Hi everyone,
I have just started game development and currently I am working on improving my knowledge on the topic. I have decided not to use a game engine in order to further improve my knowledge of game coding (I have plenty of programming knowledge and experience since I am an engineer). Also, I really like pixel art games so I am learning how to draw and animate stuff in that style. I am enjoying the journey so far and I am already putting a few hours every night into it. This may not seem too much but please consider I already have a day time job and I am doing this stuff as a hobby :). I know that earning a living as an indie game developer is difficult as hell and I do not aim to make huge amounts of money for game making. My goal is to one day take a look at one of my games and to be able to say: "Yes, this is my masterpiece".
That said, it wouldn't be awful if I made a few bucks in my later games :). A lot of experienced people in the forums suggested to newbies like me to make their first few games free to play so that they will be able to catch some players' attention and also will have a network with players and other developers. I can understand that this is a very reasonable suggestion and I will most definitely do as suggested. But as I improve myself and make more than a few games, I want to see the day people actually pay to buy my games. It would most definitely make me very happy to be successful in a field I can put my passion into.
And that's where my concerns come into play: transactions and making money. I have a few very important questions I would like to ask. I have already searched the forums and read the docs about transactions and taxes. The page on https://itch.io/docs/creators/payments seems to have a thourough explanation of the matter at hand but I still do not have a clear understanding of every detail. My questions can be listed as follows:
- There are two payment methods already for getting paid if I make any money from my games. The docs explain that if I choose itch.io to handle the payments, it will also handle the taxes. Does this govern "all taxes I may be subject to for selling my game online"? I already see VAT to be processed by itch.io and I understand that. Are there any other taxes I may be subject to for selling my game? I could not find any legal information regarding my country's law for this matter (I live in Turkey btw which is not a member of the EU). If there may be any taxes or other legal "cuts" that I may be subject to, how and where can I find this information? I don't want to have a legal case just because I did not have enough information on the matter.
- There seems to be a "tax interview" that I need to apply so that the transactions regarding my games can be processed. What exactly does this process cover? Since I am a Turkish citizen, I will provide a tax identification number given to me by Turkish government. Does this mean that itch.io will process any taxes that may be imposed on me by Turkish government? Or does it just concern the taxes imposed on itch.io by the US government? Also, to what extent can itch.io use my private information (that I provide during my tax interview) and what legal rights does this give to it?
- Are there any differences between selling as an individual and as a company regarding taxes? If there are any, which points should I consider while choosing one of them?
I know that this is quite long a post but I really want to make sure that you understand my concerns clearly. I want to thank anyone in advance for taking your precious time to read and answer my questions. I hope that this post will become a guide to anyone who has similar concerns.
I sincerely hope you have a good day,
kochish