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The 1099 number changed this year. The January scramble doesn't have to come with it.
The 1099 number changed this year. The January scramble doesn't have to come with it.
For payments made in 2026, the IRS threshold for sending a contractor a Form 1099-NEC went from $600 to $2,000. That sounds like less paperwork, and for plenty of owners it will be.
But the $2,000 is the total you paid that person over the whole year, not per invoice. Three small jobs from the same handyman can cross it without anyone noticing.
And the deadline didn't move. 1099-NEC forms are still due January 31, to the contractor and to the IRS. If you're filing 10 or more information returns of any kind, they have to go in electronically.
A few things that are easier in November than in the last week of January:
Pull every vendor you've paid this year with their running totals. Get a W-9 from anyone who might need a form, while they still answer your emails. Tag contractors in your books so next year's list is a report, not a weekend. Ask your accountant which payments count. Corporations are generally exempt. Attorneys generally aren't.
One more thing: starting in 2027, the IRS says the threshold may be adjusted for inflation. Check the number each year instead of remembering it.
Year-end paperwork is rarely hard. It's just late.
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