially exclude $6,000 from taxable income. The QBI deduction stacks on top of your ordinary business deductions and is available whether you itemize or take the standard deduction. The full 20% is available without restriction below certain taxable income thresholds, which adjust each year for inflation; above them, the deduction phases out depending on filing status and the type of business.
Deductions That Actually Move the Needle
Every legitimate business deduction on Schedule C lowers both your income tax and your self-employment tax, so tracking expenses is one of the highest-return things you can do. The IRS allows deductions for expenses that are “ordinary and necessary” for your work — common in your line of business and helpful to it.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 162 – Trade or Business Expenses
Equipment, Software, and Platform Fees
Cameras, lighting, tripods, phones used mainly for content, and the computer or tablet you edit on are deductible. You can often deduct the full cost in the year of purchase instead of depreciating it over several years. Editing software subscriptions, cloud storage, website hosting, domain registration, and any FeetFinder listing or transaction fees all count. A tax preparer’s fee for your Schedule C is deductible too.
Props and Wardrobe
Items bought specifically for your content and not suitable for everyday use are deductible. Specialty shoes, ankle jewelry, and props that only make sense in the frame qualify; clothing you could reasonably wear outside of work does not. Note the business purpose alongside each receipt.
Home Office
A space used regularly and exclusively for your business qualifies for the home office deduction. A corner of your bedroom that doubles as anything else won’t.10Internal Revenue Service. Publication 587 (2025), Business Use of Your Home The simplified method gives you $5 per square foot up to 300 square feet, for a $1,500 maximum.11Internal Revenue Service. Simplified Option for Home Office Deduction The actual expense method can produce a bigger deduction if you apply the business-use percentage of your home to rent or mortgage interest, utilities, and insurance.
Health Insurance
If you’re self-employed and not eligible for coverage through a spouse’s employer, you can deduct 100% of premiums for medical, dental, vision, and qualifying long-term care insurance for yourself, your spouse, your dependents, and children under 27.12Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 7206 This is an above-the-line deduction, so you don’t need to itemize. It can’t exceed your net business profit.
Retirement Contributions
Self-employed retirement accounts may be the strongest tax tool available to you. A SEP IRA lets you contribute up to 25% of your net self-employment earnings, with a $72,000 maximum for 2026.13Internal Revenue Service. SEP Contribution Limits (Including Grandfathered SARSEPs) A solo 401(k) has a similar total cap but adds an employee-deferral component that’s useful when profit is lower. Contributions reduce your taxable income for the year.
Marketing
Social media ads, paid promotions, affiliate fees, and premium listing or visibility fees on the platform itself are all deductible as advertising expenses.
Records
None of these deductions survive an audit without documentation. Keep receipts, invoices, and card statements, and note the business purpose next to each. “Ring light for photo shoots” is the level of detail that protects you.14Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 305, Recordkeeping Hold records for at least three years after filing, the standard audit window.15Internal Revenue Service. 16Internal Revenue Service. Form 1040-ES – Estimated Tax for Individuals The due dates:
- April 15, covering January through March
- June 15, covering April and May
- September 15, covering June through August
- January 15, covering September through December of the prior year
If a due date falls on a weekend or holiday, it moves to the next business day.17Internal Revenue Service. When Are Quarterly Estimated Tax Payments Due? Each payment should cover income tax and self-employment tax for that period, calculated on Form 1040-ES.
To avoid an underpayment penalty, pay at least 90% of what you’ll owe for the current year, or 100% of what you owed last year, whichever is less. If your prior-year adjusted gross income exceeded $150,000 ($75,000 married filing separately), that 100% safe harbor rises to 110%.18Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 6654 – Failure by Individual to Pay Estimated Income Tax The prior-year method is the simplest in your first full year, since you can base payments on last year’s total tax instead of guessing at this year’s. IRS Direct Pay handles the transfer from a bank account; a check with the Form 1040-ES voucher works too. Most states with income tax expect quarterly payments on a similar schedule.
1099 Forms You Might Receive
You may get one or two information forms depending on how you’re paid. Form 1099-K comes from payment processors when your gross payments exceed $20,000 and you have more than 200 transactions in the calendar year at the federal level.19Internal Revenue Service. IRS Issues FAQs on Form 1099-K Threshold Under the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Many states set lower thresholds, some as low as $600 or zero, so a state 1099-K can show up even when the federal one doesn’t.20Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Your Form 1099-K Form 1099-NEC covers direct payments for services outside a platform; the threshold for payments made after December 31, 2025 is $2,000.21Internal Revenue Service. Form 1099 NEC and Independent Contractors
Not receiving a form doesn’t make the income tax-free. You report every dollar of FeetFinder income on Schedule C either way.
Penalties for Not Filing or Not Paying
Skipping these obligations gets expensive quickly, and the penalties stack.
- Failure to file: 5% of unpaid tax per month or partial month, capped at 25%. If your return is more than 60 days late, the minimum penalty becomes the lesser of $525 or 100% of the tax owed.22Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 653, IRS Notices and Bills, Penalties and Interest Charges
- Failure to pay: 0.5% of unpaid tax per month, also capped at 25%. In months when both penalties apply, the filing penalty drops by 0.5%, but the combined monthly cost is still 5%.23Internal Revenue Service. Failure to Pay Penalty
- Accuracy-related penalty: 20% of the underpaid amount if the IRS finds you were negligent or substantially understated your tax.24Internal Revenue Service. Accuracy-Related Penalty
Interest also accrues on unpaid tax from the original due date and compounds daily. If you can’t pay in full by April 15, file anyway and set up a payment plan. Filing on time cuts the monthly cost down to the 0.5% failure-to-pay rate and buys you room to work out the balance.