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> First, a hiring consultant asked me if I was Incorporated or 'w-2' . I
> guess the distinction is pretty self explanatory, but at one point is it
> smart for an independent contractor to become incorporated? Is either one
> a potential plus or minus for your client?
This is actually something I know a little about: I wrote bookkeeping and
accounting articles for a while, and I learned accounting principles
(literally) at my father's knee.
When a business incorporates, it becomes (in the tax authorities' eyes) a
bona-fide "taxpayer", its own little legal entity. From Revenue Canada's
(or the IRS's) point of view, it is just like a person. This gives you
certain legal responsibilities, certain tax advantages, and certain
disadvantages. For one thing, you have to register your company with the
government and maintain lots of other records: mega paperwork. It costs
money, too.
Whether incorporating is to your overall tax advantage or not depends
entirely on the individual facts of your business. The only way to really
tell to consult an accountant of one flavour or another. They will have the
specific up-to-date tax law information, they can run the numbers, and they
can help you decide if incorporating is for you.
