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Online tutoring
Online tutoring means teaching or supporting learners remotely, either independently or through a tutoring platform. You can start with a subject and level you know well, then choose how to find students and agree lesson arrangements.
Open the interactive guide (checklist, video, read-aloud) →In plain words
- You teach a subject online.
- Choose learners and topics you can support.
- Agree lesson times, prices, and payment clearly.
- Prepare a simple lesson and check what the learner knows.
- Keep records and check the rules where you live.
Who it suits
Adults who can explain a subject clearly, plan useful lessons and communicate reliably with learners and, where appropriate, their families. It may suit people with recent study or teaching experience, but platforms set their own selection criteria.
Learners and families may pay for clear explanations, structured practice and support with specific learning goals. Online lessons can make it easier to arrange teaching without travelling, though finding learners and income can be unpredictable.
Step by step
- Choose a subject and learner level you know well. Write down the topics you can explain confidently and the learners you can support. Mark topics that need preparation, and do not accept work until you are comfortable teaching them. About 30–60 minutes.
- Choose how you will find learners. Compare independent tutoring with applying to a platform. Check how enquiries, payments, tutor selection and cancellations work before you decide. The platform pages do not state a minimum tutor age, so check current eligibility rules before applying. MyTutor Spires Your Future Campus About 1–2 hours.
- Write a clear tutor profile. Say what you teach, which learners you can help and how you approach lessons. Explain what a learner should bring to the first lesson, and avoid promising particular results. About 1–2 hours.
- Prepare a first lesson and a short check-in activity. Plan a brief introduction, one activity and a few questions to find out what the learner already understands. Use what you learn to choose a sensible next step rather than preparing a long course in advance. About 45–90 minutes.
- Set a rate and lesson length you can explain. Check whether a platform's published figure is the price paid by a learner or the amount paid to a tutor. MyTutor and Your Future Campus publish customer prices, not tutor earnings; check any tutor pay and commission directly before relying on them. MyTutor Your Future Campus About 30–60 minutes.
- Agree lesson arrangements in writing. Confirm the learning goal, schedule, cancellation arrangements, payment method and communication method before lessons begin. Keep a copy of the agreement and make the wording easy for the learner or family to understand. About 15–30 minutes per learner.
- Complete MyTutor's application process if you apply. Read the current application instructions and prepare to explain your subject knowledge and teaching approach. MyTutor says it interviews tutor applicants, so check its current process before applying. MyTutor About 1–3 hours, plus any waiting time.
- Check Spires' application requirements if you apply. Read its tutor information and check what evidence and preparation it currently asks for. The Ireland page describes degree and reference checks, enhanced DBS and Garda vetting, and a live demo class; check with Spires how these apply to your circumstances. Spires About 1–2 days, depending on checks.
- Test your setup and keep a short lesson record. Before the first lesson, test your video call, sound, internet connection and teaching materials. After each lesson, note what you covered and one next step; keep payment and relevant expense records too. About 15–30 minutes before a lesson; 5–10 minutes after.
Your first 15 minutes
Choose one subject and learner level, draft a tutor profile and lesson outline, then compare the application and payment terms of the platforms you might use.
The money
Choose a rate that reflects your preparation, lesson time and any platform charges, and explain clearly what the learner gets. Treat published learner prices as customer prices unless the platform explicitly confirms what tutors receive; platform commission and tutor pay may differ.
Example only: suppose you independently agree a UK rate of £20 per lesson and teach 3 lessons in one week: £20 × 3 = £60 income; if you spend £5 on costs, £60 − £5 = £55 before tax. In Ireland, at a hypothetical agreed rate of €30 for 3 lessons: €30 × 3 = €90 income; if costs are €5, €90 − €5 = €85 before tax. These are simple examples, not a promise of bookings or earnings, and platform deductions may change the amount you receive.
The rules
There is no general tutoring-business licence for the UK or Ireland. Check the tax rules, platform conditions, and any safeguarding or vetting requirements that apply to your work setting.
UK and Northern Ireland
- Trading income and tax. The trading allowance covers the first £1,000 a year of trading income. If you earn more, tell HMRC. The £1,000 is gross income, before expenses. GOV.UK Tax Help for Hustles
- Self Assessment. If you need to register for Self Assessment, do so by 5 October after the end of the tax year in which you started needing to file. If you’re unsure whether you need to register, check with HMRC. GOV.UK
- Northern Ireland checks. In Northern Ireland, you can apply for an AccessNI enhanced check as a self-employed tutor if your role involves regulated activity with children or vulnerable adults. Not every tutor needs one. Apply through an AccessNI-approved Umbrella Body. Check which check is appropriate for your role. nidirect
- Other UK checks. There is no general vetting rule for private tutoring across Great Britain. Check with the school, platform or relevant safeguarding body before working with learners. A school or organisation may set its own checks.
- Learner information. If you keep learner details, use the ICO’s self-assessment tool to check whether a data protection fee applies to you. The ICO page linked here covers wholesale and retail, so it does not confirm the rules for tutoring. ICO
- Advertising and insurance. If you publish adverts or affiliate posts, label them clearly, for example with “Ad”. Consider insurance for your circumstances. Ask an insurer what cover is available. Tutoring insurance is not stated as a requirement here. ASA
Ireland
- PAYE income and Form 11. If you work under PAYE, register for self-assessment using Form 11 if your taxable non-PAYE income is over €5,000 or your gross non-PAYE income is over €30,000. Below those limits, declare it on Form 12 through myAccount. Revenue
- Self-employed tax. If you’re self-employed, you pay income tax, PRSI (Class S) and USC under self-assessment. Preliminary tax is due by 31 October. Check with Revenue or an adviser about what applies to you. Citizens Information
- Business name. If you trade under a name other than your own, register the business name with the CRO. Online registration costs €20. CRO
- Garda vetting. You cannot apply for Garda vetting as an individual. If you’re self-employed, you can apply only through a relevant organisation. In recognised schools and other state-funded education settings covered by the circular, external tutors must be vetted if they have, or may have, unsupervised access to children or vulnerable adults. This does not apply if they were vetted within the previous five years. The relevant organisation must not let you do relevant work on its behalf until it has received the vetting disclosure. A school covered by the circular cannot engage someone who refuses vetting. The process for an independent private tutor to arrange vetting is not explained here. Check with the school or relevant organisation. Citizens Information Department of Education
- Advertising and insurance. If you publish commercial content as an influencer, label it clearly, for example with “#Ad”. Consider insurance for your circumstances. Ask an insurer what cover is available. Tutoring insurance is not stated as a requirement here. CCPC
- Customer terms. Put your prices, cancellation arrangements and payment terms in writing. The consumer-rights rules for tutoring are not set out here. If you need advice about your terms, check with the CCPC or Citizens Information.
Checked against official sources: 22 October 2026. Not yet reviewed by a qualified tax or legal adviser. General guidance, not legal advice. Check the official link beside each point before you start.
Common mistakes
- Assuming a learner-facing platform price is the tutor's take-home pay.
- Accepting topics or learner levels you are not ready to teach.
- Starting lessons without written arrangements for payment, cancellations and communication.
- Over-preparing each lesson instead of checking what the learner already knows.
- Forgetting to keep payment records or check tax and safeguarding requirements.
AI-made demonstration: this module has a 20-second street-chat video in the interactive guide. The presenter and the people in it are computer-generated, not real people.