How to be a little lazy & win in 1099 season. Updated 2017 Guide.

Automate your 1099 Workflow.

As mentioned in Ed’s post last week, the IRS is changing the due date for form 1099-MISC to end of January. This means you don’t have the luxury of waiting to submit to the IRS on March 31st. I will breakdown some of the easiest ways to prepare for this upcoming tax season.

“I will always hire a lazy person to do a hard job, because they will always find an easy way to do it.” – Bill Gates

Collect Vendor Information.

The first step in the automation process is collecting vendor data through form W-9. We call this process W-9 solicitation. We designed our platform to make this process easier than using a paper workflow. With our electronic process, all you need is the vendor’s email address. We’ll take care of the rest. The vendor will receive a secure link to fill out their W-9 information online. Once they’ve e-signed and completed the form, you will receive an email from us.

Validating Tax ID against Legal Name.

Next, you want to make sure the tax identification number, whether an EIN or SSN, matches the legal entity name provided on the W-9. You should make this verification for each vendor you set up to pay.

Our TIN Match service allows you to verify batches of vendor-TIN combinations. We send your vendor-TIN combinations to the IRS, and the IRS sends us results. We then translate the results and notify you via email. This simple process has allowed our users to save time. This also saves our users from possible penalties – the IRS charges a hefty price for reporting incorrect vendor identification information.

Bulk Import Data from QuickBooks, Excel, Xero & More.

If you are managing the W-9 collection and TIN Match outside of Tax1099, this might be your first step in the process. You can import all the vendor data from your accounting software. We integrate with QuickBooks Desktop, QuickBooks Online, Xero, Bill.com, Intacct, and others. If you only have a handful of 1099 forms to submit, then you can always manually key in the forms one by one. Importing is not required.

Sending copies to the recipients and vendors.

Most forms must be postmarked or e-delivered to your recipients on or before January 31. This year, box-7 1099-MISC forms must be sent to the IRS by January 31. W-2 forms have the same deadline, and must be sent to the SSA. We offer free e-delivery of forms to vendors by email. All you have to do is furnish the vendor’s email address. If you’d prefer to send a physical copy, we offer first-class postal mail service from the United Postal Service.

Cloud-Based Storage for all the forms.

We provide free storage for all the forms you’ve e-filed or received through us, including your W-9 forms. In the event that you do need a copy, simply log back into our site and download the PDF files you need.

Final Thoughts.

All of our facilities are SSAE-16, audited by a 3rd party accounting firm. We go through an annual IRS approval process. All of our sites meet or exceed banking SSL/TLS standards. All of our facilities are monitored by surveillance. The entrance to our facilities requires authentication. All of these security measures ensure your information stays safe and secure with us.