Guide · Document collection
Collect W-9s before 1099 season: a guide for bookkeepers
The January scramble usually starts with a missing W-9. This guide shows how to collect W-9s when a client first pays a contractor, keep track of who may need a Form 1099 during the year, and ask the right questions in the fall, so January is a check rather than a hunt. It covers the process, not tax advice.
Two things to know this season
$2,000
or more paid to a person for services in a year is the Form 1099-NEC reporting threshold for payments made after December 31, 2025, up from $600. The IRS says it may be adjusted for inflation from 2027.
January 31
is the due date for both the recipient's copy and the IRS filing of Form 1099-NEC, or the next business day if it falls on a weekend or legal holiday.
From the IRS's own pages. Rules change, so check the current IRS instructions, and leave tax questions to a qualified professional.
Why January goes wrong
W-9s requested too late.
Asking a contractor for a form months after the last payment is when replies stop coming.
No list of who was paid.
Contractors paid by check, bank transfer or payment app end up mixed together.
Card payments counted in.
Payments made by credit card or through a third-party payment network are reported on Form 1099-K by the payment company, not on a 1099-NEC.
Questions sent at the last minute.
Clients are busiest when the deadline is closest.
All year: collect the W-9 at the first payment
Ask for a W-9 before the first payment.
A W-9 gives the payer the contractor's correct taxpayer identification number. Make it part of setting up any new vendor.
Keep it with the vendor record.
Store W-9s in one secure place your team can find, not in email threads.
Mark contractors in the books.
If your accounting software has contractor or Form 1099 settings, use them so each contractor's payments can be totaled at year end.
Record how each payment was made.
Payments by card or through a payment network are handled differently from checks and bank transfers.
Handle W-9s securely.
They contain taxpayer identification numbers. Ask for them through a secure upload, not plain email or text.
In the fall: find the gaps while there's time
Run a contractor payments report.
List every contractor paid so far this year and how each was paid.
Request the missing W-9s now.
Contractors are easier to reach before the holidays than in January.
Ask about payments outside the books.
For example, cash, or personal accounts used for the business.
Agree who files.
Confirm whether your firm or the client prepares and files the forms, and by when.
Two emails you can copy
To a contractor
Subject: W-9 needed for (client business)
Hi (contractor name),
We look after the books for (client business). Please send us a completed Form W-9 for your business by (date), using our secure upload: (secure upload link). Please don't send it by email.
Thank you, (your name)
To the client
Subject: Year-end check on your contractors
Hi (first name),
To get your year-end contractor forms ready, please reply by (date) and tell us:
- Anyone you paid for services this year who isn't on the attached list
- Any payments made in cash or from a personal account
- Any contractor whose business name or address has changed
Thank you, (your name)
In January: check, then file
Total each contractor's payments.
Compare each total with the current year's threshold.
Leave out card and payment-network payments.
Those go on Form 1099-K.
Check names and numbers against the W-9s.
A mismatch is easier to fix before filing than after.
Send and file on time.
For 1099-NEC, the recipient's copy and the IRS filing share the same due date.
Questions
Does every contractor need a Form 1099?
Not always. It depends on how much was paid, how it was paid and what kind of business was paid. For example, payments to corporations are generally not reported, with exceptions such as legal and medical services. Check the current IRS instructions or ask a tax professional.
What if a contractor won't send a W-9?
Keep a record of every request, and raise it with the client and their tax adviser. The IRS has backup withholding rules for payees who don't provide a taxpayer identification number.
Does my firm file the forms, or does the client?
That is an engagement decision. Put it in your engagement letter so nobody assumes the other side is doing it.
Want W-9 requests and reminders set up for you?
The Automated document requests and reminders Fix Pack sets up one document checklist per client in your software, with automatic reminders until each item arrives. A W-9 is one more document on the list.
See what document chasing costs your firm.
The free Snapshot takes about 3 minutes and works from your own answers.