2009 Deadlines for Form 1099-MISC Filing for Independent Contractors
The IRS requires us as taxpayers to report a variety of information. The 2009 deadlines for filing Form 1099-MISC reporting payments to independent contractors come early in 2009.
The odd timing of tax reporting and laws can cause some serious confusion for taxpayers. Let’s try to deal with that right away. When we talk about the 2009 deadlines for 1099s, we are discussing the dates in 2009 that you have to report payments made in 2008. We are essentially “looking back” at the year, so don’t get confused.
The IRS does not have the money or resources to audit everyone each year. Thank God! To compensate for this, it requires taxpayers to file certain information tax forms. The 1099-MISC is one such form. It covers a surprising number of payments, but the most common is for payments totaling $600 or more to independent contractors. For example, if your CPA is a sole proprietor and you pay him $1,000, then you must report it.
The question most people want to know is when these filings have to take place. The answer is there are different deadlines – one for the independent contractor and two potential deadlines for the IRS. The first deadline is January 31 when you must send the independent contractor a copy of the 1099-MISC form. Since it falls on a weekend this year, the deadline is extended to February 2, 2009.
What about filing deadlines for the IRS. Well, you have two. The first is March 2, 2009. You must send the form in before or on this date if you do it by mail. You have another option. You can also file the form electronically with the IRS. That deadline is March 31, 2009. Hey, who said taxes were simple?!
A couple words about the practical issues of filing these forms. The first is you cannot print the form off of the IRS website. You must get a hard copy because it is a three piece carbon document. You know – the one’s you have to press on hard so it goes through to all the levels.
A second issue is you must make sure you get IRS Form 1096 as well. Only the IRS could come up with this. It is a second information form that tells the IRS how many 1099s you are filing. Yes, an information return to tell you how many information returns you are filing. And you wonder why people hate taxes.
Filing 1099-MISC forms to report payments to independent contractors is just one of those things you have to do. The form is simple to fill out, so make sure you get it done before the deadlines hit.