6 Year-End Tax Moves for Remote-First Founders
Sam's List Editorial | 2026-07-24
Running a remote-first company gives you a distributed team, a lighter overhead, and a tax situation that is quietly more complicated than a founder in a single office ever deals with. Where you live, where your team works, and where your customers are can each create obligations, and most of the fixes have to happen before December 31.
Here are six year-end moves that save remote-first founders money and headaches. The details vary by state and situation, so treat these as a checklist to work through with a professional, not a one-size answer.
1. Pin Down Your State Residency and Nexus
This is the move remote founders most often ignore and most often regret. If you moved states during the year, spent months working from somewhere new, or have team members scattered across the country, you may have created tax obligations you did not intend.
Residency determines where your personal income is taxed. Nexus determines where your business has to file and, increasingly, where it owes. Employees or contractors in another state can create both. Sort out your facts before year-end while you can still document days, addresses, and work locations. Getting this wrong can mean filing in states you never expected, and the rules differ enough that a specialist is worth the call.
2. Reconcile Contractor Payments and Collect W-9s
Remote companies run on contractors, and contractors mean 1099s. If you wait until January to figure out who you paid and whether you have their tax information, you are setting up a scramble and risking penalties for late or missing forms.
Before year-end, reconcile every contractor payment, confirm you have a current W-9 for anyone who will need a 1099, and flag anyone paid through platforms that may or may not handle reporting for you. Cleaning this up in December turns January filing into a formality instead of a fire drill.
3. Time Equipment and Software Purchases
If you know you need new laptops, software subscriptions, or equipment for the team, the timing of the purchase affects which year you deduct it. Buying before December 31 can pull the deduction into the current year; waiting pushes it to next.
The right timing depends on whether this year or next is your higher-income year, which is a planning question, not an automatic "buy everything now" answer. Accelerating deductions only helps if it fits your overall picture, so run it against your projected income rather than spending to save on taxes.
4. Revisit Your Entity and Reasonable Compensation
If your remote business has grown, the entity structure that fit at the start may be leaving money on the table. Profitable owners often benefit from an S-corp election, which can reduce self-employment tax, but only if you also pay yourself reasonable compensation and actually run payroll.
Year-end is the time to check whether your current structure still fits and whether your owner compensation is defensible. The savings can be real, and so can the penalties if you take an aggressive salary position you cannot support. This is squarely a conversation for a professional who can look at your numbers.
5. Fund Retirement Accounts on the Right Deadline
Remote founders often skip retirement planning because no employer is nudging them to do it. That is a missed deduction and a missed long-term move. Depending on the account, a solo 401(k) or a SEP-IRA, part of the setup or funding has to happen by specific deadlines, some at year-end and some by the filing date.
Decide which account fits your situation and calendar the deadlines now. Contribution limits and eligibility vary, so confirm the specifics rather than assuming last year's numbers still apply.
6. Get Your Books Closed and Current
Every move above depends on knowing your real numbers, and you cannot plan year-end from books that are three months behind. Closing the year cleanly, reconciled accounts, categorized expenses, contractor payments captured, is what makes the rest of the checklist possible.
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Clean books make year-end planning possible, but the planning still has to happen, and the specific moves depend on your facts and your state. Confirm fit before engaging, and compare firms in the Sam's List accountant directory.
Frequently Asked Questions
What year-end tax moves matter most for remote founders? The most valuable move is nailing down state residency and business nexus, because a distributed team can create filing obligations in states you did not expect. After that, reconcile contractor 1099s, time equipment purchases to the right year, revisit your entity and owner compensation, and fund retirement accounts before their deadlines.
How does having remote employees affect my business taxes? Employees or contractors working in other states can create nexus, meaning your business may have to register, file, and sometimes pay taxes there. Payroll and withholding rules can also follow where the work happens. Because state rules differ, map where your team actually works and confirm your obligations with a professional.
When do I need to send 1099s to contractors? 1099 forms are generally due to contractors and the IRS in late January, so the practical deadline for getting organized is year-end. Reconcile who you paid, confirm you hold a current W-9 for each contractor, and identify anyone paid through platforms so nothing falls through the cracks.
Should a remote founder set up an S-corp? An S-corp election can reduce self-employment tax for profitable owners, but only if you pay yourself reasonable compensation and run real payroll. Whether it makes sense depends on your profit level and administrative appetite, so review it with an accountant rather than electing on a rule of thumb.
About the author: Kimberly Green is the cofounder of Sam's List, where business owners and high earners find vetted CPAs, financial advisors, and fractional CFOs. She's met one-on-one with 400+ financial professionals and writes from the real data behind thousands of client-advisor matches. Ask her anything about finding an accountant - she's heard it all, including the questions people are afraid to ask.