This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Rules differ by country and change; the official sources linked below are the final word.
Your employment contract
- Many employment contracts ask you to get permission before taking other paid work, or limit work for other companies. Check yours, or ask HR.
- Contracts often say who owns what you create and what you must keep confidential. Never use your employer's confidential information, code or documents in AI training tasks.
- Do the work on your own time and your own equipment.
Tax
- Platforms usually pay contractors without taking tax off, so you report the income and pay the tax yourself, where you live.
- In the UK, if your income from self-employment is over £1,000 in a tax year, you need to register for Self Assessment. See GOV.UK: working for yourself and the trading allowance.
- US-based platforms usually ask US workers for a W-9 form and people outside the US for a W-8BEN form. In the US, this is self-employment income; see the IRS self-employed tax centre.
- Each platform's page here lists the tax forms it asks for, where it publishes them.
Your visa
Many visas limit or rule out self-employed and freelance work, even from home and even for a company abroad. Before you start, check what yours allows. Some examples:
- UK Student visa: you can't be self-employed. See GOV.UK: Student visa.
- UK Skilled Worker visa: extra work is allowed only in some cases. See GOV.UK: Skilled Worker visa.
- US F-1 students and H-1B workers: work is limited to what your status authorises. See Study in the States and USCIS.
If you're not sure, ask your university's international student office, your employer's immigration adviser or a regulated immigration adviser before you sign a contract.
Before you sign
- Read the platform's contract: whether you are a contractor, how and when it pays, and any confidentiality or exclusivity terms.
- Check that the offer is real: how to spot a fake AI training job.