The Launch Blog: Expert Advice from the CorpNet Team

Filing a North Carolina annual report is a yearly activity that is required to maintain your company's registration as a legal entity in the state. It contains information about the company and is due whether or not the entity is actively conducting business. Only when an entity has been officially dissolved (closed) does it no longer have to submit an annual report. Which Businesses Must File an Annual Report? Every business Corporation, Limited Liability Company (LLC), Limited Liability Partnership (LLP), and Limited Liability Limited Partnership (LLLP) registered in North Carolina must file an annual [...]

Did you structure your business as a corporation or LLC for limited liability protections? For most scenarios the extra filing requirements, paperwork and fees are worth it—your personal liability protection helps make sure your assets are protected from the business’s debts and legal issues. And that goes for the corporation’s shareholders and LLC members, too. Creditors can’t come after members’ cars, houses or personal possessions to pay for attorney fees and unpaid invoices. But it’s called limited liability, which means there are some notable exceptions. Here’s what to know and how to protect your [...]

So, you want to be a landlord? Here’s what to know about setting up a rental property business and protecting it with an LLC or S Corp. Whether you want to purchase property to rent out on Airbnb or you want to lease office space, it’s important to understand that how you structure the property purchase affects your liability and your taxes. To be clear, we are not talking about merely renting out your home or a room in your house for a short timeframe. According to the IRS, rental income from a short-term [...]

Many small business owners choose to operate their companies under the LLC business structure. They do so with good reason! The LLC offers liability protection to its owners (members), tax flexibility, and compliance simplicity. However, that tax flexibility may cause some confusion for entrepreneurs. One of the tax-related topics that people often ask about is: "Do LLC members have to pay self-employment tax?" In this article, I'm going to cover that question, along with many others related to the subject. Everything that I share here is for informational purposes only; readers should reach out [...]

Before the advent of the S Corporation in 1958, entrepreneurs had two options for forming a business entity. They could form a partnership or form a C Corporation. But neither of those business structures fulfilled the needs of many people seeking to start their own businesses. To help encourage small businesses in America, Congress and President Eisenhower created the Subchapter S Corporation. You may be thinking, “That’s really interesting, Nellie, but unless I’m attending a business trivia night anytime soon, why should I care?” Hang in there—we're getting to that! Whether you're a business [...]

Does your business need to collect sales tax and remit it to the state or local tax authority? And if it does, how do you go about getting a sales tax license? Moreover, what if your business is selling your products across state lines? Do you need to charge and remit sales tax in those states, too? These are all valid and important questions! We're going to delve into them in this article to give you some helpful food for thought as you research what requirements apply to your business. Please keep in mind [...]

In 2020, the hot topic is California’s Assembly Bill 5, often called the “Gig Economy Bill.” This is because AB 5 makes it difficult to be an independent contractor in California. Before we examine AB 5 in detail, let’s understand why California legislators passed the bill in their own words: THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (a) On April 30, 2018, the California Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision in Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Superior Court of Los [...]

Whether you work as an independent contractor or your business hires independent contractors, California’s new AB5 law, which went into effect January 1, 2020, forces your hand on becoming an employer or an employee depending on how you conduct your business. The Existing Employee vs. Contractor Designation Up to now, you’ve probably made sure you’re adhering to the IRS classification rules for independent contractors, which are as follows: Behavioral Control: A worker is an employee when the business has the right to direct and control the work performed by the worker, such as when [...]

Among all the decisions and actions a small business may need to take, one of the more important is deciding whether to incorporate or form an LLC. January is the most logical start date for a new LLC or corporation since it eases the paperwork burden. Your clients can start fresh in the new year with their new legal structure and don’t have to worry about reporting taxes as two different entities for the tax year. At this time of year, sole proprietors and general partnerships may be wondering if it’s time to create [...]