PEO stands for Professional Employer Organization. It’s a third-party entity that partners with Form W-A 1099 tax form is used to report non-employment income—that is, income from an entity or individual who is not your employer—that you received during the tax year to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Some examples of non-employment income include payment for freelance work, real estate transactions, or interest from an investment. There are multiple versions of form 1099 for the different types of income. Let’s take a closer look.
What is a 1099 form used for?
The various versions of form 1099 help you track the non-employment income you receive so you can accurately report it on your tax return and pay any taxes owed to the IRS. Employers typically withhold taxes for employees, but if you receive income from sources other than employment, you still need to report that income to the government for tax purposes.
Businesses and other payers file 1099s with the IRS to report payments they’ve made to recipients, and those recipients in turn receive the 1099 to inform their tax returns.
Below is a summary of common 1099 forms and their uses (click for more detailed information on the linked forms):
| Form | Use case |
| 1099-INT | If more than $10 worth of interest is earned or paid in a tax year |
| 1099-DIV | When dividend or distribution income is earned from investments |
| 1099-MISC | When income falls outside of other 1099 forms: e.g. prizes, awards, gross proceeds |
| 1099-NEC | Now used to report non-employee compensation, like from contract work; previously, 1099-MISC was used for this reporting |
| 1099-B | For income from certain broker transactions, like stock or mutual fund sales |
| 1099-S | For proceeds from real estate transactions |
| 1099-K | For merchant card and third-party network transactions |
| 1099-C | To report canceled debt |
| 1099-A | To report acquisition or abandonment of secured property |
| 1099-R | To report distribution or payouts from pensions, annuities, retirement plans, insurance contracts, etc. |
How to get a 1099 form
Businesses and payers are responsible for issuing 1099s to their payees in a timely manner by January 31 so that taxpayers can stay on top of tax filing deadlines. Forms are mailed or made available electronically.As of 2023, issuers can file 1099 forms electronically through an online portal. Apply for the portal on the IRS website and you can access, download, and file multiple 1099s with ease. Note, if you have 10 or more 1099s to file, you will be required to do so electronically.
