There isn't one. Neither the ATO nor the IRS has a code for OnlyFans, any other platform or even for influencers, so you choose the code for the activity that earns most of your income. On an Australian return that is a five-digit business industry code from the ATO's Business Industry Codes 2021 list, where the closest creator entries include 90021 for entertainers and performing artists, 90029 for writers and other creative artists, and 69400, which covers advertising including blogging. On a US Schedule C it is a six-digit code from the IRS Schedule C instructions, such as 711510 for independent artists, writers and performers or 516000 for broadcasting and content providers.
Australia: the business industry code on your return
The ATO's business industry code tool describes the code as five digits that describe your main business activity, derived from the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification and simplified for tax returns. It warns that the codes are very broad and tells you to choose the closest match when none fits your exact role. Sole traders meet it in the business and professional items section of myTax: the myTax 2026 instructions ask you to select the main business or professional activity your gross income comes from and to run the code tool if no description fits.
We searched the full 2021 list for influencer, social media, podcast, streaming and content creator and found no entries; the only creator-flavoured wording is “Advertising - blogging” under 69400. That is why the tool's advice to search the broadest term matters; its own example tells a copywriter to search “writing”. As your work changes, the ATO says to enter the new code on your next return and, if you have an ABN, to change it on the Australian Business Register.
Lookup table: ATO codes that fit creator work
Each description is quoted from the numeric listing in Business Industry Codes 2021. Pick by what you are paid for, not by the app you use.
| If most of your income comes from | Candidate code | Entries listed under it |
|---|---|---|
| Appearing on camera, live streaming as a personality, performing or making music | 90021 | Actor; Entertainers; Musicians; Performing artist operation |
| Writing, scripting, comedy, illustration or other original creative work | 90029 | Writer; Creative writers - own account; Comedians; Artist; Cartoonists; Songwriter |
| Sponsored posts, paid promotion and advertising placements | 69400 | Advertising - blogging; Internet advertising services; Advertising service |
| Publishing your own site or digital publication | 57000 | Internet publishing (periodical), in the internet publishing and broadcasting group |
| Producing videos for brands or other clients | 55110 | Film and video production; Television film or tape production |
| Shooting photos or video for clients | 69910 | Video filming; Commercial photography service; Studio photography service |
If your Australian business also needs a registered name, the rules are in do creators need to register a business name.
United States: the principal business code on Schedule C
Line B of Schedule C asks for a six-digit code from the chart at the end of the instructions. The IRS says the codes are based on the North American Industry Classification System and classify sole proprietorships by activity to help administer the tax code. Its method: pick the category that best describes your primary activity, then the activity that best identifies the principal source of your sales or receipts. Line A asks you to describe that activity in words, and if you owned more than one business you complete a separate Schedule C for each.
The 2025 chart, like the ATO list, has no entry for influencers, podcasters or streamers. The codes below are the ones creators most often weigh up; if nothing fits at all, the chart ends with 999000 for unclassified establishments.
| If most of your receipts come from | Code and chart wording |
|---|---|
| Your own performances, writing or art as an independent creator | 711510, Independent artists, writers, & performers |
| Distributing your own programmes or channels of content | 516000, Broadcasting & content providers |
| Newsletters, e-books or other publishing | 513000, Publishing industries |
| Video production as a service | 512100, Motion picture & video industries (except video rental) |
| Music recording and releases | 512200, Sound recording industries |
| Sponsorships, paid promotion and PR work for brands | 541800, Advertising, public relations, & related services |
| Photography for clients | 541920, Photographic services |
| Managing other creators | 711410, Agents & managers for artists, athletes, entertainers, & other public figures |
| Selling merchandise online as the main business | The retail code for the main product, such as 458110 for clothing and accessories; the IRS tells nonstore retailers to choose by primary product |
The code sits on the same Schedule C as your income and expenses, which are covered for US creators in OnlyFans taxes, 1099 forms and deductions.
Subscription-platform creators, including OnlyFans
The search that brings most people here is the OnlyFans question, and the answer is the same for any fan or subscription platform: the code follows the work, not the website. Neither list mentions fan subscriptions or adult content, so the choice comes down to how you read the official wording. If you see yourself mainly as a performer or on-camera personality, the closest fits are 90021 in Australia and 711510 in the US. If you see your page mainly as a channel you publish and sell access to, 57000 for internet publishing or 516000 for broadcasting and content providers describes it better. On our reading either is a reasonable match; what matters is choosing deliberately, writing down why and staying consistent from year to year.
Creators whose biggest income is work for brands rather than fans usually belong in the advertising or video production rows instead. If a management agency takes a share of your income, your code still describes your own activity; the agency codes its business separately on its own return.
What to write next to the code
Both returns want words as well as digits. In myTax you enter the description the code tool returns, in the way the ATO's own example shows 69320 next to Accounting Services. Schedule C line A asks you to describe the activity that provided your principal source of income, giving the general field and the type of product or service. A phrase such as “online video entertainment and sponsorships” or “subscription content and live streaming” tells a reader far more than a platform name, and it does not go stale if you move platforms.
Mixed income: which code wins
Most creators earn from several sources at once: subscriptions, brand deals, ad revenue, affiliate links. Both offices use a version of the same rule, which is to report the activity that brings in the most. The ATO's tool says that if you have more than one work type or business, use the activity that gives you the highest gross income or smallest loss, and myTax separately asks how many distinct business activities you ran. The IRS asks for the principal source of income on each Schedule C, and for separate schedules where you run genuinely separate businesses.
The hard part is deciding whether streams are one business or several. A creator whose brand deals, subscriptions and affiliate income all come from the same channel and audience usually describes one activity; a creator who also runs an unrelated photography business may have two. That judgement affects more than the code, so make it with your adviser.
Note for mixed income: total each stream for the year from your platform statements and invoices, rank them by gross income, and code the activity behind the largest. Keep the ranking with your records so next year's choice is consistent, and change the code (and your ABR entry, in Australia) only when the ranking really changes.
What the code does, and a lookup checklist
The ATO's code tool says the right code puts your return in the right category, which helps avoid processing delays, reduces the risk of your business being wrongly targeted for compliance activity and means the services and material you receive are relevant to your business. Once you have it, you can also compare your figures with the ATO's small business benchmarks for your industry. Neither office presents the code as something that changes what is taxable; it describes what you do.
- Total your income by type for the year before you open the code list.
- Write one plain sentence about what you are paid for, without platform names.
- Search the ATO tool or the IRS chart with the broadest word in that sentence, such as performing, writing, advertising or video.
- Read every entry under the code you land on and check it covers your activity.
- Enter the code and the matching description; in myTax, enter the description the tool returns.
- Record why you chose it, so the choice stays consistent across years.
- Recheck when your biggest income stream changes, and update the ABR if you have an ABN.
The same activity description is worth reusing on your invoices; see the influencer invoice template. Products received as payment also belong in the same business income, as explained in are PR packages taxable, and US platform forms are mapped in what tax forms content creators get.
Limitations of this guide
This is classification help only, based on the ATO's Business Industry Codes 2021, its code tool and myTax 2026 instructions, and the IRS's 2025 Schedule C instructions, all checked on 1 October 2026. The candidate codes are our matching of creator activities to official wording, not ATO or IRS rulings, and neither list was written with creators in mind. Other countries, including Canada's industry codes, are not covered.
If you are unsure which activity is your main one, or whether you run one business or several, ask a registered tax agent in Australia or a CPA or enrolled agent in the US to confirm the code with your return.