1099 Tax Software Blog

Copy B of most of the 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922 Forms must be distributed to the receipient by the end of January (31st).  Sometimes the due date falls on the 1st or 2nd of February, but the end of January is a good date to remember.  Forms 1099-B, 1099-S and 1099-MISC (boxes 8 and 14 only) are due by February 15.

Copy B can be mailed to the recepient, e-mailed, faxed or just plain handed to them.

What happens if you work with someone or do business with someone and they don’t provide a 1099 form?  I hear this question often.

One thing you can do is call that respective business or individual.  On a personal note, every year I should receive IRS Form 1099-INT (Interest Income) from my local bank for interest earned from one of my accounts.  The account earns more than $10 in interest per year which is the threshold for sending out the 1099-INT form.  In the past (before 2008), I always received Form 1099-INT on time.  Now I receive nothing.  I use to call and get the run around. But eventually, I found someone at the bank and they just gave me the information over the phone.  I could have also attained the total from reading each quarterly statement but I wanted to make sure I had the same total interest that the bank had. Businesses are struggling right now and sometimes a phone call will get you the information you want.

You can also call the IRS.  The IRS number is 800-829-1040.  You will need to provide your name, address, SSN number and phone number.  You will also need the contact information of the business or individual you are expecting a 1099 form from.

Not receiving a 1099 form on time is what the IRS calls “Failure to Furnish Correct Payee Statements (Section 6722)”.  Try doing a search for that phrase on any search engine and you will quickly find this:

“If you fail to provide correct payee statements and you cannot show reasonable
cause, you may be subject to a penalty. The penalty applies if you fail to  provide the statement by January 31 (February 15 for Forms 1099-B, 1099-S, and 1099-MISC (boxes 8 and 14 only)) (see part M), you fail to include all information required to be shown on the statement, or you include incorrect information on the statement.”

Once you see the penalties associated with the failure to provide Copy B on time or failure to provide a correct payee statement, you can understand that calling that business or individual directly is a kinder way of getting the data.

by

Erich J. Ruth

Erich J. Ruth provides technical support for National Software which is the parent company for 1099FIRE. 1099FIRE develops and markets a comprehensive range of products that enables any size of business or institution to effectively manage and comply with year-end filing requirements. 1099FIRE is an employee-owned company located in Phoenix, Arizona.

If you have any questions or comments about our software, feel free to contact us at any time.