What Is an IRS 1099 Form?

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What is an IRS 1099 Form?

The IRS 1099 Form is a collection of tax forms documenting different types of payments made by an individual or a business that typically isn’t your employer. The payer fills out the form with the appropriate details and sends copies to you and the IRS, reporting payments made during the tax year. In some instances, a copy must also be sent to your state taxing authority. The payer is responsible for filling out the appropriate 1099 tax form and sending it to you. Such payments can be for rental income, earnings working as a freelancer or independent contractor, a tax refund received from your state or locality, gambling winnings, and more.  Most 1099 forms are required to be provided by January 31, but in certain instances, this date is February 15.

Examples of when you might get a 1099 Form

Some common examples when you might receive a 1099 include:

• If you earned $600 or more in nonemployee compensation from a person or business who isn’t typically your employer, you should receive a Form 1099-NEC
• If you earned $600 or more in rent or royalty payments, you should receive Form 1099-MISC
• If you received a state or local tax refund during the previous year, you should expect to receive Form 1099-G

Likewise, if you paid a freelancer, independent contractor or other nonemployee $600 or more during the year related to your trade or business, you should send them a Form 1099-NEC.

Key Takeaways

• Form 1099 is a collection of forms used to report payments that typically isn’t from an employer
• There are a variety of incomes reported on a 1099 form, including independent contractor income but also for payments like gambling winnings, rent or royalties, gains and losses in brokerage accounts, dividend and interest income, and more
• If you work as an independent contractor or freelancer, you will often have income reported on a 1099 form
• You should receive most of your 1099 forms by January 31 each year to report the preceding year’s payments to you

Who sends 1099 forms?

Several types of 1099 forms exist to document payments made between an individual or business and another party. Because 1099 forms record income, many people can receive various 1099 forms for different reasons. For example, if you’re an independent contractor or freelancer, you may receive a Form 1099-NEC documenting payments made to you throughout the year from a particular payer.

TurboTax Tip: The form should include these payments if they are $600 or more, the threshold requiring a payer to file a Form 1099-NEC.

Payments below $600 don’t require filing the 1099, though the payer may still choose to do so.

When should you expect to send or receive 1099s?

There are different due dates for different types of 1099 forms. For example, Form 1099-NEC, which is used to report payments to you if you're an independent contractor or freelancer, is due to you by January 31st. If January 31st isn't a business day, then the due date moves to the next business day.

If you’re the one sending 1099 forms:

1. The 1099-NEC form is due to the recipient by January 31st.
2. If you’re mailing a paper form to the IRS, you must send the 1099-NEC by February 28 (postmarked by that date).
3. If you're using tax software like TurboTax to send the form to the IRS, we'll import the information for the form for you, and you have until March 31 to e-file it, which means e-filing a return will give you more time to prepare the form than mailing a paper form.

Payers must send you these forms early in the tax season to allow you time to prepare your tax return and allow the IRS to have evidence of how much income you earned during the tax year.

Despite the early due dates for sending these forms as a payer, you won’t need to file your own tax return until the tax filing deadline.

The earlier due dates to send 1099s to the IRS help them detect refund fraud more easily by verifying income that individuals report on their tax returns. All 1099s need to be filed with the IRS by February 28th if sent by mail or March 31st if e-filed.

See more on the types of 1099 forms below.

The Two Most Common 1099 Forms: 1099-NEC and the 1099-MISC

1099-NEC vs. 1099-MISC

What is the difference between the 1099-NEC and 1099-MISC forms? Prior to the 2020 tax year, as a business owner who hired contractors, you dealt primarily with Form-1099 MISC for reporting nonemployee compensation. Starting in 2020, the IRS chose to reintroduce the 1099-NEC Form as the new way to report self-employment income instead of Form 1099-MISC as traditionally had been used. This was done to help clarify that there is a separate filing deadline for nonemployee compensation than the deadlines for other payments that use Form 1099-MISC.

Nonemployee compensation can include any compensation received for any services performed without being treated as an employee. In contrast, as an employee, your compensation is typically reported on a Form W-2

Now, Form 1099-NEC reports nonemployee compensation but the 1099-MISC still exists to report other types of miscellaneous income.

Other Types of 1099 Forms

What to do if you don’t get all of your 1099 forms

Even if you don’t have the appropriate forms, you’re still responsible for paying the taxes you owe. If you didn’t receive a 1099, you still need to report the income received on your tax return in order to avoid a bill from the IRS for owed taxes.

If you haven’t received all of your 1099s by the January 31st or February 15th deadlines, contact the person or business responsible for sending you the 1099. Request that they send you a copy of your 1099 so you may file your tax return on time.

To understand more about tax deductions, visit our Self-Employed Tax Deduction Calculator for Contractors.

TurboTax Self-Employed will ask you simple questions about your life and help you fill out all the right forms. Perfect for independent contractors and small businesses. We’ll search over 500 tax deductions to get you every dollar you deserve and help you uncover industry-specific deductions.