In many jurisdictions, the money you receive from your patrons is considered taxable income. Navigating tax season isn’t always straightforward, but we’re here to help you understand how your Patreon earnings fit into taxes.
If you are a legally recognised not-for-profit company (for example, a USA 501(C)(3) charity), then you might not need to pay tax on your Patreon funds. A local tax advisor would know for sure, so we encourage you to reach out to one for additional information. Learn more about being a non-profit creator.
The IRS released a tax withholding estimator that may be helpful to you as you plan for US tax season.
Preparing for US tax season checklist
1. Submit a W-9 Form
Before the end of each year, we recommend ensuring that you’ve submitted accurate information on a W-9 via your Payouts and taxes settings page. If you’ve moved or the W-9 you filed with us is otherwise outdated, you’ll need to submit a new W-9 form to update our records. If you aren’t sure if the W-9 on file is up to date, you can submit a new one to be safe!
If you submitted your W-9 before 2016, please submit the form again to confirm your information.
Learn more about and get tips for filing your W-9 form in this guide: Submitting a W-9.
2. Sign up to receive 1099-K statements electronically instead of paper copies
You can enable paperless statements from the tax section of your Payout settings page. We generate a 1099 Form for all US creators who reach certain thresholds in a calendar year between January and February.
Learn more about the 1099-K form in this guide: Will I receive a 1099-K form?
3. Find your gross earnings
Your gross earnings for a given year will be available on the Documents page of your Payouts section.
If you or your tax advisor need more detailed information about your monthly earnings, you can download a CSV file of your earnings and payouts from the same Documents tab.
Per IRS guidance FAQ FS-2023-06 issued March 2023, in order to calculate your gross earnings, we take the total amount of processed payments from your members on a gross basis before refunds and without regard to any adjustments for credits, cash equivalents, discount amounts, fees, refunded amounts or any other amounts.
Review your gross earnings with your tax advisor! We recommend working with a local tax professional to advise you further.
Keeper | Patreon
Looking for an easier way to file your taxes? Patreon has partnered with Keeper to offer discounted prices for their tax filing service that is customised for freelancers and creators. Learn more about Keeper here: Keeper | Patreon