A 1099 form is an IRS information return that reports money you received from someone other than an employer: contract work, interest, dividends, rent, investment sales, retirement withdrawals and more. The payer sends one copy to you and another to the IRS, so both see the same figure.
There is no single “1099”. It is a family of forms with a letter after the number, and each covers one kind of payment. Wages from a job are not on any of them; those go on a W-2.
The 1099 forms you are most likely to get
Each form has its own reporting threshold: the yearly total at which the payer must send one. For 2026 income, most copies are due to you by February 1, 2027. Broker and real estate forms come later, by February 16, 2027.
| Form | Who sends it | What it reports | Sent when the year's total is | Your copy by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1099-NEC | A business that paid you for work as a contractor | Pay for services when you are not an employee | $2,000 or more | February 1, 2027 |
| 1099-MISC | A business that paid you rent, a prize or royalties | Rent, prizes and awards, royalties and other income | $2,000 or more (royalties: $10) | February 1, 2027 |
| 1099-K | A payment app, online marketplace or card processor | Payments you received for goods or services | Over $20,000 in more than 200 payments from an app or marketplace; any card payments | February 1, 2027 |
| 1099-INT | A bank, credit union or the Treasury | Interest | $10 or more | February 1, 2027 |
| 1099-DIV | A brokerage or fund company | Dividends and capital gain distributions | $10 or more | February 1, 2027 |
| 1099-B | A broker or barter exchange | Sales of stocks, bonds and other securities | Any amount | February 16, 2027 |
| 1099-R | A retirement plan, IRA or insurer | Retirement plan, pension, annuity and IRA distributions | $10 or more | February 1, 2027 |
| 1099-G | A state or other government agency | Unemployment pay and state or local tax refunds | $10 or more | February 1, 2027 |
| 1099-SA | Your HSA or medical savings account trustee | Money taken out of a health savings account | Any amount | February 1, 2027 |
| 1099-S | The closing agent on a real estate sale | Gross proceeds from selling real estate | Generally $600 or more | February 16, 2027 |
| 1099-C | A lender that canceled a debt | Canceled debt | $600 or more | February 1, 2027 |
Two thresholds changed recently, and many pages online still show the old ones. Contract pay on Form 1099-NEC is now reported from $2,000 a year per client, an amount that rises with inflation from 2027. Payment apps and online marketplaces send Form 1099-K only above $20,000 in more than 200 payments.
Who gets a 1099, and who does not
You get a 1099 when a business, bank, brokerage, government agency or plan pays you a reportable amount over its threshold. Freelancers, landlords, investors, retirees and anyone with a savings account all receive them.
Some payments never bring one, even when they are taxable:
- Contract work below $2,000 from one client in the year.
- Interest or dividends below $10 from one account.
- Payment app sales under the 1099-K threshold, though an app may send one anyway.
- Gifts or repaid expenses from friends and family through an app, which should not be reported on a 1099-K at all.
- Pay from your own employer, which goes on your W-2. Being on payroll and getting a 1099 from the same company for the same work is a sign something is wrong; see W-2 vs 1099.
A year of 1099s for one freelancer
Here is an invented freelance illustrator’s year. Eight sources of money came in. Only some of them will arrive with a form.
| Money received | Amount | Form | When, or why not |
|---|---|---|---|
| Illustration work for a publisher | $6,400.00 | 1099-NEC | By February 1, 2027 |
| Logo for a local brewery | $1,450.00 | None | Under $2,000 from this client, so no form is required |
| Prints sold through an online marketplace (85 sales) | $3,900.00 | None | Under $20,000 and 200 sales |
| Interest on a high-yield savings account | $212.00 | 1099-INT | By February 1, 2027 |
| Interest on an old checking account | $7.00 | None | Under $10 |
| Dividends from an index fund | $96.00 | 1099-DIV | By February 1, 2027 |
| Shares sold in a brokerage account | $2,300.00 | 1099-B | By February 16, 2027 |
| State income tax refund | $180.00 | 1099-G | By February 1, 2027 |
| With a 1099 | $9,188.00 | ||
| With no form, still reported on the return | $5,357.00 | ||
The illustrator will receive five forms, but must report all eight sources. The brewery logo, the marketplace sales and the small interest are all still income. The IRS asks you to report income whether or not a form arrives, so keep your own records of every client payment.
The 1099-B shows the sale price of the shares, not the profit. The taxable gain is the price minus what the shares cost, which your brokerage usually shows on the same form.
What to do when a 1099 arrives
- Check your name and the last four digits of your taxpayer number. A mistake there can send the income to the wrong record.
- Compare the amount with your own records. A client may have counted a payment in the wrong year, or included expenses they reimbursed.
- Ask the payer for a corrected form if it is wrong. The payer files the correction with the IRS too. Do not simply report a different number without one.
- Keep it with your tax papers. Contract income usually goes on Schedule C, interest and dividends on your Form 1040, and sales on Form 8949 and Schedule D.
If an expected 1099 has not come by mid-February, ask the payer first. You can still file on time using your own records.
If you are the one sending 1099s
A business that pays contractors, rent or other reportable amounts issues these forms itself. Most small businesses only need two: Form 1099-NEC for contractors and Form 1099-MISC for rent and other payments.
1099-NEC vs 1099-MISC sorts which payment goes on which form. Our free 1099 generator makes the recipient copies to the IRS layout, and the IRS copy is filed through the IRS’s free IRIS portal.
Sources: IRS General Instructions for Certain Information Returns, Guide to Information Returns; Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC; Understanding your Form 1099-K. Checked October 22, 2026.
