Home > Research Legal Advice > Tax > Can I be both an employee (W2) and an independent contractor (per diem) ...
Asked over 2 years ago - Fremont, CA
FlagI am currently a full time speech therapist in the public schools, but will also be working as an independent contractor for a home-health agency where I treat mostly geriatric patients. Will this be allowed? I'm a speech therapist for both, but I'm working with entirely different populations and settings (1 is educational and 1 is medical). I'd appreciate your timely response. Thank you!
There's no tax issue with working 2 different jobs with 2 different forms of employment as long as you properly report each revenue stream, but you need to make sure that your contracts with each job don't contain exclusivity clauses or priority clauses or don't otherwise conflict.
Disclaimer: Please note that this answer does not constitute legal advice, and should not be relied on, since each state has different laws, each situation is fact specific, and it is impossible to evaluate a legal problem without a comprehensive consultation and review of all the facts and documents at issue. This answer does not create an attorney-client relationship.
So long as appropriate reporting, there should be no problem with working as an employee for one entity and as an independent contractor for another entity. You should verify your contract with the entity that employs you as an employee does not prohibit you from other employment via an exclusivity provision.
I agree with the prior attorneys. From a tax perspective, be sure to document all out of pocket expenses and divide them between these two ventures since you will need to report the indep K on Schedule C and the out of pocket w-2 income on Form 2106.
Hope this helps. If you think this post was helpful, please check the thumbs up (helpful) tab below. Thanks.
LEGAL DISCLAIMER
Mr. Fromm is licensed to practice law in PA with offices in Philadelphia and Montgomery Counties in the state of Pennsylvania. He phone number is 215-735-2336 and his email address is listed below.
Mr. Fromm is ethically required to state that the response herein is not legal advice and does not create an attorney/ client relationship. Also, there are no recognized legal specialties under Pennsylvania law. Any references to a trust, estate or tax lawyer refer only to the fact that Mr. Fromm limits his practice to these areas of the law. These responses are only in the form of legal education and are intended to only provide general information about the matter within the question. Oftentimes the question does not include significant and important facts and timelines that if known could significantly change the reply or make such reply unsuitable. Mr. Fromm strongly advises the questioner to confer with an attorney in their state in order to ensure proper advice is received.
By using this site you understand and agree that there is no attorney client relationship or confidentiality between you and the attorney responding. This site should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed attorney that practices in the subject area in your jurisdiction, who is familiar with your specific facts and all of the circumstances and with whom you have an attorney client relationship. The law changes frequently and varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. The information and materials provided are general in nature, and may not apply to a specific factual or legal circumstance described in the question or omitted from the question.
Circular 230 Disclaimer - Any information in this comment may not be used to eliminate or reduce penalties by the IRS or any other governmental agency.
Don't speak legalese? We define thousands of terms in plain English.
Browse our legal dictionary