March 31st, 2010 | 
Author: I did a couple of “unofficial” (read: under the table) freelance web design gigs when I was unemployed. Now I have a new full-time job, but it’s not in the web design field. And I reckon it would be a nice way to earn some extra cash on occassion.
How would I go about being officially recognized as a freelance web designer? Would I need to essentially start a business to get a vendor number, or something like that?
Please, only answer if you really have a clue about this sort of thing.
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Make a portfolio website. Maybe take a couple jobs for small to no cash to expand on that portfolio. Etc.
As far as being officially recognized, you could go ahead and register the business and get a federal tax id issued but that may be overkill at this point. In all reality you probably won’t get a lot of leads from the net when starting out but more by word of mouth so anything “official” ahead of schedule on isn’t all that vital. Most likely the purchasing have fun will just 1099 you as an individual for tax purposes.
If you’re in the US you don’t need any type of official web designer diploma. Just start doing it. Even if you don’t make much money, it’s a smart go because you can deduct all your computer expenses at the end of the year. You may wish to get a vendor permit only because it will allow you to buy stuff wholesale.