Why artists need to be business-like with expenses and tax

My latest published article - with more than 40 tips about tax for artists - in the September edition of the very popular "The Artist" Magazine somehow managed to lose its proper title during the process of transferring it from my submission to the printed version.

Article about tax in the Artist September 2016

This is what it should look like - complete with its proper title!  It starts...

You can’t ignore tax if you make an income from your art. You also can’t claim business expenses if you are just a hobby artist.

The article covers what you need to do when you start out as an artist - and how to avoid fines from HMRC! Many of the succinct tips provided relate to every artist. Some only relate to artists in the UK.

They cover:

• when/how to complete a tax form if you sell your artwork
• how you can help yourself without needing professional help
• simple ways of organising paperwork that reduce stress
• simple and efficient ways of creating tax records and completing a tax return
• what an artist can and can't claim against tax - including...
• who can and who can't claim expenses against tax
• a checklist of typical artists' business expenses
• ways in which HMRC make it simple by allowing flat-rate expenses
• how to go about claiming a tax loss
• if you are successful - why you need to "up a gear" and think about a range of issues which are not relevant to smaller operations.

There's absolutely no way it's possible to cover every aspect of tax related to artists on one side of A4. However 

• the article does point you in the direction of various places online, forms and guidance notes you may need to know about! 
• don't forget to seek professional advice in writing if you need to deal with any complex issues.

You can find the article in the latest edition of The Artist (September 2016) which is available in all good newsagents and also online (The digital version now has the right title! :)

You'll find I also update regularly on tax matters in the news blog of my Art Business Info for Artists website.