<prompt> Human: I came to yall when I was told that the entire staff would be laid off this upcoming August. I got a job lined up! :DOnly issue is that... they swore up and down that I was going to be hired directly, not as an independent contractor. This is a Bulgarian company Ill be working remotely from Kentucky, so I guess they went back to their HRlegal team and looked at the logistics and balked and decided hiring as Independent Contractor would be easier.Im still going to take the job I LOVE working from home. But this raises... a heck of a lot of questions.First -- Taxes.Do I make this money inside the US? They are going to be paying me in USD, but Im working from my computer tech support in live chat. Is this money taxed?If it is taxed, how do I find out how much I need to set aside so I dont get a nasty surprise in April? Can I just send monthly payments to the IRS so I dont... erm, forget just being honest here? If I can pay monthly, can I set up some sort of autodraft? Am I a 1066 independent contractor if I am employed out of Bulgaria? Or some other form?Next -- Social SecurityIm told I can continue to pay into Social Security. Do I want to do this? I think I do, because I dont have a good retirement plan at the moment so I think I need at least something yes, I know SS is not something to live off of -- I used to be a Social Security paralegal. But I was also wondering if... maybe I could put that money that would go to SS into something... better? Is it worth risking it? What risk would it involve? As a para, I did SSDI and not SS Retirement -- what happens if I go years without paying into SS and then want to retire -- is there a time limit or something?EDIT: I have a 401k at this job. I know theres some sort of rollover thing. Can I still do that? I likely have 401ks sitting at all the previous jobs Ive had...More -- Health InsuranceIm assuming that something on the Insurance Marketplace is going to be the best place to start looking. I have a disability type 1 diabetes and its very expensive to keep me alive. Im going to ask this question in more detail on rdiabetes, but in case anyone here is also expensive-to-live, please let me know if you have any tips on getting insurance not from work.And Also -- Other ThingsAm I still protected by the ADA americans with disabilities act?What happens if they fire me -- would I be entitled to unemployment?What employment rights do I have in general -- American or Bulgarian rights?Is there anything Im overlooking?Do any independent contractors have some noob-level tips on how you keep track of all the... stuff Im gonna have to keep track of?  <response>: Look up Schedule C and 1099 info on the IRS website. If you are working as an IC... you dont get any unemployment benefits.Keep all receipts for internet, phone, etc. Anything you need to purchase to work is tax-deductible. So if you bought office equipment, you could deduct that.As far as monthly payments, there is a IRS form to fill out that estimates how much you will make during the year and calculates the payments, you then make quarterly payments. Calculate about 33 of your earnings towards taxes. 