Didn't get a 1099 for consulting work, what now?

I did some consulting work for a local non-profit foundation earlier this year, and they paid me about $4K total. Problem is, they never sent me a 1099 form for the work. It's already mid-February and I'm trying to get my taxes done, but still nothing from them in the mail. I've reached out twice now asking about the 1099, but they're being super slow to respond. Should I just report the income without the 1099? Wait longer? Is there something specific I should be telling them? I don't want to mess up my taxes, but I also don't want to wait forever to file.

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19 comments

Mei Liu

•8M

Yes, you should absolutely report the income even if you never receive a 1099. The IRS requires you to report all income regardless of whether you receive documentation. When you file, you'll report this as self-employment income on Schedule C. You don't need to attach or include the 1099 with your return - it's just for your records and the IRS matching system. The non-profit should have issued you a 1099-NEC if they paid you $600 or more, but their failure to do so doesn't exempt you from reporting the income. I would keep records of your attempts to request the form from them. If you have invoices, contracts, bank deposits, or emails documenting the work and payment, save those as evidence of the income in case of any questions later.

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Mei Liu

•8M

The income should be reported in the tax year when you actually received the payment, regardless of when they issue the 1099. If you received the money in 2023, you should report it on your 2023 tax return that you're filing now in 2024. If they incorrectly issue a 1099 for next year when the income was earned this year, you might receive a notice from the IRS about unreported income in the future. That's why I suggested keeping good records of when you received the payments, so you can show you properly reported it in the correct year.

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Amara Nwosu

•8M

I had a similar situation last year and found a really helpful service called taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) that saved me tons of stress. I uploaded my bank statements showing the deposits from the consulting work, and their AI analyzed everything and helped me properly document the income without the 1099. The system actually guided me through reporting the income correctly on Schedule C and even helped identify potential deductions related to my consulting work. It was super straightforward and gave me peace of mind that I wasn't missing anything important.

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Amara Nwosu

•8M

The tool automatically calculates the self-employment taxes based on your net profit from the consulting work. It walks you through the whole Schedule SE process and shows you exactly what you'll owe for both the employer and employee portions of Social Security and Medicare taxes. As for legitimacy, it's completely legit - the IRS doesn't actually require you to have the physical 1099 to file. What matters is reporting accurate income. The service helps you document your income using bank statements and other records, which is perfectly valid for tax purposes. Unlike TurboTax which focuses on form-filling, this approach is about proper income documentation regardless of whether you have the official forms.

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Giovanni Moretti

•8M

Ok so I was super skeptical about taxr.ai but I decided to try it for my missing 1099 situation and it actually worked great! I uploaded my bank statements showing the deposits and invoice emails, and the system helped me properly document everything on my Schedule C. I was surprised how simple it made the whole process - way less stressful than waiting around for forms that might never arrive. It even helped me find some deductions related to my consulting work that I wouldn't have thought of. Just filed my taxes and got my refund without any issues!

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Fatima Al-Farsi

•8M

If you're still trying to get in touch with the non-profit, I'd recommend using Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) to get actual help. I was in a similar situation trying to get tax forms from an organization that kept ignoring my calls. After weeks of frustration, I tried Claimyr and they got me connected to a real person at the organization within 20 minutes. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. Basically, they hold your place in the phone queue and call you back when someone actually answers. Saved me hours of hold music and getting nowhere.

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Fatima Al-Farsi

•8M

It calls the same number, but uses a system that navigates phone trees automatically and stays on hold so you don't have to. When a human finally answers, it connects you immediately. So instead of being on hold for hours, you just get a call when someone's actually there to talk. It's not magical at all - it doesn't make unwilling organizations answer, but many organizations (especially non-profits) are understaffed rather than deliberately ignoring people. The problem is often that their phone lines are overwhelmed. Claimyr just handles the waiting part so you're not wasting your day listening to hold music. It's particularly useful for getting through to tax departments that are swamped during filing season.

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Sofia Perez

•8M

I need to eat my words about Claimyr. After my skeptical comment I decided to try it anyway because I was desperate to reach my previous employer about a missing W-2. The service actually worked exactly as described. I'd been trying to get through for weeks with no luck. Claimyr kept my place in line for about 45 minutes (which I didn't have to waste on hold), then connected me when a real person answered. Got my tax document issue resolved in one call. Not sure how it works for non-profits specifically, but for any organization with a phone system, it's definitely worth trying if you're getting nowhere with emails.

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Dmitry Smirnov

•8M

I'm a volunteer treasurer at a small non-profit and sometimes we miss sending 1099s because we're overwhelmed. If you call the organization and specifically ask for their accounting department or treasurer, you'll likely get better results than general inquiries. Let them know you need it for your taxes and most organizations will prioritize getting it to you. If they truly don't respond, you might want to send a certified letter requesting the form - that usually gets attention.

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Dmitry Smirnov

•8M

That's actually a great approach! If you provide them with all the information already organized (your full name, address, SSN, amount paid, and their EIN), it makes their job much easier. Many small non-profits would appreciate that level of organization. You could even create a simple template that just needs their signature or approval. Just be professional and friendly about it - acknowledge that you understand they're busy but that you need this for your tax filing. Most reasonable organizations will respond positively to someone making their job easier.

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Victoria Jones

•1d

For future reference, you might want to request the 1099 in writing (email counts) when you finish the work, rather than waiting until tax season. I learned this the hard way after a similar experience. Also, don't forget that you can deduct business expenses related to your consulting work on Schedule C - things like mileage to their office, office supplies, software you used for the project, etc. Even without the 1099, those deductions can help offset some of the self-employment tax burden on that $4K income. Keep detailed records of everything - your invoices, their payments, any expenses, and your communication attempts. The IRS cares more about accurate reporting than having the physical forms.

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