Year-round NIL tax and accounting guidance

NIL-focused tax planning

Planning means thinking about taxes before a decision is final, not after the year is over. For NIL athletes, that usually means looking at how a deal is likely to be paid and reported, what it could mean for your tax bill, and what you should do about it now.

Examples of the work:

• Reviewing how a new deal is structured from a tax and reporting point of view
• Explaining whether a payment is likely to be treated as self-employment income, royalty income, or wages, and what that means for you
• Flagging products, services, or travel that may carry a tax consequence
• Thinking ahead about how a large payment late in the year affects the next estimated payment

Planning does not mean chasing every possible deduction. Our job is to help you pay what you owe, not more, and to do it in a way that holds up.

Ongoing accounting for NIL income and expenses

Most tax problems start as record problems. We help set up a simple system and keep it current: every payment, every product received, and every expense that may relate to NIL work, organized in one place.

• Setting up income and expense tracking that fits how you actually get paid
• Regular reconciliation against bank and payment app activity
• Recording non-cash compensation and its value
• Keeping contracts, tax forms, and receipts where they can be found

What records to keep for NIL income

Estimated tax calculations and cash reserve planning

When tax is not withheld from NIL payments, the IRS may expect you to make estimated tax payments, which are payments you send yourself during the year to cover income tax and self-employment tax. Federal payments cover four periods, and many states have their own schedules.

• Calculating federal and state estimated payments from your actual income and expenses
• Recalculating as new deals come in, rather than using a fixed percentage
• Recommending how much of each payment to hold in reserve for taxes
• Reminders before each payment deadline

How estimated taxes work for NIL income

Analysis of filing requirements in more than one state

The IRS advises NIL athletes to track where they perform NIL services, because a state where you earn NIL income may expect tax. An athlete who lives in one state, attends school in another, and makes an appearance in a third may have questions in all three.

Whether a filing is actually required depends on each state's rules, the type of income, where the work was performed, and your residency. An appearance or game in another state does not automatically create the same obligation for every athlete. We review the facts, identify which states may matter, and coordinate the filings that are needed.

Tax returns as part of an ongoing engagement

We prepare annual federal and state returns for the athletes we work with throughout the year. Because the records and estimates are kept current, filing becomes a matter of confirming and finishing the work rather than reconstructing it.

We do not take on standalone tax preparation without an ongoing relationship. That is a deliberate choice: the value of our work comes from being involved before decisions are made.

Financial education for athletes and families

We explain what is happening in plain language, so that you understand your own taxes and can make sound decisions after your college career, too. When a parent or guardian is involved, we make sure they understand the picture as well.

• Walking through how your NIL income is taxed and why
• Explaining estimated payments, reserves, and deadlines
• Answering questions from family members the athlete chooses to include

Coordination with agents, collectives, and advisors

Many athletes work with an agent, a collective, an attorney, or a school compliance office. We coordinate with them on the tax and accounting side, with your permission, so information moves accurately and nobody is guessing.

We stay in our lane. We do not negotiate deals, give legal advice, interpret eligibility rules, or provide investment advice. When a question belongs to someone else, we say so and help you get it to the right person.

Supporting services, when they fit

Evaluating a business entity

An LLC or S corporation is not an automatic tax savings step. For some athletes it adds cost and paperwork without changing the tax result. When the question comes up, we look at your actual numbers and plans, explain the tradeoffs, and coordinate with an attorney on formation when an entity makes sense.

Cleaning up records

If a year has already gone by without much tracking, we help reconstruct what was earned and spent and set up a system that keeps it from happening again.

Outside our scope

Being clear about what we do not do is part of doing the work well.

• Standalone tax filing without an ongoing relationship
• Aggressive or high-risk tax strategies
• Legal, immigration, or athletic eligibility advice
• Investment advice
• General business advisory unrelated to the athlete's NIL activity