✍️ Freelance writing & copywriting
Website copy, blog posts, emails and product descriptions for Irish and international businesses. Suits: Clear writers with a niche they know — tech, finance, health, food, travel.
Reviewed 2026-09-25 · what a review checks
Earnings are modelled, not measured: €25–€60 an hour (assumed effective hourly rate; usually priced per piece) × your hours × 20–60% of those hours paid in the first months. Check local prices before you set yours.
Rewrite the "About" section of a real local business website you think is weak. That rewrite is sample #1 and your first pitch.
- Choose one niche and write three sample pieces for it
- List 20 local businesses whose websites are weak
- Send five tailored pitches with one specific improvement each
To start: €0–€100 — portfolio website or PDF, grammar tool.
Monthly: €0–€30 — software subscriptions.
- Written agreement on scope, revisions and payment terms.
- Feast-and-famine income until you have repeat clients.
- Late payment — invoice 50% up front for new clients.
Self-employed income. VAT only once services turnover passes €42,500.
Declaring side income as a PAYE worker. Side income is taxable from the first euro. If your net non-PAYE income is under €5,000 (and gross under €30,000) you can declare it on Form 12 through myAccount. At €5,000 net or more you are a “chargeable person” and must register for self-assessment and file Form 11 by 31 October. Source · checked 2026-09-25
VAT registration thresholds. You must register for VAT once turnover exceeds, or is likely to exceed, €42,500 a year for services or €85,000 for goods. Source · checked 2026-09-25
Business expenses. Costs incurred “wholly and exclusively” for the side business (tools, software, platform fees, a share of home costs) are deductible from the income before tax. Keep receipts for six years. Source · checked 2026-09-25
Educational information about Irish tax rules, not tax, legal or financial advice. Your position depends on your circumstances — check with Revenue or a qualified adviser.
Day-by-day actions for your first week, and what to do at your first customer, first €100, first €500 and when to scale. Included with Hustler (€9.99/month, 14-day free trial, cancel any time).