Influencers represent a relatively new industry, meaning that many of the rules and conventions that businesses usually follow are still only just emerging. For individuals and brands that are just starting out, this can create a number of areas of potential confusion.

If you are earning money online, it can be unclear what is the best business model to adopt, or how to plan and manage your finances around an irregular income. You may also be unsure about what your tax liabilities are, or how to account for gifts, royalties and appearance fees when filing tax returns.

Given that many influencers start out as hobbyists without any specific intention of forming a business brand, getting professional advice from an experienced accountant with knowledge of the sector can be a crucial step in getting your finances in proper order.

Claiming expenses for tax-deductible purchases is one of the key ways that businesses can improve their financial efficiency, but many influencers do not know which of their costs could potentially be claimed as an expense.

The following purchases could potentially be claimed back through your tax return, provided that it is being used solely for business purposes and the receipt has been retained:

• Office supplies
• Business software and subscriptions, such as payments for stock photos and video assets
• Internet service costs
• Web design and development costs, including hosting and domain names
• Phones, laptops and cameras used by the business
• Business-related travel
• Merchandise and products purchased for content creation, such as items that have been bought to be reviewed
• Marketing-related spending, including prizes purchased for giveaways

Working with an accounting firm, you will be able to work out which of your outgoings can be written off as expenses, while remaining on the right side of the law.

As a general rule if your income is over a certain amount then it is VATable. There are some specific loop holes for YouTube AdSense for example if you meet certain criteria but the best thing to do to work out what is required/the most cost effective for you is to get in touch with us and we will point you in the right direction.

A W-8BEN-E is to prevent content creators and influencers losing 30% of their income when they are working with brands in the USA. We have completed a number of these for various clients and can asset you with this process.

No, but if you’re thinking about VAT then it’s probably worth trading through a company to save tax. This is something that we would be able to advise you best with a bit more information from you, so book a call or drop us an email.

If you are paying someone to help you create or edit content, deal with brands or anything else directly related to your business, then yes you can and will reduce your own tax bill if you do it correctly. If it’s a one-off, then they can give you an invoice and depending on their circumstances may not pay tax on it, even if it’s semi-regular. Get in touch so we can advise you of the specifics in relation to your content creation and social media channels.

If you’re a limited company, yes. Every transaction related to your work should flow through that bank account. Even if you’re a sole trader then legally you don’t have to, but we suggest you do so that no tax deductible expenses are missed when your accounts are done, given the nature of content creation and social media this could easily happen.