Under a "Stay at Home" Order? Here Are Some Ways to Make Money

• Author: William Asher
• Posted: 2024-06-11

To help slow down the spread of the widely-covered "COVID-19" pandemic, every state is seeing some form of restrictions imposed. While some states have made it very clear that they are not planning on issuing such an order, given the question of its constitutionality, others have gone all-out. Many states who have issued these orders have given those who worked in jobs they deem as "not essential" that require a physical presence. This leaves many workers feeling as though they have no economic options anymore.

However, if you have Internet access, there are some jobs you may be able to start doing for almost immediate income. Given the significance of a lack of income and a literal ban on earning it, many places have loosened restrictions on how skilled one must be in certain areas to be employed there.

Please note that all of these are "1099" opportunities. This means that, at the end of the year, you'll need to file a "self-employed" tax return for these jobs. We'll dive into that first, so you understand the implications first.

Important Notes Regarding 1099 Jobs

Form 1099 is provided by the IRS and is used by self-employed, independent contractors. Most workers just file Forms W-2 and W-4, which are provided to those employed by others. The key difference is that Form 1099 jobs do not withhold any taxes in most cases.

You will need to use an online tool to determine how much money to save yourself to pay taxes at the end of the year. Remember, if you live in a state with income tax, this will include your local and state-level income taxes and federal taxes. Federal taxes come in two forms: "FICA" taxes, which cover Social Security and Medicare, and "Federal Taxes," which cover other federal programs.

The second crucial difference is that you will need to pay double the payroll tax, though this may change via legislation soon. There are two types of payroll/FICA taxes: Social Security and Medicare. In W-2 jobs, the employer and the employee each pay exactly half, or 6.2% of your income for Social Security and 1.45% of your income for Medicare contributions. However, 1099 workers must pay double both of these, meaning 12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare. For those in higher-tax states, this can make even the lowest tax bracket shockingly high.

The Opportunities

Now that you know to set aside a good chunk of money earned so you don't get an unhappy surprise at the end of the year, here are some common opportunities online that many people can perform.

First, there are plenty of "survey sites", though it's recommended that you do some digging on how reputable they are before signing up. Many are under the misconception that all of these are "scam sites", whereas many are not.

Second, if you have at least an associate's degree, you will likely be able to do online tutoring. There are many, many different opportunities for this. From teaching English to kids in foreign countries, to doing live video tutoring in college-level Calculus, there are opportunities in this field for people of all skill levels. Fortunately, this field has seen demand skyrocket as classes have gone online.

Freelance writing is another great opportunity for those who have some level of training in writing, even if it's just high-school classes. Again, you'll need to do your research before investing time and money into a specific freelancing site. Again, many of these sites are seeing spikes in demand. This is because many people have very little to do at the moment other than surf the web. Commonly referred to as "web content", articles of all sorts need to be written, often for good money.

Are None of These Jobs for You?

It may seem like none of these jobs are good fits for you, and that's fine! Everyone is different and has different abilities. In times like these, it can be easy to feel discouraged. Remember that there is a 100% chance that there is an online job that would suit you just fine!

There are plenty of sites easily found on Google that index new jobs every day. There are lots of new gigs that you may have never pictured yourself doing before.