Hello group, I hope this is the correct ng, but here my question: I have been given the opportunity to work as a contractor for a company overseas. The terms are attractive (or apparently so) but here is the catch: that company would only make payment to another business, not to a self-employed person. I must therefore start a business. Further complexity: I cannot be the owner of that shop. My wife would be the owner and in turn would hire me as a full time employee. I am trying to run the economics of accepting the contract, as I suspect starting up a business has some associated cost, so I would need to blend those in my fee. Things I have in mind would be one off cost such as registration, taxes, attorney, accountant etc, as well as the cost associated with having one employee (eg social security benefits etc). Things like salary and benefits would be the leftovers from my contracting fees. I'm not too concerned with capital expenditure at this stage. Because the job is overseas the fee doesn't really compare with market rate in US, but I'm trying to work out if it's really financially attractive once all the bills of the company have been taken care of. A ball-park figure would be really helpful. This would let me in my negotiations Many thanks for your help, Eric

Because the job is overseas the fee doesn't really compare with market rate in US, but I'm trying to work out if it's really financially attractive once all the bills of the company have been taken care of. A ball-park figure would be really helpful. This would let me in my negotiations Go back to the company that you are dealing with, and find out what they really want.  There are a number of small consulting firms out there that will do pass-through deals for you.  That is, they will do the billing and collection, then pass the money onto you as a sub-contractor, less some overhead fee like $5 or $10 per hour. This is a lot easier and a lot less hassle than setting up a corporation, doing corporate taxes, and it may satisfy any insurance requirements that the hiring company might have. -john-