<p>Yes, you must pay all your insurances, social security, state withholding, etc. so you need to calculate that into your negotiations. Please keep in mind that carrying your own health insurance even for just one person can run around $1,500-2,000 or more a month, look into it carefully . You must pay your IRS quarterly and be consistent about it or you’ll increase your audited chances. Also if you are taken work related deductions there are new rules as I remember how you can work as an independent contractor. I think since I did it you now have to be able to prove that a certain portion of your work was done at home or not at one particular business. I think this was done to do away with employers allowing employees who were working only for them for 40 or more hours to be off the books as contractors. You can’t work for one person on-site anymore and declare yourself an indepdent contractor as I remember it. This is where working in arts related fields and needing a good business head come into play. I think that 30% figure as what I used, might need to be higher now as insurance costs especially have gone up.</p>