Taxes are the single largest expense a self-employed person pays year to year. In your lifetime, you will almost certainly give more of your money to the government than you will spend on any other single endeavor. Last year alone, the government collected $2,268,000,000,000 in taxes. That’s a lot of zeroes!

The increase in government tax collections between 2004 and 2005—just the increase—was 2.74 times more than the total tax collected in 1960. So, getting every dollar you can in business tax deductions has never been more important.

Moreover, because you are self-employed, you cannot ignore the need for tax planning when you start your business, when you make little money, or when you make a lot of money. The self-employment tax starts almost immediately, and that puts you automatically at the starting gate of taxes.

In fact, your taxes are much more than meet the eye. Take a look at the chart in ... Log in to view full article.