Personal & lifestyle services

Books and taxes for tarot readers and psychics.

Walk-in readings paid by Venmo, phone or video sessions booked through a reading app, private party bookings, and a deck and card supply that never stays the same twice. Your own bookkeeper stays on all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.

Book a call What we handle
  • From $197 a month
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever
OctoberExample month
$3,900
what you made

October brought in $3,900, your busiest month of the year. Private party bookings around Halloween made up a bigger share than usual, so I kept that in its own line.

  • Reading app payoutApp session fees
  • Private party booking, in-personPrivate event bookings
  • Venmo walk-in reading paymentsIn-person session fees
  • Reading app commissionApp commission fees
  • New tarot deck and suppliesTools and supplies
Money in$5,400
Money out$1,500
Set aside for taxes$900
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

Tarot reader and psychic books go wrong in the same four places.

A generalist sees deposits and bills. Your business mixes in-person session fees, app payouts that arrive after the app takes its cut, and private event bookings that pay very differently than a single reading. When the books do not know that, the monthly number is a guess.

  1. 1

    App commission gets missed as its own cost

    A reading app pays out only after taking its commission, so what lands in the bank account is already less than what the client actually paid, and if that gap is not tracked, your real session price looks smaller than it is.

    What we doBooks the full client payment as income and the app's cut as a separate fee, so your session pricing shows up honest.
  2. 2

    In-person and app-based sessions blur together

    Walk-in readings paid by Venmo and sessions booked through an app pay differently and at different rates, and lumped into one line, you cannot tell which side of the business is actually growing.

    What we doKeeps in-person session fees and app-based session income in separate lines so each is visible on its own.
  3. 3

    The practice never gets treated like a real business

    A reading practice that started with friends and grew into paid client work often keeps informal or no books long after the money is real, which makes it hard to show the practice is run for profit and to claim its full deductions.

    What we doTracks income and expenses the same way from the first paying client, so the business looks and files like what it is.
  4. 4

    A busy season looks like it came from nowhere

    Bookings often spike around Halloween and the New Year as people seek out readings, and comparing that rush to a quiet spring month makes it look like something changed when it is just the season.

    What we doTracks booking volume against your own seasonal pattern, so a fall or new year rush reads as expected, not a mystery.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for a tarot and psychic reading business.

Set up once for how sessions get booked and paid. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.

Money in

  • In-person session feesWalk-in and scheduled readings paid directly.
  • App session feesThe full client charge from a reading app, before its commission.
  • Private event bookingsParties, gatherings, and private group readings.
  • Online or phone readingsSessions booked and paid outside of an app.

Money out

  • App commission feesWhat a reading app keeps before paying you out.
  • Tools and suppliesTarot decks, cloths, candles, and other reading tools.
  • Marketing and websiteWebsite hosting, social media promotion, and advertising.
  • Continuing educationCourses and training to build reading skills.
  • Business insuranceLiability coverage for private and event bookings.

What we watch for you

  • App versus direct share

    How much of revenue comes through an app's commission versus direct payment. It shows where you keep more of what a client pays.

  • Event booking revenue

    Private party income against standard sessions. It shows how much bigger bookings are adding to the business.

  • Seasonal swing

    This month against the same month last year, not last month. It tells you if a busy season is on track.

  • The set-aside

    The tax picture, updated every month, so April arrives as a number you already knew.

Ask Gus

Things tarot readers and psychics ask Gus.

Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.

Why does the app payout look smaller than what I know the client paid?

The app takes its commission before paying out. I book the full client charge as income and the app's cut as a cost, so your pricing still shows up honest.

Is it normal that October is so much busier than usual?

For your practice, yes. Your last two Octobers ran close to this one as Halloween bookings pick up. Nothing looks off.

I started this as something small on the side. Does that change anything at tax time?

Not once you are keeping real books and treating it like a business, which is exactly what we are doing now.

The tax side

The tax side of a tarot and psychic reading business.

Most of what goes wrong here is what counts as income and whether the practice reads as a real business. App fees hidden in payouts, informal records, and a set-aside nobody started until April.

What your return has to get right

Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.

  • Self-employment tax on session incomeFor a tarot reading practice, self-employment tax runs 15.3 percent on top of regular income tax when the owner is not paid through payroll, up to the Social Security wage base of $184,500.
  • Form 1099-K from reading appsA reading app may issue a 1099-K once payouts cross $20,000 and 200 transactions in a year. Every dollar is taxable whether or not a form ever arrives.
  • Treating the practice as a businessThe IRS looks at whether a practice is run in a businesslike way, with real books and a genuine effort to be profitable. Clean records support that a reading practice is a real business, not a hobby.
  • Deducting a share of your profitMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.

Deductions tarot readers and psychics miss

Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.

  • Tarot decks and reading tools
  • Candles, cloths, and altar supplies
  • App commission fees
  • Website and social media promotion
  • Continuing education courses
  • Business liability insurance
  • Home office space for readings
  • Video call software for online sessions
  • Travel to event bookings
  • Business cards and signage
  • Storage for reading supplies
  • Payment processing fees

General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.

All year, not just April

A tarot and psychic reading business's year, kept every month.

Bookings often surge around Halloween and the New Year, and sessions run steady the rest of the year. Your team keeps you ahead of both the season and the tax deadlines. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.

  1. January

    Start the new cycle

    For a tarot reading practice, last year's return gets started in January, and a monthly set-aside means April is already handled.

  2. April

    Filed and closed out

    For a tarot reading practice, the return is filed and signed in April, with no surprise bill since the set-aside has been running since January.

  3. July

    The halfway point

    Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether booking volume changed the number.

  4. October

    Before the season peaks

    As Halloween and New Year bookings start ramping up, Gus looks at any moves worth making before December.

What you get

Starts at$197a month

What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.

Book a call
  • Monthly bookkeeping

    Every transaction sorted into categories set up for tarot readers and psychics. You never categorize a thing.

  • An accountant checks every transaction

    Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.

  • Your business tax return, filed

    Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.

  • The monthly number

    What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.

  • Your own bookkeeper

    A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.

  • On your books all year

    Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.

  • Cancel any time

    No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.

Straight answers

Questions tarot readers and psychics ask first.

Can Gus handle sessions booked through a reading app?

Yes. He books the full client payment as income and the app's commission as a cost, so your sales are not understated and the fee still counts against your taxes.

My practice started small with friends. Does that make it harder to claim deductions?

Not once it is run like a business, with real books and a genuine effort to be profitable. Keeping clean records from here forward supports that.

Do I owe tax on cash or Venmo payments even without a form?

Yes. All income is taxable whether or not a 1099-K or any other form arrives.

Is my busy season around Halloween going to look like a mistake in the books?

No. Gus tracks your revenue against your own seasonal pattern, so a fall booking rush reads as expected, not a warning sign.

My books are behind from focusing on client sessions. Is that fixable?

No, it happens. Send the statements you have and Gus catches the books up, with the accountant checking every transaction, usually inside a week.

Is a real accountant checking my books?

Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.

What does it cost, and can I cancel?

It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.

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Book a call

Pick a time. That's the whole signup.

Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.

  • $197 a month to start
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever