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Internal Revenue Service

Fill out Form 1099-NEC online

Nonemployee Compensation

Form 1099-NEC is the IRS information return a business or other payer uses to report payments for services by someone who is not its employee, such as an independent contractor or an attorney. The payer files Copy A with the IRS and gives Copy B to the recipient, who uses it to report the income. The December 2026 revision adds boxes for the cash tips and qualified overtime included in the total, and for tipped occupation codes.

Fill out Form 1099-NECBlank form from the IRS

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Edition
Rev. December 2026
Pages
6
Fillable fields
140
Checked against the IRS
November 8, 2026

GuruPDF is not affiliated with the Internal Revenue Service. This page explains the form in plain words; it is not legal or tax advice. Always check the official instructions before you file.

Who uses Form 1099-NEC

  • Businesses that paid an independent contractor for services
  • Businesses that paid attorneys' fees, including to law firms that are corporations
  • Companies that paid directors' fees
  • Nonprofit organizations and government agencies that paid nonemployees for services
  • Payers that backup withheld federal income tax from a nonemployee's payments

Before you start

  • Your name, address, phone number and taxpayer identification number (TIN) as the payer
  • The recipient's name, address and TIN, often collected on Form W-9
  • The total you paid the recipient for services during the calendar year
  • Any cash tips or qualified overtime included in that total, and the tipped occupation code if tips were paid
  • Any federal income tax (backup withholding) and state income tax you withheld, and your state ID number
  • An account number, if you have more than one account for the recipient and file more than one Form 1099-NEC for them

How to fill out Form 1099-NEC

  1. Top of the form

    Enter the 4-digit year in "For calendar year". Check CORRECTED only when you are correcting a form you already filed. Do not check VOID on a correction; VOID is only for a paper Copy A you spoiled before sending it to the IRS.

  2. Payer's information

    Fill in the payer's name, street address, room or suite number, city or town, state or province, country, ZIP or foreign postal code and telephone number. Enter the PAYER'S TIN in full; it may not be shortened on any copy.

  3. Recipient's information and account number

    Enter the RECIPIENT'S TIN with hyphens (XXX-XX-XXXX for an SSN, ITIN or ATIN; XX-XXXXXXX for an EIN), then the recipient's name and address with apartment number. You may show only the last four digits of the recipient's TIN on the copies you give the recipient, but not on Copy A. Use the account number box if you have more than one account for this recipient and file more than one form for them. On Copy A, you may mark "2nd TIN not." only if the IRS told you twice within 3 calendar years that this payee gave an incorrect TIN.

  4. Box 1a and boxes 1b to 1d

    In box 1a, enter the total nonemployee compensation, such as fees, commissions, attorneys' fees and directors' fees. Box 1b is the cash tips included in box 1a. Box 1c takes up to two Treasury Tipped Occupation Codes (see IRS.gov/TTOC); if any tips came from a nonqualifying occupation, one of the codes must be 000. Box 1d is the qualified overtime included in box 1a, which is only the part paid above the regular rate (for example, the "half" of time-and-a-half).

  5. Box 2: direct sales checkbox

    Enter an X if you sold consumer products totaling $5,000 or more to this person on a buy-sell, deposit-commission or other commission basis for resale anywhere other than a permanent retail store. Do not enter a dollar amount. Report these sales on only one form: box 2 of Form 1099-NEC or box 7 of Form 1099-MISC.

  6. Boxes 3 and 4

    Box 3 is for excess golden parachute payments. Box 4 is for federal income tax withheld, which on this form means backup withholding, for example when the payee did not give you a TIN.

  7. Boxes 5 to 7: state information

    These boxes do not need to be completed for the IRS. You can report up to two states, one per line. Box 5 is state income tax withheld, box 6 is the state's abbreviation and your state ID number, and box 7 is the amount of the state payment.

After you fill it out

Give Copy B to the recipient and file Copy A with the IRS, both by January 31 (the next business day if that date falls on a weekend or legal holiday). On paper, Copy A must be an official scannable form (or a substitute that meets IRS Pub. 1179) sent with Form 1096; if you file 10 or more information returns in total, you generally must e-file, for example through the IRS IRIS system. Copy 1 goes to a state tax department that asks for a paper copy, and Copy 2 goes to the recipient for their state return. Check the filing address and current rules on the official IRS pages.

Signing: Form 1099-NEC has no signature line. If you file paper Copy A with the IRS, it goes with Form 1096, the transmittal form, which is signed under penalties of perjury by the payer or an authorized agent.

Watch out for

  • Do not print and file Copy A from this PDF. The IRS says self-printed Copy A cannot be scanned and it may charge a penalty for forms it cannot scan. Copy B and the other black copies may be printed and used.
  • This is the December 2026 revision. The IRS says to use it for 2026 amounts and later years until it is replaced, and not for prior years.
  • When correcting a paper form, check CORRECTED, not VOID. A checked VOID box tells IRS scanners to skip the form, so the correction is not recorded.
  • Payments made by credit card, payment card or through a third-party payment network are reported on Form 1099-K by the payment settlement entity, not on Form 1099-NEC.

Questions about Form 1099-NEC

Can I print Copy A from this PDF and mail it to the IRS?

No. The IRS provides Copy A in this PDF for information only, because self-printed copies are not scannable. Order official forms from the IRS or e-file instead. Copy B and Copy 2 can be printed and given to the recipient, and Copy 1 can be sent to a state that asks for a paper copy.

Which year is this revision for?

The December 2026 revision is for reporting amounts paid in calendar year 2026, filed with the IRS starting in January 2027, and for later years until the IRS issues a new revision. For earlier years, use the revision for that year; past revisions are on the IRS prior-year forms page.

When is Form 1099-NEC due?

You must give the recipient their copy and file with the IRS by January 31, or the next business day if it falls on a weekend or legal holiday. There is no automatic extension of time to file Form 1099-NEC; see Form 8809.

Can I send Copy B to the recipient by email?

Only if the recipient has agreed, electronically, to receive it that way and has not withdrawn that consent. Publication 1099 lists the other notices and requirements for furnishing statements electronically.

I received a 1099-NEC but I think I am an employee. What do the instructions say?

The recipient instructions on the back of Copy B say that if you cannot get the payer to correct the form, you report the amount shown in box 1 on the "Wages, salaries, tips, etc." line of Form 1040, 1040-SR or 1040-NR and complete and attach Form 8919. Pub. 1779 explains the difference between an independent contractor and an employee.

Official information

Page text last reviewed November 7, 2026.

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