The fast-growing self-employment method still raises many questions. Is a light entrepreneur an entrepreneur? Yes and no. There is no completely unambiguous answer. However, we can provide clear and understandable information on light entrepreneurship, and we have plenty of it.
Intermediate form of entrepreneur and employee
A light entrepreneur is not officially self-employed, and there is no business form called a light entrepreneur, at least not yet. But a light entrepreneur is neither an employee nor an employee. He is something in between.
A light entrepreneur can act just like a self-employed person, but without a business ID number. The beauty is that the light entrepreneur does not have to worry about accounting, insurance, paying advance taxes or any other bureaucracy. In other words, all the things that the entrepreneur has to remember to take care of himself.
Top benefits of light entrepreneurship
Compared to an entrepreneur, the everyday life of a light entrepreneur is pleasantly carefree. There are no risks and no paperwork, and you can concentrate on the things that matter to you.
You can easily take on individual jobs or assignments, even when your client wants you to invoice the work you do. If you change your mind, or have other plans, quitting light business requires virtually nothing from you.
If you start to get busier, being a light entrepreneur may not serve you best. In addition to the amount of billing, fixed costs and taxation can be a deciding factor. In that case, it might be worth considering full-fledged self-employment, for example in the form of a trading company.
How a light entrepreneur gets paid for the work he or she does
The first thing you need is a billing service like Truster. Then you decide what kind of work you want to do, get your clients and agree on a job. Finally, you invoice the work you've done through the billing service at a time that suits you best. That's all you need!
We invoice your client, they pay us for your work, and we pay you for the work you do. We also take care of your taxes, employer's contributions and other obligations. You're free to choose when you want to be invoiced, and when you want your wages paid into your account.
Can anyone be a light entrepreneur?
Yes, you can. Anyone can become a light entrepreneur, from students to pensioners. You may want to do a gig alongside your main job, try a new business idea or be self-employed.
Light entrepreneurship is a great solution when you employ only yourself and the work is relatively small-scale. Light entrepreneurship is at its best when you are selling your skills to clients and want to charge for individual jobs or gigs.
However, you cannot start a licensed business such as a restaurant as a light entrepreneur. In that case, you must set up a business name or a limited company, for example.
Who decides whether you are self-employed or a light entrepreneur?
In principle, you are always a light entrepreneur if you are not registered as a company. However, the line between self-employment and light entrepreneurship can be blurred. Many light entrepreneurs feel that they are self-employed, and the same interpretation may sometimes be made by the authorities.
TE Offices decide on a case-by-case basis whether they consider you to be an entrepreneur or a light entrepreneur. The TE Offices do not have a uniform policy at the moment, but as light entrepreneurship becomes more and more common, perhaps the decision will become clearer in the future.
Is light entrepreneurship always an intermediate step towards "real" entrepreneurship?
Why should it be? Not everyone needs to be interested in becoming more entrepreneurial. If light entrepreneurship fits in with your daily life and the nature of your work, you are perfectly capable of employing yourself as a light entrepreneur for as long as you want. You will accumulate a pension just as you would from a paid job. Just keep working with peace of mind, and leave the boring jobs to us.