After a little play about with Internet Marketing to see what works & what doesn’t you may want to (& really should) register yourself as self-employed. This may seem a massive & completly unnecessary step, or way over the top - after all there must be hundreds of thousands of eBay users making thousands and not declaring it.

And there probably are. In fact I’ve no doubt about that the majority of users on eBay running business like operations do not register these additional incomes. After all whats the incentive to start paying more tax?! - I can’t think of any.

However, in the US the IRS have tried to force eBay to supply details of all sellers who carry out there listings in a business like manner. How long before the Inland Revenue try a similar method in the UK.

So when do you have to decide to register yourself as self-employed. Well you have to ask yourself, is your internet operations a hobby or business? If it’s a hobby, obviously you won’t be hoping to make a lot of cash from it where as if it’s a business you’d find profit the main incentive behind the venture. Would you spend 12 hours a day doing a “hobby”, just for the sake of enjoyment?

Are the consequences of getting caught, worth it with the fines & all the hassles. Personally I would recommend you register after a few months, after all you legally have upto three months to register as self employed.

Once registered all business fees such as eBay fees, Broadband, etc can all be claimed back as they are all tax deductable items. You only pay Tax on your profits. However, you are required a pay National Insurance Group 2, at a low rate of 10.25 per month.

If you are already in fully time employment (or even part time), you are under no obligations to inform your current employer.

So ask yourself, are you carrying on your online activities in a business like manner?

If an outsider was to look at your suituation, would they decide if it’s a hobby or business. If you have an account with Adwords & are paying hundreds of pounds monthly it’s unlikely to be seen as a hobby. Another thought is have you established some credibility online?, & if you have your name & photo plastered all over websites how hard would it be for someone to find it & dig into your details.

If you can use google, you can find almost anything online? Have you added your testimonials to products in the hope of generating traffic to your site. Easily uncovered in a few minutes & would be unlikely to seen as the behaviour of someone with a hobby.