Tax Changes to Your YouTube Earnings

Hi Fellow YouTube Content Creators,

Followings are Questions and Answers on Tax Changes to Your YouTube Earnings.

Summary:

Q: When to submit your tax form?

A: By May 31, 2021

Q: Who are required to submit tax form in this tax change?

A: YouTube Creators outside of the U.S.

Q: What will happen when you do not provide your tax info by May 31, 2021?

A: Google may be required to deduct up to 24% of your total earnings worldwide.

Q: How will your earnings be impacted?

A: There are 2 Scenarios:

Scenario 1

If you provide your tax info, your income from the U.S. viewers will be taxed by IRS rate. (The rate is various by information you provide)

Scenario 2

If you do not provide your tax info by the deadline, your income from the U.S. viewers will be taxed by 24% of your total earnings worldwide.

For longer and details, please read following email from YouTube team,

[Email from YouTube Team, Date: March 10, 2021, 1:01 AM]

Hi there,

We’re reaching out because Google will be required to deduct U.S. taxes from payments to creators outside of the U.S. later this year (as early as June 2021). Over the next few weeks, we’ll be asking you to submit your tax info in AdSense to determine the correct amount of taxes to deduct, if any apply. If your tax info isn’t provided by May 31, 2021, Google may be required to deduct up to 24% of your total earnings worldwide.

What do I need to do?

In the next few weeks you will receive an email to submit your tax information in AdSense. The online tax tool in AdSense is six steps and will ask you a series of questions to guide you through the process to determine if any U.S. taxes apply. For more information on these changes and a list of tax info to prepare, visit our Help Center.

Why is this happening?

Google has a responsibility under Chapter 3 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code to collect tax info from all monetizing creators outside of the U.S. and deduct taxes in certain instances when they earn income from viewers in the U.S.

For creators outside of the U.S., we will soon be updating our Terms of Service where your earnings from YouTube will be considered royalties from a U.S. tax perspective. This may impact the way your earnings are taxed, and as required by U.S. law, Google will deduct taxes.

How will my earnings be impacted?

If you provide your tax info, U.S. taxes may only be applied to your monthly U.S. earnings from AdSense (revenue earned from viewers in the U.S. through ad views, YouTube Premium, Super Chat, Super Stickers, and Channel Memberships). If no tax info is provided, your tax rate may default to the higher individual backup withholding rate (24% of total earnings worldwide). To estimate the potential impact on your earnings follow these instructions.

Thanks,

The YouTube Team

Let's explore on how to submit your tax form in the next post.

Good luck!