A client pays €2,500 on a Tuesday, and for a few days you feel rich. Then nothing comes in for three weeks, and in spring the tax bill wants its share of that €2,500 too.
In short: decide once how every payment is split, for example 30% tax, 20% business costs and 50% your pay. Apply it to each payment the day it lands, with transfers to separate accounts. Then pay yourself the same amount every month out of your pay account, so a good month and a quiet month feel the same at home.
- Payment lands
- 30% to Tax
- 20% to Business
- 50% to Pay
- Fixed monthly pay to Personal
The percentages here are an example, not advice. Your tax share depends on your country, your business form and your income; ask your accountant.
A worked example
Made-up but realistic: a freelance designer gets three payments in one month and uses a 30/20/50 split.
| Tax 30% | Business 20% | Pay 50% | |
|---|---|---|---|
| €1,200 on the 4th | €360 | €240 | €600 |
| €2,500 on the 15th | €750 | €500 | €1,250 |
| €800 on the 27th | €240 | €160 | €400 |
| Month total €4,500 | €1,350 | €900 | €2,250 |
€1,350
The split takes the thinking out of each payment: you never decide in the moment how much of €2,500 you can afford to spend. And because your pay comes from the Pay account at a fixed amount, a €4,500 month and a €2,000 month don't change what the household gets.
The steps
1. Pick your split
Start from what your accountant says about tax. Business costs: add up three months of software, equipment, phone and travel, and divide by income. What's left is pay. Round to clean numbers.
2. Open the three accounts
Tax, Business and Pay, plus your personal account (a three-account setup).
3. Split each payment the day it lands
Three transfers, every time. It takes two minutes; waiting until the end of the month is how the tax share gets spent.
4. Pay yourself a fixed monthly amount
Look at your last six to twelve months, take a quiet month's pay share, and make that your monthly pay from Pay to Personal. Good months build up the Pay account; quiet months draw it down.
5. Build two to three months of pay in the Pay account
That's what lets a fixed pay survive a slow quarter. Until it's there, keep your pay modest (30-day cash buffer).
6. Check the split every quarter
Compare the Tax account with what you'll owe, and the Business account with what you spent. Adjust the percentages, not individual payments.
The traps
- Spending from the balance. A balance mixes tax, costs and pay; only the Pay account is yours.
- Skipping the split on a small payment. Small payments add up to the same tax.
- Raising your pay after one good month. Raise it after a good quarter, once the Pay buffer is full.
- Using the Tax account as a buffer. The bill comes on a date you don't choose.
Check your buffer
The free emergency fund calculator shows how long a Pay buffer takes to build: enter your fixed monthly pay as essentials, what's in the Pay account, and what a typical month adds to it.
One thing to do today
Write your split on a sticky note (for example 30 / 20 / 50) and apply it to the next payment that comes in, even if the separate accounts aren't open yet.
Where Volora fits
In Volora, Tax, Business, Pay and Personal are wallets. Record a client payment as income in the wallet it lands in, then make the split as transfers, so each wallet shows only its share. Link a goal to the Tax wallet with your next payment as the target, and set a low-balance alert on Pay so you see a thin buffer early. Your monthly pay can be a recurring transfer you confirm each month.