Dear Pennies & Pens,
In this post, Behind the Ink: Why Is It So Hard To Have a Business, I will talk about why it’s difficult to manage the day to day operations of having a business. I’ve had my own business for years but there’s always random issues and thins that come up.
So last week, I unfortunately got hit with an unexpected bill for my business, ISLP, The InkSpot, LLC. As y’all know, ISLP is my creative production company and multicultural creative agency. I originally founded ISLP on April 17, 2015 when I published my first book, #MakeUrPenLoud: How To Be A Lifestyle Blogger.
However, I didn’t establish ISLP as a business (aka get our LLC) until June 26, 2020. This means that while I filed federal taxes from 2015 – 2020, I didn’t file state taxes as it wasn’t required. But what I didn’t know was that as soon as you start your LLC in the state of Texas, you must file a Franchise Tax.
A Franchise Tax is basically a privilege tax. Simply put, the Texas government sees it as a privilege to do business in the state of Texas so they require you to file a Franchise Tax. On the Franchise Tax form, you share your revenue and income.
If you make under 1.2 million in revenue then you will not owe the Texas government anything. But at the same time, if you don’t file the Franchise Tax before the deadline, you will pay a $50 late fee for each tax year that went unfiled.
So basically, last week when I finally checked my mailbox (I hate checking the mail because all you get are bills and sales papers unless you’re expecting a package small enough to fit in the mailbox), I received a collections bill for the Franchise Tax. I was of course upset because the bill was very expensive.
After calling the collections department and Texas Comptroller’s office, I was able to uncover everything I just shared about the requirement of filing the Franchise Tax. Also, I found out that since I made under 1.2 million, I wouldn’t owe the government any money except the late fees. Although $100 (for 2020 & 2021 taxes) is a lot of money, it’s significantly less than the $1,000+ collections bill I originally received.
So that was my consolation prize. And of course, from here on, I will be filing my taxes ON TIME. It’s true what they say, always pay your taxes because the government will come after you and they can always find you.
After all this writing, I’m sharing the video from below. In the video, I explore why it’s so hard to have a business. This video was shot the same day I received and filed the franchise tax so it’s pretty hilarious because I just rant and go in.
Oh and I almost forgot, there’s a second video that I shot after filing the taxes. It’s funny too because I offer an update on filing the taxes, etc.
Thanks so much for watching the Penny Black YouTube channel and supporting de la Pen…All Pen Everything as well as my business ISLP, The InkSpot, LLC! Please leave a comment on why you think it’s so hard to have a business in the comments.
And there it is. de la Pen…All Pen Everything. With us, keeping it real never goes wrong.
