Many payers, many states. One company to hold it
Performers, musicians, and production companies get paid by a dozen payers across a dozen states, with royalties and rights layered on top. A loan-out company can hold all of it, cut your tax, and put a shield between you and a claim. We form it and handle the multi-state, royalty, and merch pieces.
Your income comes from everywhere. It should land in one place
A working performer is paid by venues, promoters, labels, streaming services, and sync placements, across states, with no tax withheld and rights attached to every song. Handled personally, that is a tangle of 1099s, surprise nonresident taxes, and unclear ownership. A loan-out company holds all of it, so income routes through one entity, deductions are clean, and an S-corp election can cut your self-employment tax.
We form the loan-out, elect S-corp treatment when it pays, organize your rights and royalties, and handle multi-state performance income and merch sales tax, so the business keeps up with the career.
- A dozen 1099s and no entity
- Self-employment tax on everything
- Surprise taxes in touring states
- Rights and splits undocumented
- Merch sold with no sales tax
- A loan-out that holds the income
- S-corp election that cuts the tax
- Multi-state income organized
- Rights and royalties documented
- Merch sales tax handled on tour
Slide your income, see the right structure
A loan-out and an S-corp election are powerful once you earn enough. Move the slider to see where your career sits, and what fits.
A guide, not tax advice. The exact thresholds depend on your expenses and a reasonable salary; we set the structure up and flag the election with your accountant.
Everything a performing business needs, in one place
Loan-out, rights, tax, and merch, handled and kept current together.
Loan-out formation
The company that holds your income
EIN
Federal tax ID for the company
S-corp election
Cut self-employment tax
Copyright
Songs and master recordings
Multi-state income
Touring and nonresident tax
Merch sales tax
At venues, by state
Crew and talent
Work-for-hire and classification
Compliance calendar
Filings and renewals, tracked
From gig money to a company that holds it
Five steps, in the right order. Select one to see the detail.
Form the loan-out that holds your income
Instead of being paid personally, you set up a company that loans out your services and receives your fees and royalties. It centralizes your income and puts a shield between you and a claim. We form it in your state, with fees passed through at cost.
One company between you and every payer.Get your EIN and business banking
The EIN is the company's tax ID, and a business account is where your fees, royalties, and merch income land, kept separate from your personal money so deductions and payouts are clean.
One account for fees, royalties, and merch.Elect S-corp and organize your rights
When your income supports it, we file the S-corp election so part of your pay is distributions rather than salary, reducing self-employment tax. We also organize your rights and can register copyrights in your songs and masters.
Tax reduced, rights registered. Copyright.Handle multi-state income and merch tax
Performing in other states creates income and often nonresident withholding there, and merch sold at venues is taxable in the show's state. We keep the multi-state paperwork organized and register sales tax so merch on the road is handled.
Touring income and merch tax, organized. Sales tax.Scale into production and keep it clean
As you take on crew, run productions, or launch side ventures, worker classification, work-for-hire agreements, and sometimes separate project entities appear. We handle the registrations and flag when a project deserves its own company.
Crew, projects, and filings in the calendar.Built for a loan-out and the road, not a generic filing
Most setups skip the S-corp, the multi-state income, and the rights. Here is the difference.
| Capability | File.Business | DIY forms | Local bookkeeper | Generic filer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loan-out formation | Forms only | Not available | Formation only | |
| S-corp election filed | Not available | Sometimes | Add-on | |
| Multi-state income organized | Not available | Varies | Not available | |
| Copyright registration | Not available | Not available | Add-on | |
| Merch sales tax at venues | Not available | Varies | Per filing | |
| Transparent, published pricing | Hourly | Per filing |
The honest version. A music or entertainment attorney is worth it for splits, sync, and label deals, and a business manager for touring finances, and nothing here is legal advice. What File.Business does is form the loan-out, file the S-corp election, organize rights and multi-state income, and set up merch tax, so your team focuses on the deals. Compare on the comparison hub.
An operator who knows the entertainment playbook
Ask in plain English. BosAI knows loan-outs, multi-state income, and merch tax.
Everyone says get a loan-out. What does it actually do for me?
I toured five states last year. Do I owe tax in all of them?
Do I charge tax on merch at the shows?
The business finally kept up with the tour
My income was a mess of 1099s from labels, venues, and streaming, and I was paying self-employment tax on all of it. File.Business set me up with a loan-out, filed the S-corp election, and organized my touring income across states so I stopped overpaying and double-paying. They registered my merch sales tax too. For the first time the business side felt as handled as the music.
Representative composite based on performer outcomes. Nothing here is legal or tax advice; consult your professionals for your situation.
The loan-out, the rights, and the tax
Practical resources for setting up and running a performing business. All free to read.
Straight answers on loan-outs, royalties, and tax
What is a loan-out company?
When is a loan-out worth setting up?
How does performing in other states affect my taxes?
Who owns my songs and recordings?
Do I charge sales tax on merch at shows?
Should each project have its own entity?
Do production companies need anything different?
Does this replace my music attorney or business manager?
Put a company behind the show
Form the loan-out, elect S-corp when it pays, and let us organize your rights, multi-state income, and merch tax. Start now, or talk with our team about your career.