Payments to Independent Contractors

April 13, 2006

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The gross amount you pay to an independent contractor is deductible. However, since an independent contractor is, by definition, not an employee, you will not report these amounts as wages or benefits. Instead, you would report the payments under the category of expenses for which the independent contractor's services were provided.

If you paid someone to repair or install equipment, the expenses would be reported under the "repairs" category of expenses.

Special reporting requirements. If, in the course of a year, you pay $600 or more to an independent contractor, or you pay $600 or more in rents, services including parts and materials, or attorney fees, you must report the payment on IRS Form 1099-MISC.

Give a copy to the contractor by January 31, and send a copy to the IRS by February 28. These rules generally don't apply to payments made to corporations.

Form 1099-MISC is a machine-readable form, and you must use the official IRS version (call 1-800-TAX-FORM for a copy) or a pre-approved computer-generated form (software is available in most larger office supply stores).

Warning

There are a host of special rules that determine which workers can be considered independent contractors, and which must be treated as employees. If you are in the slightest doubt as to which category a worker fits, be sure to read our discussion of the independent contractor rules.