Distribute 1099-NEC forms for your contractors

Gusto can mail your Forms 1099-NEC and corrected Forms 1099-NEC (if applicable) directly to your contractors for just $2 per person—mailing fees will be added to your monthly invoice.

Important

• You can only request that we mail 1099 forms once per tax season, so make sure to select all contractors who need their forms mailed.
• In order for forms to be compliantly postmarked by the Jan 31 IRS deadline, you'll need to submit your Gusto order in Gusto by Jan 24.

To have Gusto mail forms to one or more of your team members:

1. Sign in to your admin profile.
2. Click the Taxes & compliance section and select Tax documents.
3. Click the 1099s tab.
4. Under the “Quick actions” header, click Distribute 2021 1099s.
   • This button will only be available once the form packages are final. It will not be available when forms are still drafts.
5. Select I'd like Gusto to mail them to my employees.
6. Click Continue.
7. Review how it works and agree to the terms for sending forms.
8. Click Continue.
9. Select all contractors whose forms you want Gusto to mail—you can only place one 1099 order so any contractors not selected will still need to have their forms distributed another way unless they've agreed to go paperless and receive their forms electronically. You can select to:
   
   • Only mail to people who haven't requested electronic-only copies (recommended)
   • Mail to everyone
   • Individually select people to mail forms to
10. Click Save and continue.
11. Complete any remaining pages or prompts—these will vary based on your selection above.
12. Review the summary of the order and total cost.
13. Click Submit order.

We’ll send all original Forms 1099 and all corrected Forms 1099–this includes any and all corrected Form 1099s generated after the original Form 1099. 

Download a mail-friendly packet of all your contractors’ Forms 1099. This specific packet does not include the employer-copy of Forms 1099. To download a full packet that includes the employer copy for records, follow the instructions in the dropdown below.

1. Sign in to your admin profile.
2. Click the Taxes & compliance section and select Tax documents.
3. Click the 1099s tab.
4. Under the “Quick actions” header, click Distribute 2021 1099s.
   • This button will only be available once the form packages are final. It will not be available when forms are still drafts.
5. Click I'd like to download and distribute them on my own.
6. Review how to build your tax form packet and click Continue. 
7. Select all employees whose forms you want included in the mailable packet. 
   • We’ll email you when your packet is ready to download, and you’ll find it on your Documents page in a new row. You can also try refreshing this page in a few minutes—once it’s ready, you’ll see a link to download on the right.
8. When it’s ready, click the download icon and print your contractors’ Forms 1099.
   • Print your contractors' 1099 on standard, white printer paper (8.5" X 11"). 
9. Put all three forms per contractor in each envelope*.
   • *Envelope requirement: use standard 7777-2 1099 envelopes, which can be purchased from various locations.
10. Mail the Forms 1099 to your contractors by February 1, 2021.
    • If you need more time, find the IRS extension request instructions here.

Get a PDF bundle for all contractors’ Form 1099s, including employer copies, and hand them out in person (if needed).

1. Sign in to your admin profile.
2. Click the Taxes & compliance section and select Tax documents.
3. Click the 1099s tab.
4. Under the "Quick actions" header, click Download employer packet.
5. Select the year.
6. Click Download.
7. If you need to distribute any, print the Forms 1099 for contractors.
   • Print the forms on standard, white printer paper (8.5" X 11").
8. Put all three forms per contractor in each envelope*.
   • *Envelope requirement: use standard 7777-2 1099 envelopes, which can be purchased from various locations.
9. Distribute the Forms 1099 to your contractors by February 1, 2021.
   • If you need more time, find the IRS extension request instructions here.

If only a few of your contractors need paper 1099s, you can also download specific contractor’s individual Form 1099s from their profile. To do so:

1. Sign in to your admin profile.
2. Click the People section and select Team Members.
3. Click your contractor’s name.
4. Click the Documents tab.
5. Under “Employment Documents”, click 1099-NEC: 2020 for the applicable year.
   • Final forms are made available in mid-to-late January.
6. Download, print, and distribute the Forms 1099 to contractors.
   • Print your contractor’s 1099 on standard, white printer paper (8.5" X 11").

You’re required to distribute paper copies of your teams’ 1099s unless they’ve given consent for electronic distribution. 

Forms will be available to distribute by Jan 20, and the deadline to distribute is Jan 31. 

To check and see who has provided consent for electronic distribution in Gusto, follow these steps: 

1. Go to the Taxes & compliance section and click Tax documents. 
2. Click the 1099s tab at the top of the page.
3. You’ll see a list of each teammate, with a column showing their delivery preference. 
   • Note: since you’re required to provide paper copies, we’ll set their preference as “paper copy” by default if they haven’t chosen a preference yet. Contractors who want to go paperless must update their delivery preference by Jan 18 (before forms become available) to take effect for the 2021 calendar year. 

The steps to correct a 1099-NEC are different based on whether the form is still a draft, or if it's been finalized (filed).

Head to this article to learn how to correct a Form 1099-NEC (totals, names, SSNs, etc) or let us know you don't want us to file it.

Gusto files 1099-NEC forms to the IRS and to the required states for all domestic contractors who have been paid through Gusto within the calendar year. All earnings are reported in Box 1 of the 1099-NEC as non-employee compensation. Here's how to access your 1099-NEC.

• At this time, we file Forms 1099 regardless of the $600 threshold in order to provide contractors with the necessary forms to quickly and accurately file their personal tax returns.
• If you’re an admin and don’t want Gusto to file 1099 forms, you can let us know when completing your end-of-year tasks in the Taxes & Compliance section or by contacting us from the Help section of your Gusto account.

Gusto does not currently support: 

• 1099-NEC filings to locals, where applicable 
• Back-up withholding, if required for your contractor 
• Contractor withholding, if required by the state (i.e. for higher paid contractors or non-resident contractors)
• International contractor withholding or reporting.

Understand Form 1099-NEC

The descriptions below are simplified summaries, and there may be other factors to consider when filing out each box. Learn more in the detailed IRS guidelines for filling out Form 1099-NEC.

Keep in mind: Gusto reports all earnings as non-employee compensation in Box 1 of the 1099-NEC we’ve prepared.

Box 1: Non-employee compensation: any compensation paid to the contractor over $600 including fees, commissions, prizes, and awards for services.

Box 2: Gusto does not currently support this so the box will be left blank.

Box 3: Gusto does not currently support this so the box will be left blank.

Box 4: Federal income tax withheld during the year. 

• Gusto does not currently support this so the box will be left blank.

Box 5: State tax withheld during the year.

• Gusto does not currently support this so the box will be left blank.

Box 6: The state abbreviation and state withholding account number (if applicable) of the company that is paying and utilizing the services of a contractor. This would only need to be reported if state income tax was withheld.

•  Gusto will list the applicable state abbreviation(s).

Box 7: State income paid to the contractor for the year.