If one were to launch their own Bubble app and start making money, what are the finanical and legal regulations should I be aware of?
What tax documents should be kept?
What legal procedures should be followed?
That sort of thing.
Most everyone will advocate for immediately incorporating, creating your LLC, etc. etc. However, there isn’t anything wrong with starting off with a cheap DBA (Doing Business As) – It keeps you personally liable for the company, but when you’re starting off, it should work just fine. Having a LLC/Partnership/ S Corp/C Corp costs more to setup and requires formal procedures to operate - but you get some tax savings on what you bring home.
I’m a tad fuzzy on the details of this next piece… If I recall, with a “sole proprietorship” (DBA) your earnings will go directly to you and go straight onto your 1040 in the form of Schedule C - And you’ll be responsible for paying self employment taxes on your earnings (I believe it’s 15%) plus when you pay yourself, you take out another 12-15% for medicare/social security (I might need to be corrected on this number!). Not sure if you also pay a tax on top of that for income or if the 15% self employment covers that for you.
Also, remember as a DBA/Sole Proprietor, you CAN write off business expenses. I believe it’s a little more stringent vs. an incorporated entity like LLC/S Corp/C Corp/Partnership.
My rule of thumb is if my business is making less than $10k or so per year and debt is very low, a DBA/Sole proprietorship is fine. Anything more, then I start feeling like I need some protections and will call up my accountant to create me a LLC/Partnership/S Corp/C Corp.
For now, focus on getting your Bubble app out the door, get a quick DBA filed with your local jurisdiction – Keep 7-10% kept aside just in case of any future tax issues you aren’t aware of (I’ve had sales tax issues… but they’re easy to resolve and I just paid what I had owed plus a small penalty).
Once you get rolling, then you can always become more official and get yourself a formal incorporation 
My 2 cents! I’m fuzzy on some of the details above – Hopefully someone will be able to correct and provide some more detailed guidance (I’m a business owner but don’t keep up with the extreme details… That’s what I pay others for!)
Edit: Take this at your own risk!! I am not providing tax/legal advice, instead it’s personal experience based on my unique situation in years past.
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Very much depends on the government regulations around business trading, tax and income that you fall under.
@w.fly comments relate to US only - and some states might even have their own regulations that are different from federal.
NEVER rely on posts on a forum for tax or legal advice. There should be some sort of governing body for this in your region - approach them first as most will offer some form of general guidance.
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Very true.
haha note added: “I am not providing tax/legal advice”