1099-NEC

Yes.  If you were not an employee, you would be considered self-employed. 

 

 To enter your self-employment income select the following:

1. Federal
2. Income and Expenses
3. Show More next to Self-Employment
4. Start next to Self-Employment
5. Yes, to you have any self-employment income or expenses
6. Enter the type of self-employment work you do and you can select that you use your name for your business
7. Click through a few more screens and you will get to a screen that says "Your XX info"
8. Click Looks good
9. Then you will come to a screen that says Let's enter the income for your business.  It will give you the option of 1099-NEC or Other self-employed income including the 1099K , cash and checks.  Here is where you will enter the money you receive.
10. If you do not select one, it will not let you enter your income
11. Enter your self-employment income on the next screen
12. Continue and on the next screen click add expenses

* Please note navigation may differ slightly depending on which version of TurboTax you are using*

This income will be reported on Schedule C which is part of your overall tax return. This also means you will be subject to SE Tax.  If you did not pay SE Taxes in 2024, and if you plan to do this again in 2025, it may be a good idea to make  quarterly estimated payments to cover your SE taxes of 15.3% and avoid penalties.

 

Taking Business Expense Deductions

So this means while I was technically employed under a contracted company and was not the boss, I still file as self-employed?

Yes, the company that paid you did not consider you their employee or you would have received a W-2 instead of a Form 1099-NEC to report your income. 

 

To learn more, take a look at the following TurboTax help articles:

 

Am I an employee or an independent contractor?
 

Am I considered self-employed?

 

@andiejennings1995