how do i claim money from a lawn mowing service i had?

Question

i worked mowing lawns and i want to claim that income because it makes my earned income credit go up so how do i do that

Answer 1

You had a business - I assume you were doing the lawn mowing to make money rather than just helping people out. So you have to complete Schedule C (to report your income and expenses) and Schedule SE (to calculate self-employment tax).

Do you have your own equipment? If so, you need to be aware of the rules regarding depreciation (you may, or may not, be able to deduct all of the cost of your equipment in year 1 - especially if you already owned it before you started the business). Really, you might want to get your bank statements and expense receipts in order, along with a note of equipment owned (with cost and date of purchase) then go and visit a CPA or Enrolled Agent.

For the edification of the first answerer, EIC goes up until you reach a certain point, then it goes down until it phases out. I suppose the idea is to encourage you to earn as much as you can, rather than just doing a part-time job and collecting government hand-outs when you could be working. it doesn't always work like that, but the intention is good.

Answer 2

Adding additional income makes your Earned Income Credit go up? Really? I thought it worked the other way.

Anyway, if that's the case, there must be a part of the form to report other income. Just write it in.

Answer 3

if its a business you ran, you are going to have to deal with a whole lot of self-employment forms and be in a higher tax bracket.