True or Bull?

Colorado has no licensing for PI's. All you have to do is say you are one and you are.

As to incorporating, you can go to the secretary of state website and file your corp or LLC online. Depending on the day, the e-file fees are 0.99 to $75. I say this tongue in cheek, because they change them back and forth periodically. Filing by paper is higher, about $125. Does this secretary also act as the service agent in Colorado? Whether you are a domestic (in-state) or foreign (out of state) corp, you still have to have an agent with a physical address for process service in the state. As a corporation, you also have to file a state income tax return every year whether you have income in the state or not. That means every state that you are registered to do business in or do business in.

An individual has the same business write-offs as a corporation. I'm not sure what you meant about not paying social security tax for many out of pocket items. Social security tax is your employment tax. If you are self employed then you pay your own social security and medicare on your "net" self employment income. If you are paid by the corporation, the corporation is responsible for withholding this as well as income tax from your's and any employees paychecks. The corporation is then required to file payroll tax reports and deposit the amounts along with its portion of the social security and medicare tax to the IRS and state(s). Along with this comes unemployment tax for any employees. You have to file your personal tax return based on your W-2 income from the corporation. If the corporation has profit for the year, the corporation pays tax at the corporate rate. If you are then paid out of those profits the following year, you will still have to pay income tax on your income. Thus the double taxation that so many complain of.

So, before you jump right in, make sure that the cost-benefit is worth it and won't cost you more in paperwork, stress and money than it's worth.

I checked out the IPIU site many months ago. I didn't really see anything bad about it, just more that a person had to spend hours and hours learning how to post in the forums, using all the little emoticons, using quotes, and generally having to post thousands of posts to creep up the levels. It just wasn't worth my time when I can go elsewhere for the help and information that I need.

And yes, I am in Colorado and also a Certified Public Accountant, so I deal with this stuff daily. JMHO even so.

_________________
Kathy Blackshear
Blackshear Investigations
Blackshear Bail Bonds
Sales Associate, Prepaid Legal Services, Inc.
Walsenburg, CO

Proud Member of the AB Reject Club

I find it amazing Colorado has no licensing law for PI's. In vermont, to become a lawyer all you have to do is work for an attorney for six years then pass the Bar Exam. No schooling required.

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Lance Allen Wilkinson
Recoveries by L.A.W.
Serving since 1984
“What is sought is found... what is overlooked escapes” (Oedipus Rex)

We have no regulations/requirements for pi's either, or BEA's.....not yet anyway.

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River City Associates
Decatur, Al. 35601

We have course requirements for BEA's, but no licensing for them and nothing is required for PI's. Anyone can work here as a PI.

Agent8, As to whether you should incorporate in CO or anywhere else goes back to the cost benefit analysis. Are you wanting to incorporate because of liability issues? Or just because you think it's a tax write off? If you are doing it to be able to chase skips from your state to here, it is not necessary. If you want to chase skips as a CO BEA, you will have to take the 16 hour POST certified course and submit your prints for the background check. It is done on an individual level, not as a corporation. If you are doing it to have an office here, just rent it under your company name as it exists now. You should register the trade name with the Dept of Revenue, though. That prevents another company from using it. It is $10 and renews annually.

I don't know what other states charge to register a foreign corporation so you will have to check with your Dept of Revenue or Secretary of State office. If you are just looking to form a corp, also check into Delaware. Many corporations form there because of the ease and low charge. They charge an annual fee based on your sales in or out of state. Several states do this whether the corp is domestic or foreign, so check the annual fees out before you incorporate.

Maybe I'm dense, but I'm not seeing any valid reason why you want to do this. Most of what you have given can be done without a corporation in Colorado. If you need a corp to operate in your state, go for it. Otherwise I consider it a waste of time and money.

_________________
Kathy Blackshear
Blackshear Investigations
Blackshear Bail Bonds
Sales Associate, Prepaid Legal Services, Inc.
Walsenburg, CO

Proud Member of the AB Reject Club

Mr. Williams,

I am repeating part of my post from January 2006.

"I checked out the IPIU site many months ago. I didn't really see anything bad about it, just more that a person had to spend hours and hours learning how to post in the forums, using all the little emoticons, using quotes, and generally having to post thousands of posts to creep up the levels. It just wasn't worth my time when I can go elsewhere for the help and information that I need."

If you check, you will find that I only made a couple of introductory posts over the space of a week or two and haven't posted since. Nor have I been back to the site. I didn't say anything bad about them, just that it wasn't for me. SOOOO, I don't think the fact that they haven't deleted me for non-activity should make you use that derrogatory tone about my having joined, or my tax knowledge either. You can only scam the IRS for so long before you get caught. Look at all the big corps and CPA firms that found that out the hard way .

_________________
Kathy Blackshear
Blackshear Investigations
Blackshear Bail Bonds
Sales Associate, Prepaid Legal Services, Inc.
Walsenburg, CO

Proud Member of the AB Reject Club