How do you file taxes for independent contractors in California? -

What classifies is a person is an independent contractor or employee?Thanks

You are asking two separate questions.First, what makes a person an independent contractor, rather than an employee? The key difference is control. An employee is under the constant control of an employer; the employer tells the employee what job to do, and how to do it. An independent contractor is under the general control of the person employing him/her but makes the actual decisions about how to do the work. Example: Somebody wants me to build a shed in their back yard. If I am told to buy a particular type of lumber and a particular type of nails and how to put the shed together, I am an employee. If I am told only to build a shed having particular characteristics (but not how to do it), I am an independent contractor. The distinction is often fuzzy, and gives rise to a number of lawsuits, because employers have to pay social security for, and withhold taxes from, employees, but not independent contractors. The second question is how you file taxes for independent contractors in California. Independent contractors must pay estimated taxes four times a year, on the fifteenth of April, June, September and January. There is a form for this -- Form 540-ES -- which you can obtain online from the Franchise Tax Board at www.ftb.ca.gov/forms. Then you have to file a regular tax form (form 540) on April 15.