Writers: Do You Pay Tax on Your Medium Income?
The government wants to know about your side hustle
Medium and its paid authors got a one-year reprieve (sort-of), but the clock is ticking.
If you are in the U.S. or are a U.S. citizen and make $600 or more from your side hustle, your third-party settlement organization (read Medium in this case) is soon going to report your earnings directly to the IRS.
Actually, the change was supposed to be effective for payments made in 2022, but on December 23 the IRS announced they were delaying the requirement until next year. Whew!
Note, though, regardless of this delay you are already obligated to track and report your side hustle income each year. The only thing that’s changing is that your payment provider will report it directly to the IRS.
How will the reporting work?
Companies like Medium that make payments to individuals will send a so-called Form 1099-K directly to the IRS, with a copy to you.
From the IRS explanation:
Whether you own a business, are self-employed, work in the gig economy or are selling personal items, Form 1099-K includes the gross amount of all payment transactions. You may receive a Form 1099-K from each payment…
