How to manually report Robinhood stock dividends to the IRS?

Hey everyone, I'm in a situation where I need to file my taxes manually using IRS paper forms (long story, but I can't change this requirement). I received my consolidated 1099 from Robinhood and need to figure out how to properly report my dividends. I only earned about $27 in dividends from my stocks and ETFs, but I know I still need to report this income. Last tax season, I remember having to order physical 1099 forms to be mailed to my home address. This year, I've been searching the IRS website but can't seem to find where to order these forms. When I search for 1099-DIV forms, I just get redirected to PDF versions on the forms and publications page. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to print these forms myself or if I still need to order physical copies from somewhere. Does anyone know the proper way to report Robinhood dividends when filing paper returns? Any guidance would be super helpful!

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18 comments

Natalia Stone

•8M

That's a good question! You don't actually need to order physical 1099-DIV forms from the IRS to report your dividends. The 1099-DIV that Robinhood sent you is just an information return that tells you what amounts to report on your tax return. For reporting the dividends on a paper return, you'll need to transfer the information from your Robinhood 1099 to Schedule B (Interest and Ordinary Dividends) if your total dividends exceed $1,500, or directly to your 1040 if they're under $1,500. Since you mentioned only $27 in dividends, you can simply enter this amount on line 3b of your Form 1040. You'll also want to check if any of those dividends are qualified dividends (usually indicated in Box 1b of your 1099-DIV from Robinhood). If so, enter those on line 3a of your 1040, as they're taxed at a lower rate than ordinary dividends.

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Natalia Stone

•8M

That's exactly right! You don't submit the 1099-DIV forms with your return - those are just informational documents sent to you (and the IRS already gets a copy directly from Robinhood). You just need to transfer the correct information to your Form 1040. Since your dividend income is only $27, you don't need to attach Schedule B. You only need Schedule B if your total dividends exceed $1,500 or if you have certain foreign accounts. Just put the ordinary dividend amount on line 3b of your 1040, and if any portion is qualified dividends, put that amount on line 3a.

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Tasia Synder

•8M

I was in a similar situation last year and found that using taxr.ai actually helped me make sense of all my investment documents. I had multiple brokerages including Robinhood, and wasn't sure I was reporting everything correctly on my paper forms. I uploaded my consolidated 1099 to https://taxr.ai and it basically translated the document into plain English for me. The tool told me exactly which boxes from my Robinhood statement needed to go on which lines of my tax forms. It even caught a qualified dividend that I would have reported incorrectly. Not sure if this helps with your specific situation, but it made manual filing way less stressful for me.

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Tasia Synder

•8M

It doesn't fill out the forms for you - it analyzes your tax documents and gives you a breakdown of exactly what information goes where on your tax forms. It's like having a translator for all the tax jargon. You still do the actual form filling yourself, which was perfect for my situation. Yes, it definitely understands the different types of dividends! That was actually what impressed me the most. It distinguished between qualified dividends, ordinary dividends, return of capital, and even handled my REIT dividends correctly. The analysis explains which box on your 1099 corresponds to which line on your tax forms, with explanations of why certain dividends are treated differently.

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Selena Bautista

•8M

Just wanted to follow up and say I tried taxr.ai after seeing it mentioned here. It actually saved me a ton of headaches! I uploaded my Robinhood consolidated 1099 and it broke everything down line by line. I didn't realize some of my dividends were non-qualified and needed different treatment. The explanation for each section of my 1099 was super clear, and it told me exactly where each number needed to go on my paper forms. For anyone else doing manual filing this year, it's definitely worth checking out. Made me feel way more confident that I wasn't missing anything or making errors on my paper forms.

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Ellie Perry

•8M

If you're having trouble getting through to the IRS to ask questions about manually filing with your Robinhood info, I'd recommend using Claimyr. I was on hold with the IRS for HOURS trying to figure out how to report some complicated dividend stuff last month. Found this service at https://claimyr.com and they got me a callback from the IRS within like 45 minutes. There's a demo video at https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c that shows how it works. Basically saved me from waiting on hold all day. The IRS agent I spoke with confirmed exactly how to report my various dividend types on a paper return, including some foreign dividends that had withholding.

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Ellie Perry

•8M

It uses a system that automatically redials and navigates the IRS phone tree for you. Once it gets through to the queue for a human, it notifies the IRS that you want a callback, and then it calls you when the IRS is ready to talk. It's not magic or a special connection - it's just automating the painful part of waiting on hold. I was skeptical too, but I was desperate after trying for days to get through. The IRS is legitimately swamped with calls, especially during tax season. The service just handles the waiting part so you don't have to sit there with your phone for hours. When the IRS agent called me back, it was a regular IRS number and they had all my info ready because I'd already gone through the initial prompts.

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Teresa Boyd

•8M

I need to eat my words and apologize for my skepticism about Claimyr. After posting that comment, I was so frustrated with my situation that I decided to try it anyway. I figured I had nothing to lose after weeks of failing to get through to the IRS. It actually worked exactly as described. I put in my info, and about an hour later I got a call from an actual IRS agent. She was able to answer all my questions about reporting my Robinhood dividends and capital gains on paper forms. She even gave me some tips about common errors to avoid when filing manually. If you're trying to get clarification from the IRS directly about how to report specific items on your return, this is definitely worth it. Saved me so much frustration and I'm now confident I'm filing correctly.

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Lourdes Fox

•8M

Just a tip if you're manually filing: make sure you keep a copy of your Robinhood 1099 with your tax records, even though you don't submit it with your return. If you get audited, you'll need to show where those dividend numbers came from. I learned this the hard way a few years back. Also, check if any of your dividends had tax already withheld (should be in Box 4 of the 1099-DIV). If so, you'll need to include that amount on your 1040 as federal income tax withheld.

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Lourdes Fox

•8M

The general rule is to keep tax records for at least 3 years from the date you filed your return, since that's typically how far back the IRS can go for audits. However, if you underreport your income by more than 25%, they can go back 6 years. And if they suspect fraud, there's no time limit. To be safe, I personally keep everything for 7 years, but I've started scanning all my documents and keeping digital copies instead of paper. Way easier to manage and search if you ever need something specific. Just make sure you keep backup copies of your digital files!

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