Form 1099‑MISC – Deadlines, Boxes, Thresholds & Filing Guide

I still remember a January where a partner told me, we are fine on 1099s. Two days later, we were chasing W‑9s, fixing name and TIN mismatches, and explaining backup withholding to a surprised client. If you have ever felt that mix of déjà vu and deadline anxiety, you are in good company.

You can make this season far easier with a clean checklist, clear box‑by‑box rules, and a couple of guardrails for e‑file and penalties.

You use Form 1099‑MISC to report specific business payments that are not nonemployee compensation. Think rents, royalties, prizes and awards, certain medical and health care payments, fishing boat proceeds, and gross proceeds paid to attorneys. The most common thresholds are 10 for royalties and substitute payments and 600 for most other items, and you always report any backup withholding that you took, even if the underlying payment is below a threshold.

Key dates in this article are framed for payments made in calendar year 2025, with recipient statements due in early 2026 and IRS filing due in February or March 2026, depending on paper or e‑file rules. Weekend or holiday dates roll to the next business day.

Key takeaways

• Use 1099‑MISC for rents, royalties, prizes and awards, medical and health care payments, fishing boat proceeds, and certain attorney payments. Do not report nonemployee compensation here, that belongs on 1099‑NEC.
• Typical thresholds are 10 for royalties and certain substitute payments and 600 for most other reportable categories. Always report any backup withholding you took.
• Furnish recipient Copy B by January 31, 2026, except when you report amounts in box 8 or box 10, those recipient statements are due February 17, 2026.
• File with the IRS by February 28, 2026 if paper, or March 31, 2026 if e‑file, and e‑file is mandatory when you file 10 or more information returns in total.
• Backup withholding is 24%. Report it on the 1099 and on Form 945.

What Form 1099‑MISC covers

Here is the practical way to think about it. If a payment is not wages and not contractor pay, and it falls into any bucket below, you are probably in 1099‑MISC territory:

• Rents and other income at 600 or more.
• Royalties and broker substitute payments at 10 or more.
• Medical and health care payments at 600 or more.
• Fishing boat proceeds, crop insurance proceeds, gross proceeds paid to attorneys, and fish purchased for resale when their specific rules are met.

If you sell consumer products for resale of 5,000 or more, you only check a box, you do not enter a dollar amount. That checkbox can live on either 1099‑MISC box 7 or 1099‑NEC box 2, but use only one form for that indicator. If you choose the 1099‑NEC route, remember it carries an earlier IRS filing deadline of January 31.

Who must file and by when

• You file a 1099‑MISC for each recipient you paid at or above the applicable threshold in your trade or business.
• You always report backup withholding if it applied, regardless of the payment amount.
• You furnish the recipient statement by January 31, 2026, except when you reported amounts in box 8 or box 10, then the recipient statement is due February 17, 2026.

For IRS filing, send paper returns by February 28, 2026, or e‑file by March 31, 2026. If you are filing 10 or more information returns in aggregate, you must e‑file. The free IRS IRIS portal works well for many firms and does not require commercial software.

Payment types and thresholds at a glance

Payment type	Threshold	1099‑MISC box
Rents	600+	Box 1
Royalties	10+	Box 2
Other income, prizes, awards	600+	Box 3
Fishing boat proceeds	See rules	Box 5
Medical and health care payments	600+	Box 6
Direct sales for resale indicator	5,000+	Box 7, checkbox only
Substitute payments in lieu of dividends or interest	10+	Box 8
Crop insurance proceeds	600+	Box 9
Gross proceeds paid to an attorney	600+	Box 10
Fish purchased for resale	Cash purchases, see rules	Box 11

Source rules and box references, IRS 1099‑MISC instructions updated April 2025.

Quick compliance note

• The backup withholding rate remains 24% under section 3406. You report the withheld tax on Form 945 and on the information return for the payee.
• If a statutory due date lands on a weekend or federal holiday, it moves to the next business day.

Deadlines and delivery rules for the 2026 season

Here is the clean timeline for payments you made in 2025:

• Recipient statements due January 31, 2026, except when you report amounts in box 8 or box 10, then due February 17, 2026.
• Paper filing with the IRS due February 28, 2026.
• E‑file due March 31, 2026.
• E‑file is mandatory when you file 10 or more information returns in total, aggregated across all types, for the year.

If you need more time to file with the IRS, submit Form 8809 by the original due date for an automatic 30‑day extension, except that no automatic extension is available for Forms W‑2 and 1099‑NEC. To extend the time to furnish recipient statements, fax Form 15397 by the original furnish date.

Recommended filing path

• Use the IRS IRIS Taxpayer Portal if you do not already have a transmitter set up, it is free and supports 1099‑MISC and 1099‑NEC.
• If you paper file, include Form 1096 as the transmittal for Copy A.
• Keep proof of furnishing to recipients, whether mailed or electronic, and keep e‑file acknowledgments with your workpapers.

Box‑by‑box highlights you will actually use

Royalties, box 2, threshold 10

Report royalties of 10 or more in box 2. Payments that are broker substitutes for dividends or tax‑exempt interest are not royalties, those belong in box 8 at a 10 threshold.

Medical and health care payments, box 6

Report 600 or more paid to each provider for medical or health care services. Corporate status does not exempt these payments from reporting. Keep your remit-to details clean, since clinic groups and facilities often have different legal payees than the practitioner you see on invoices.

Fishing boat proceeds, box 5, and fish purchased for resale, box 11

Fishing boat proceeds go in box 5 under the specific rules in the instructions. If you purchase fish for resale with cash, that is reported in box 11. Both areas generate frequent questions, so tie out to merchant category codes and expense accounts in your trial balance to avoid misses.

Gross proceeds paid to attorneys, box 10

This is not attorneys’ fees for services, those fees of 600 or more are reported on 1099‑NEC. Box 10 on 1099‑MISC is for gross proceeds paid to an attorney, such as settlement funds, when the payment is connected with legal services but not for the attorney’s services to you. The threshold is 600. The corporate exception does not apply here.

Direct sales indicator, box 7 on 1099‑MISC or box 2 on 1099‑NEC

You can place the 5,000+ direct sales checkbox on either form, but only one of them. If you pick 1099‑NEC for the checkbox, remember it pulls you into the January 31 IRS filing deadline for NEC. Many teams keep this indicator on 1099‑MISC to keep their core NEC e‑file run clean.

Backup withholding, box 4, and Form 945

If you were required to withhold because the payee failed to provide a correct TIN or you received a CP2100/2100A notice, withhold at 24% and report the tax in box 4 of the 1099 and on Form 945. You must furnish and file the 1099 even if the gross payment was below the normal threshold, because tax was withheld.

Filing deadlines table

Step	What triggers it	Due date for 2026 season
Furnish recipient Copy B	Any required 1099‑MISC	Jan 31, 2026
Furnish recipient if reporting box 8 or box 10 amounts	Substitute dividend or interest payments, or gross proceeds to attorneys	Feb 17, 2026
File paper Copy A with IRS	General 1099‑MISC filing	Feb 28, 2026
E‑file Copy A with IRS	General 1099‑MISC filing	Mar 31, 2026
E‑file requirement	Aggregated 10+ information returns	Applies for 2026 season

Authoritative source, IRS 2025 General Instructions and IRIS e‑file guidance.

Penalties you want to avoid, plus a simple prevention plan

The IRS penalty regime is per form, and it stacks quickly. For the 2026 season, the base penalty tiers are:

• 60 per return if you correctly file within 30 days after the due date, annual cap applies.
• 130 per return if you file after 30 days but by August 1, higher annual cap.
• 340 per return if you file after August 1 or not at all, highest annual cap.
• Intentional disregard starts at 680 per return with no maximum. A separate penalty applies for failing to furnish correct payee statements.

A simple plan that works in real firms:

• Collect W‑9s up front, run TIN Matching for higher‑risk payees, and track CP2100 follow‑ups.
• Calendar the furnish date and the IRS filing date, request Form 8809 only when needed, and use Form 15397 for recipient statement extensions.
• Reconcile 1099 totals to your GL and vendor subledger before you e‑file, then keep acknowledgments in the workpapers.

If you backup withhold, you are responsible for reporting and depositing that tax. Report it on Form 945 and on the payee’s 1099, even if the payment amount itself would otherwise be under the usual threshold.

Electronic furnishing and accessibility

If you furnish statements electronically, you need affirmative consent from the recipient that shows they can access the statement in the format you will use. Your notice must explain how to withdraw consent, how to get a paper copy, hardware and software requirements, and how long the statement will remain available. If you post statements on a portal, they must be accessible through October 15 of that year and you must notify recipients where to find them.

For e‑file, many firms now use the IRS IRIS portal. It is free, supports common 1099 forms including 1099‑MISC and 1099‑NEC, and eliminates the need to buy a separate transmitter package for basic needs.

FAQs

What is Form 1099‑MISC used for?

You use it to report business payments like rents, royalties, prizes and awards, medical and health care payments, fishing boat proceeds, certain substitute dividend or interest payments, fish purchased for resale, crop insurance proceeds, and gross proceeds paid to attorneys. Do not report nonemployee compensation on 1099‑MISC, that belongs on 1099‑NEC.

Do recipients have to report a 1099‑MISC on their tax return?

Yes. Recipients use the statement to report income on their return, subject to the usual rules for each income type. If federal income tax was withheld, it will appear on the form and should be claimed on the return. Encourage recipients to consult their advisor for the proper line items.

What is the difference between 1099‑MISC and 1099‑NEC?

1099‑NEC reports nonemployee compensation of 600 or more for services. 1099‑MISC covers other categories such as rents, royalties, medical payments, and gross proceeds to attorneys. The direct sales checkbox can appear on either form, but only use one, and if you use the NEC version the IRS filing deadline is January 31.

Where do I get official forms?

Use the IRS e‑file systems where possible. If you must paper file, order scannable red‑ink forms and include Form 1096. For e‑file, IRIS provides a free portal and specifications for bulk filing.

A short note for busy firm leaders

If your bottleneck is not knowledge, it is capacity and workflow, you are not alone. Most firms miss 1099 deadlines because their teams are tied up in reviews, chasing documentation, or fixing naming and workpaper issues. If you need disciplined capacity during 1099 season without giving up control, Accountably integrates trained offshore teams into your system, with SOPs, standardized workpapers, and defined SLAs so your partners stay out of review loops and your clients get their statements on time. Use this only if it helps you solve the real problem, reliable delivery at scale.

Wrap up

You do not need drama this January. Lock down W‑9s now, map your 1099‑MISC boxes, decide where to place the direct sales indicator, and pick your e‑file route. The rules above, plus a tidy checklist and a reliable calendar, will keep your team focused and your clients confident.

Compliance note, this guide reflects the IRS 1099‑MISC instructions updated April 2025, the 2025 General Instructions, and current e‑file rules as of November 4, 2025. Always confirm any late‑year changes before you file.