Records to keep for gig work
Records are what turn a description of the work into something the rules can be applied to. This page says what the requirement asks for.
What the rules say
True whichever side of the class line you are on
- Every person liable for tax must keep such records as the Secretary requires, and a deduction for listed property or travel is disallowed unless the amount, time, place and business purpose are substantiated.
- Adequate records means an account book, log or similar record with documentary evidence, made at or near the time of the expenditure or use, recording each business use and total use of the property.
Where the work is employment
Some of what follows exists only on one side of the class line. Where the class is not settled, we state the condition and stop rather than guessing which side you are on.
- Wages received as an employee are outside net earnings from self-employment and are not reported as business receipts of a sole proprietorship.
Where the person is carrying on a business of their own
Some of what follows exists only on one side of the class line. Where the class is not settled, we state the condition and stop rather than guessing which side you are on.
- Income or loss from a business operated as a sole proprietor is reported on Schedule C, with gross receipts stated separately from returns, allowances and cost of goods sold.
What a person would have to know first
These are the facts the rules turn on. We do not supply any of them for you.
- that a trade or business is being carried on
When several payers report the same year
True whichever side of the class line you are on
- Income from more than one platform or client is all within gross income. The number of payers changes the documentation to expect, not the rule.
Where the person is carrying on a business of their own
Some of what follows exists only on one side of the class line. Where the class is not settled, we state the condition and stop rather than guessing which side you are on.
- Where a person carries on more than one separate business, a separate Schedule C is used for each.
What a person would have to know first
These are the facts the rules turn on. We do not supply any of them for you.
- whether the activities are separate businesses or one business
- Each payer decides for itself whether it must file a return, so some streams may be documented and others not.
- Records should be kept per stream, because no single document covers the year.
- A settlement figure and a non-employee compensation figure can cover the same receipts; adding every box together can overstate receipts.
- Absence of a document for one stream does not remove that stream from gross income.
Where this comes from
Every source on this page shows the body that issued it and the date we read it. The federal text behind this center was last read on 2026-08-16.
- 26 U.S.C. § 6001 — Notice or regulations requiring records, statements, and special returnsUnited States Code (GPO, govinfo). Read for: Every person liable for any tax shall keep such records and render such statements as the Secretary may require. Read on 2026-08-16.
- 26 U.S.C. § 274 — Disallowance of certain entertainment, etc., expensesUnited States Code (GPO, govinfo). Read for: Subsection (d) disallows a deduction for listed property and travel unless the taxpayer substantiates the amount, time, place and business purpose by adequate records or sufficient evidence. Read on 2026-08-16.
- 26 C.F.R. § 1.274-5 — Substantiation requirementsElectronic Code of Federal Regulations. Read for: Adequate records means an account book, log, or similar record together with documentary evidence, made at or near the time of the expenditure or use. Read on 2026-08-16.
- 26 U.S.C. § 1402 — Definitions (net earnings from self-employment)United States Code (GPO, govinfo). Read for: Net earnings from self-employment means gross income derived from a trade or business carried on by the individual, less allowable deductions. Read on 2026-08-16.
- Instructions for Schedule C (Form 1040), Profit or Loss From BusinessInternal Revenue Service. Read for: Schedule C is used to report income or loss from a business operated or a profession practised as a sole proprietor. Read on 2026-08-16.
- 26 U.S.C. § 61 — Gross income definedUnited States Code (GPO, govinfo). Read for: Gross income means all income from whatever source derived, except as otherwise provided. Read on 2026-08-16.