Small Business Taxes

You may find this Q&A from the site helpful:
http://www.lifetuner.org/topics/33-taxes/questions/38-what_are_estimated_taxes

The IRS has a helpful (though of course tax-geeky) publication called Starting a Business and Keeping Records that gives a good overview of the topic:
http://www.irs.gov/publications/p583/index.html

Your state may offer something similar.

Most small business owners find it's a lot easier to find a good accountant to deal with this stuff for you, but it's always a good idea to learn the basics.

-Tad

Hi Marni
Its great that you have your own business, congratulations. One thought for you is that it probably makes sense to use a professional tax person. This will help you get all the deductions for your business, including ones you may not have otherwise been aware of. It might be nice to know this person, and increase your networking opportunities too. Best of luck!

Dear Pioneer Pets:
I forgot to give you the link to the IRS' calendar:
www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1518.pdf
One more thing, the quarterly estimated payments you must pay to the federal government will also need to be made to your state as well, in order to avoid any underpayment penalties.

Dear Pioneer Pets,
I am going to read between the lines of your question and assume first, that you have no employees, and second, you have not incorporated your business. In other words, you are running a "sole-proprietorship" by yourself.
If this is the case, your primary tax obligations as a result of this business are going to be your quarterly estimated tax payments on your self-employment income. (As an employee, you have regular withholdings on your wages; as a business owner, you also have to make regular payments via quarterly estimates.) These estimated tax payments should include not only the federal taxes you have to pay on your net business income, but also "self-employment tax" which is 15.3 percent of your net income. This represents the employer and the employee share of the amount that must be paid into Social Security and Medicare. Because you own the business, you are both employer and employee.
The IRS has just put out a colorful, easy-to-read, practical calendar of 2010 tax dates and requirements for small business. In addition to the important dates you must be aware of, it has information on the best type of entity for your business (ie.,incorporation, limited liability company, sole proprietorship); accounting methods; types of retirement plans for small businesses; and the types of records you should keep. It is an excellent resource for someone just starting out: very friendly and not-at-all intimidating.
Good luck with your business. Pet care and sitting is a high-demand service these days -- it seems that the recession has not affected Americans' willingness to spend on their beloved pets.