just had some questions about mystery shopping

I dont have a job and i've considered doing some mystery shopping and wondered exactly how it works, like if you sign up for a job, do you get an email telling you exactly what they want you to do? and do you fill out a report online once you go there? and how do they pay, is it direct deposit, check or paypal? i need to report income if i do this cause of hud and foodstamps and medicaid. so do i need to get a seperate letter from each company or would it just be easier to give them copies of my studs? what about taxes, how does that work? and can you pretty much get work on a regular basis? why do some people say to be careful cause its scam, it dont seem that way to me, to me its like having your own business and just signing up for assignments. isnt that what it is like having your own business? i've never done this before but i think it would be easier than getting rejected for job after job, this way you just pick a job and do it. seems so much easier, im even bilingual and still cant get a job. so can somebody please answer my questions since ive been considering doing something like this, thanks

Pearl

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Welcome to the forum. A lot of your questions will be answered if you read through the threads 'pinned' to the top of the New Mystery Shopper section. As for how you handle this with HUD, Foodstamps and Medicaid, my understanding is that these issues are handled differently in different states so you need to be in contact with your particular offices to see how they want this handled. Your work as a mystery shopper is on an Independent Contractor basis, so the companies you work for will provide 1099s if you earn more than $600 per year working for them. Yes, there are many scams out there using the name of mystery shopping. If you use this forum's "Official List of Mystery Shopping Companies" from the link at the bottom of each page of the forum you will be registering with legitimate companies. Work on a regular basis depends entirely on where you live, what companies you are registered with and how good a job you do. Many/most companies require some narrative writing as part of their reports.
Welcome and good luck! This is a great site and you can learn a lot by looking around and reading information. Like Flash stated, use the list of companies provided on this website. Sign up with a few a day and before you know it you'll be working. If you don't have extra money for out of pocket expenses then stay away from retail and food shops, as sometimes you don't get paid and teimburesed for expenses for a month or more later. I also would suggest having a separate email for mystery shopping...I wish I had done that. Happy shopping!
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