HMRC can see your platform income now
Digital platforms must report seller and creator data to HMRC under rules in force since January 2024. What that means for creators and side hustlers — and what to do about it.
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The Social Leaders blog
Short, useful reads on the money behind the content: platform reporting, US withholding, payments on account, TikTok Shop and the rest.
Is YouTube taking 30% of your US earnings? Fix the W-8BEN
US withholding tax on AdSense can take up to 30% of a UK creator's US-viewer earnings — but the UK–US treaty usually reduces it to 0%. How the W-8BEN works and how to file it right.
Read postYour first big year and the 150% tax bill
Payments on account catch out almost every creator's first successful year — the January bill is one-and-a-half years of tax. How it works and how to plan for it.
Read postWhen does posting become a business?
The point where content creation stops being a hobby and becomes taxable trading in HMRC's eyes — the £1,000 allowance, the badges of trade, and what to do when you cross the line.
Read postTikTok Shop sellers: the tax rules you've already triggered
Selling on TikTok Shop makes you a trader in HMRC's eyes — registration, commissions, samples, VAT at speed and stock accounting, explained for social sellers.
Read postOnlyFans tax in the UK: the straight answers
How OnlyFans income is taxed in the UK: registration, what counts as income, expenses, the VAT quirk, and catching up on undeclared years — professionally and without judgement.
Read postNo boss, no benefits: the creator safety net
Creators get no employer pension, sick pay or life cover — and the algorithm is not a retirement plan. The tax-smart way to build your own safety net.
Read postFive platforms, one set of books
How to keep clean books when income arrives from AdSense, TikTok, Patreon, brand deals and merch — the simple creator bookkeeping system, built around FreeAgent.
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