Staying All Above Board

• dan.browne

  Participant

  June 27, 2012 at 12:14 am

  Hi everyone,

  If I was to start out in the photography business and be all above board and declare income received from my photographic ventures where do I start?

  First of all if I am to charge for services am I charging VAT at 13.5% or 23%? Am I able to write certain tax on expenses off against VAT collected.

  Will i need to register my name for a VAT number or do i just use my PPS Number?

  I have about a million more questions but I think this is as good a place to start as any!

  Thanks for any advice

  Daniel
  brianmacl

  Participant

  June 27, 2012 at 9:05 am

  what will your turn over be?
  will you be delivering prints or jpgs?
  rule of thumb if you are charging VAT you can write off the VAT you are charged on business expenses such as gear, diesel, etc against the VAT you take in
  you don’t have to charge VAT if your earnings are bellow a certain level
  check out revenue.ie
  talk to an actual accountant…. you are going to want people to hire a pro rather than doing it themselves, see the value in doing the same thing yourself.
  dan.browne

  Participant

  June 27, 2012 at 9:24 am

  Thanks Brian,

  I don’t expect revenue to be very high for the first couple of months/years as I will doing this alongside my “proper” job. I have too many financial commitments to delve into Photography on a full time basis.

  I will go check with Revenue.ie and see if my cousin, I think she is an accountant, can help me out too!

  Thanks again for the info!
  GCP

  Participant

  June 28, 2012 at 10:17 pm

  Daniel, the VAT is generally 13.5% but digital images can be 23% depending on how they are presented to the client. Picture frames are 23% and the photograph the you are putting in is 13.5% but together they just may become 23% depending on the cost of producing each. It can be complicated. You can reclaim VAT charged of material, equipment, etc. but if you are not over the VAT threshold and you cease business you may be required to repay all the VAT you claimed. If you have a job any profit from photography is added to your income for tax and prsi purposes and you need to be careful as it may not be beneficial if it drives you into higher bands. Give it plenty of thought and work out your figures.

  You are very wise to be up front with revenue as they are about to do a sweep on professions like ours in the new year. The figures for people in photography both full-time and part-time do not come even close to the number declaring income to Revenue. Talking to a colleague today in the southern half of the country he tells me, according to his local radio, that a female photographer was sent to prison today for 4 months for not declaring income from photography while claiming job seekers allowance. We will probably see it on the papers over the next few days. So …. fair play to you and you are thinking along the right lines …… its not a good time to be in the “black market”.
  Fotometric

  Participant

  July 30, 2012 at 5:29 pm

  You *can’t* charge VAT unless you have registered for VAT and have a VAT number.
  If you’re not registered, your price is just €price and you are taxed on the income you take (profit after business expenses).

  Check out a start your own business course, I think FAS might do some evening ones. It would be well worth it as it would cover all this kind of thing.