Contractors & 1099s
How payments to contractors are tracked, the W-9s we need, and the reporting threshold change for 2026.
Contractors & 1099s
Payments to independent contractors — including those sent by Zelle, Venmo, Cash App, or Wise — need to be tracked so you can issue 1099s at year end. To do that, we collect a W-9 from each contractor.
The reporting threshold is $600 for 2025 and earlier, rising to $2,000 for 2026.
We're expanding this guide
A fuller explainer is on the way.
What this article will cover
- Which payments count toward a 1099
- Collecting and storing W-9s
- The 2025 → 2026 threshold change
- Telling contractor payments apart from personal ones
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