Make sure your photographer has business license

photogbride12

Just a helpful tip for all of you searching for photographers - make sure before you sign a contract with someone that your photographer is running a legitimate business. There are literally thousands of photographers out there who set up shop and don't pay taxes or have a license to do business which puts you at risk. This information is available to the public with a quick search of your Secretary of State business search database (google your state's and it should come up). A few examples:

Virginia: https://sccefile.scc.virginia.gov/
Pennsylvania: https://www.corporations.state.pa.us/corp/soskb/csearch.asp
North Carolina: http://www.secretary.state.nc.us/corporations/csearch.aspx

If you can't find their business registered with the state, ask them why and be cautious about signing a contract with them.

jackandjill2011

I think your search only turns up corporations. I have an etsy business with the right licenses and I don't come up in my state because I'm not a corporation but a sole proprietor.

But if you check the sales tax office, I'm good to go!

angybanez

Correct. It also depends for each state. Many vendors including photographers are sole proprieters for tax purposes. If they have a federal ID number for my photography business, liability insurance, etc and abide by all laws and requirement then they are good to go. Photographers are products are services, actual products must be taxed and for those they must have a sales tax license to sell products they create. But if they're creating a product through another vendor that's already taxed the product, then there's no double taxing necessary...it gets confusing but I do agree with researching your vendors and asking questions. :-).