NOTE: for the latest info, check out QuickBooks 1099 overview and tips, 2015-2016.

You can prepare and file 1099s right from QuickBooks Online Plus.

Not only is all your accounting data – who you’ve paid, when, and how much – already entered, QuickBooks guides you through the process from a single page.

This article gives an overview of the process.

What’s a 1099 and when is it due?

The 1099-MISC is an IRS document that is required when filing year-end taxes.

If you paid $600 or more in 2014 to contractors or other non-employee individuals as compensation, you need to file a 1099-MISC form for each of them. Form 1096 (summary page) must also be filed.

There are two general deadlines1:

Get started on the QuickBooks 1099-MISC page

Click Vendors > Prepare 1099s. Follow the steps to set up, preview, and file.

Set up 1099 vendors

1. On the QuickBooks 1099-MISC page, click Select Vendors.
2. Add or remove vendors from the list on the right and click OK.

Tips:

• Run the Vendor Contact List report to identify 1099 vendors and their tax IDs. From the left navbar, click Reports. Then enter Vendor Contact List in the Go to report box and press Enter. Click Customize and 1) click Change Columns to add the Tax ID and Track 1099 columns, and 2) change Sort By from Default to Track 1099. View the report’s Tax ID column to identify vendors with missing tax IDs, and the Track 1099 column to show if they are set up to track 1099s. Click the Save Customizations button to save the report for future use.
• To mark an individual vendor for 1099 tracking, click Vendors in the left navbar, click a vendor in the list, click Edit, and select the “Track payments for 1099” checkbox.

Assign 1099 accounts

1. On the QuickBooks 1099-MISC page, click Assign Accounts.
2. Select a checkbox on the left, and assign a QuickBooks account to it on the right.
   Example: if you pay a subcontractor $1, 000 for labor and $9, 000 for equipment, you only need to report the $1, 000 labor cost (shown above as Job Expenses:Cost of Labor).