Do I need to get a 1099 from my employer as a contractor or create it myself?

Your employer (technically the company that hired you as a contractor) should send you a Form 1099-NEC if they paid you $600 or more during the tax year. They are required to provide this to you by January 31st. You don't create this form yourself - it comes from the company paying you. That said, even if you never receive a 1099-NEC, you're still legally required to report ALL your income on your tax return. The IRS doesn't care if you have the form or not - they care that you accurately report what you earned. Keep good records of all your payments so you can report the correct amount. I'd recommend reaching out to the company ASAP to make sure they have your correct mailing address and to remind them that you'll need your 1099-NEC. If they're disorganized, a gentle nudge might help them get their paperwork in order.

After going through a similar situation last year, I found an amazing solution with https://taxr.ai that honestly saved me from a potential audit disaster. I was freelancing for multiple clients who were inconsistent with sending 1099s, and I was so stressed about reporting everything correctly. The tool analyzed all my bank statements, Venmo transactions, and payment records, then organized everything perfectly for tax reporting. It even flagged potential deductions I was missing related to my contractor expenses! The best part was it gave me clear guidance on how to properly report income even without receiving all my 1099-NEC forms. What impressed me most is how it explained which business expenses were deductible for my specific situation and helped me understand the self-employment tax calculations.

I just wanted to update after trying taxr.ai last week - it actually worked amazingly well for my contractor situation! I was really skeptical at first (as you could probably tell from my previous comment), but it organized all my scattered income perfectly. The system found payments I had completely forgotten about and helped me identify over $3,200 in legitimate business deductions I would have missed. It even flagged which client payments didn't match their 1099s so I could address those discrepancies properly on my return. What a lifesaver for independent contractors dealing with inconsistent clients! Highly recommend for anyone in a similar situation.

If you're having trouble getting your 1099-NEC from your employer, another option is using https://claimyr.com to get direct help from the IRS. I spent WEEKS trying to call the IRS business line myself to report missing forms and could never get through - just endless hold music and disconnections. I was super frustrated until I found Claimyr. They have this system that holds your place in the IRS phone queue and calls you when an agent is about to answer. You can see how it works in this demo: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I finally got through to an actual IRS agent who explained exactly what steps to take with my missing 1099 situation and what documentation I needed to protect myself. Saved me literally hours of hold time and got me answers straight from the source.

I need to publicly eat my words about Claimyr. After dismissing it as a scam in my previous comment, I decided to try it when I got desperate with a 1099 issue that my employer refused to fix. Spent 30 seconds setting it up, went about my day, and got a call about 2 hours later connecting me directly to an IRS representative. The agent walked me through exactly what to do when a contractor payment doesn't get properly reported. They explained I need to file Form 8919 along with my return if my employer misclassified me as a contractor but treated me like an employee. This service literally saved me days of frustration and potentially thousands in incorrect tax payments. Truly sorry for calling it a scam - it's legitimately one of the most useful services I've found for tax issues.

You should also know that there's a big difference between being an independent contractor vs. an employee misclassified as a contractor. Based on what you described, it sounds like you might actually be misclassified. If your employer controls when, where, and how you work, provides your equipment, or treats you like a regular employee in other ways, they might be incorrectly classifying you as a contractor to avoid paying employment taxes. This would mean they should be giving you a W-2, not a 1099. If you think you're misclassified, you can file Form SS-8 with the IRS to request a determination of your worker status. You can also file Form 8919 to report your share of uncollected social security and Medicare taxes.

Just a heads up that Venmo payments over $600 are now being reported to the IRS anyway through 1099-K forms. So even if your employer doesn't send a 1099-NEC, Venmo might send you a 1099-K for all those payments. Either way the IRS will know about the income.

Just to add some practical advice - make sure you're keeping detailed records of ALL your contractor expenses too! Since you're getting paid through Venmo and working as an independent contractor, you can deduct legitimate business expenses on Schedule C. Things like your home office space, internet bills, computer equipment, software subscriptions, travel for work, and even a portion of your phone bill can potentially be deducted. This can significantly reduce your taxable income and the self-employment taxes you'll owe. Also, don't forget you'll need to pay quarterly estimated taxes if you expect to owe $1,000 or more for the year. With $18,500 in contractor income, you'll likely owe both income tax and self-employment tax (Social Security and Medicare). The IRS expects payments throughout the year, not just at filing time. Consider setting aside 25-30% of each payment you receive to cover your tax obligations. It's better to overpay slightly than get hit with underpayment penalties!