I used to be a working musician (instead of a bureaucrat who also works at music) and I reported my income (it was always miniscule, each year) from teaching & playing (it was mostly teaching). Because I reported income, I deducted travel, instrument depreciation, parts & supplies, advertising, etc., and kept records of same.

The result is that each year I paid a small income tax, or no income tax (in bad years), and my FICA tax. Because of doing this, I am now collecting Social Security that I would not have collected had I not crossed those T's and dotted those I's. There are times when following the law, scrupulously, helps a lot "down the road."

The rule of thumb is you must show a profit in three of five years, if I recall what the thumb said in those days. It may be different now. But you should be careful to pay your FICA tax. To paraphrase a lumberjack song:

Pay your money when you're young, me boys,
You'll need it when you're old!


Bob