how do I avoid getting caught by the IRS with my "off the books" job?

Public Comments

Declare your income. If they got Al Capone(among others) they can get you. Not the answer you wanted to here, but it is the right answer.
For all I know you could be an IRS agent looking to set me up. I have no answer to this.
Ummm... eventually you could get caught. I would say report what you do earn, because the penalties down the the road will not be beneficial to you and could hurt you more than the benefits today.
start by not discussing it in a public forum
Declare your income and pay taxes like the rest of us. How can you live with "cheating" on your conscience? Even if it doesn't bother you today...it will some day.
Honestly, the best thing to do is make your business legal and get a good accountant. I've met people who have tried this and it never ends well.
It certainly doesn't help that you just advertised your illegal activity to a few million people, including Yahoo! administrators, who have to report all illegal activity on this site. Good luck with the IRS...
Despite what you may think, there are actually benefits to claiming this income. You will have a higher income, yes. And probably pay more taxes.... unless you have dependents or make a smaller income in which case you may qualify to actually get money back through EIC or child credits!!!!! Also, if you want to apply for a car or home loan, ect... you need to be able to prove your stated income and tax returns are a great way to be able to do this.
By declaring *ALL* income from all sources. Persons in the US failing to report a few bucks can and do serve more time than people convicted of murder.