By 
Providing proof of income when you’re self-employed can be challenging, as you don’t usually receive a paycheck. Find out what you can use to prove your income.
Approximately 16 million Americans are self-employed. Are you one of them?
Being self-employed comes with a lot of great perks. It has its challenges, too, though. For example, providing proof of income when you’re trying to rent an apartment or qualify for a loan can be tricky.
If you’re in this position right now, here are some ways that you can prove your income even if you have a non-traditional job.
Use Your Tax Returns
You might be self-employed, but you still have to file taxes every year (and if you’re not filing taxes, you have bigger problems than not being able to provide proof of income).
Use copies of your tax returns to show a lender or landlord how much money you earn each year. This is a great way to provide them with a comprehensive overview of what you bring to the table.
Print Out Your Bank Statements
Another option is to print out copies of your bank statements. If your bank offers online banking, it should be easy for you to log in to your account and change the settings to display how much money you’ve had coming in for the past year (or whatever period of time someone wants to see proof of income for).
Print out these pages and present them to your lender, landlord, or whoever else is asking for proof of income. You can also highlight the deposits to your bank account to make it easier for them to see what you earn.
Print Out PayPal Records
Many self-employed individuals get paid through PayPal. If this is the case for you, you can follow the same steps listed above and print out your PayPal records to prove your monthly or yearly income.
As with your bank statements, be sure to highlight the deposits so it’s easy to see how much money you’re making.
Show Profit and Loss Statements
Depending on the nature of your work, you may also have profit and loss statements readily available. These documents show all of your business-related deposits and expenses, as well as your total income.
You can use these statements to help paint a clear picture of how much money you bring in and show that you have the means to make regular, complete payments.
Generate Your Own Paystub
Finally, you can use an online paycheck stub maker to generate your own paystub. If the person asking you to prove your income is very strict about seeing a paystub and won’t take any alternatives, create your own online.
Use an online payroll service to show how much money you bring in every month based on your other financial records. As long as you’re honest about your income, you shouldn’t have any trouble using this method.
Provide Proof of Income Today
As you can see, there are lots of options for providing proof of income as a self-employed worker. Give one or more of these strategies a try today to see which approach will work best for you.
If you need more help managing life as a self-employed individual, there are lots of other resources available on our site, too. Head to the Business section today for more tips and tricks.
Comments