Taxing writers
It only seems like yesterday that I was sorting out my 2020-2021 tax return, and yet, here we are, on the downhill stretch towards the end of the 2021-2022 tax year.
Time flies when you’re having fun! Or am I getting old?
It may be over thirty years since I started writing for money, but I remember that moment when I received my first payment. It was a postal order for £3.50 (Yes, it was that long ago). But I soon realised that if people were going to pay me for my words, then I needed to think about the taxman.
Thankfully, he’s not as draconian as you may think. Since 6th April 2017, HMRC gives everyone a £1,000 tax-free property and trading allowance. For writers, this means that when we sell (trade) our words, we don’t have to tell the taxman until the total earned from our writing within one tax year is £1,000. (HMRC may change
