Quick answer: For payments made in 2026, a US brand generally sends Form 1099-NEC when it pays a US contractor at least $2,000 in the year for services. The IRS gives January 31 as the due date, and January 31, 2027 is a Sunday, so the next business day is Monday, February 1, 2027. Collect a Form W-9 before the first payment. Payments that run through a card network or payment app go on Form 1099-K from that network, not on your 1099-NEC.
This is the brand side of creator tax paperwork, checked against IRS pages on 1 November 2026. If you are the creator, our guide to UGC creator taxes in the US covers set-asides and deductions, so none of that is repeated here. This guide covers what you, the payer, must do, with dates.
Are influencers 1099 employees?
No. A 1099 employee is a contradiction in terms. A creator is either your employee, who gets a W-2, or an independent contractor, who may get a 1099. The label in your contract does not decide it. The IRS general rule is that someone is an independent contractor if the payer "has the right to control or direct only the result of the work".
The IRS sorts the evidence into three categories. The creator examples below are our reading, not IRS examples.
| IRS category | The question | Points to contractor | Points to employee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Behavioral | Do you control what they do and how? | You approve the finished video against a brief | You set their hours and direct each shoot |
| Financial | Do you control the business side? | Fee per project, own kit, other brand clients | Regular salary, your studio, your equipment |
| Relationship | Are there employee-type benefits? | A project contract with an end date | Insurance, vacation pay, open-ended role |
A clear creator brief describes the result you want, which sits comfortably on the contractor side. A full-time in-house creator on a fixed schedule is a different conversation.
Getting this wrong costs money. If you treat an employee as a contractor with no reasonable basis, the IRS says you "may be held liable for employment taxes for that worker". The same page says relief requires filing all required information returns consistently with how you treated the worker, so skipping 1099s can hurt you here too. If it stays unclear, either side can file Form SS-8, and the IRS says a determination may take at least six months. Check any borderline role with an accountant.
The 2026 threshold, and when a 1099-NEC is due from you
The December 2026 instructions raise the reporting amount to $2,000 for tax years beginning after 2025, and say it may be adjusted for inflation from 2027. The previous revision used $600, so older guides are out of date. You generally report a payment as nonemployee compensation when all four of these are true:
- You paid someone who is not your employee.
- You paid for services in the course of your trade or business.
- You paid an individual, partnership, estate or, in some cases, a corporation.
- You paid that payee at least $2,000 during the year.
The amount goes in box 1a. The numbers below are examples.
| What you did in 2026 | What happens |
|---|---|
| Paid a sole proprietor $1,500 by bank transfer | Below $2,000, so no 1099-NEC is required. The creator still reports the income. |
| Paid a $1,900 fee plus a $300 flight the creator did not account to you for | The instructions add the fee and the unaccounted travel together. $2,200, so report it. |
| Paid $4,000 to an LLC whose W-9 says it is taxed as an S corporation | Generally no 1099-NEC. Payments to a corporation, including an LLC treated as one, are generally exempt. |
| Paid $4,000 to a single-member LLC treated as a disregarded entity | Report it. The W-9 puts the owner's name on line 1 and the business name on line 2. |
| Paid $5,000 through a payment app as a payment for services | See the PayPal section below. It is generally a Form 1099-K matter for the app. |
| Paid $3,000 to a creator who lives abroad and is not a US person | No W-9. The W-9 is only for US persons and points others to Form W-8 or Form 8233. Ask an accountant what reporting applies. |
A prize that is not for services goes on Form 1099-MISC, box 3, also at $2,000 or more. A prize paid for services performed goes in box 1a of the 1099-NEC. Check your numbers with an accountant before filing.
Does gifted product count?
The IRS instructions do not use the word gifted, and we found no IRS page about creator product seeding. Two rules still point one way. A 1099-NEC covers payment for services. And the regulation says that when a reportable payment is made in property, "the fair market value of the property at the time of payment is the amount to be included on such form".
So our reading is this: product sent in exchange for agreed content belongs in the yearly total at fair market value. A creator who gets $1,500 in cash and $600 of product for an agreed Reel has $2,100 in the total, which crosses the line. So do 14 items at $150 each with no cash at all, $2,100 again.
A true no-strings mailer, where you ask for nothing, is less clear, and nothing we read settles it. Agree a written policy with your accountant before you run a gifted campaign, and log the value of every item as it ships. Free product also carries a disclosure duty, which our piece on FTC rules for UGC creators covers.
Working out a creator budget? Add product value and fees together so you can see who may cross $2,000 before the year ends.
Open the campaign budget plannerPayPal, payment apps and platforms
The instructions say payments by card and third-party network transactions must be reported on Form 1099-K by the payment settlement entity and are not subject to 1099-NEC reporting. The IRS FAQ confirms a transaction should not be reported twice: only on the 1099-K. Four things catch brands out.
- The creator may get no form at all. A payment app or marketplace has to report once payments exceed $20,000 and more than 200 transactions, though it may report lower amounts. The creator still owes tax on the income either way.
- The IRS does not name apps. These pages say payment apps and online marketplaces. Confirm with your provider how it treats your payment type. We could not open PayPal's own help page to check its wording.
- Personal transfers are not a shortcut. The IRS says money from friends and family as a gift or a repayment should not be on a 1099-K. A creator fee is neither. We found no IRS page on a fee sent through a personal payment mode, so do not assume the exception protects you. Ask an accountant.
- Bank transfer and check are on you. They are not card or network payments, so the normal 1099-NEC rule applies.
If a marketplace or platform pays the creator, the 1099-K instructions put filing on the party that submits the instruction to transfer funds to the creator. If you pay a talent agency, look at the agency's W-9 and treat the agency as your payee. Ask your accountant to confirm either setup.
What to collect before you pay
Form W-9. The IRS page showed the March 2024 revision and no recent developments on 1 November 2026. It gives you the legal name, the business name, the tax classification, the address, the taxpayer ID and a signature under penalties of perjury. The creator gives it to you. It does not go to the IRS.
Get it before the first payment, even on a small deal, because repeat creators cross $2,000 quietly. If a creator will not give you a taxpayer ID, reportable payments are subject to backup withholding. The IRS requester instructions set the rate at 24% and warn you may become liable for any uncollected amount. They also say you can set up a system for electronic W-9s, and that the IRS offers TIN matching to certain payors.
Copy-paste message to request a W-9
Subject: W-9 needed before we can pay you
Hi [first name],
Before we release payment for [campaign name], we need a completed Form W-9 on file. We use your taxpayer ID to report payments to the IRS when they reach the reporting threshold.
Here is the current form from the IRS: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw9.pdf
Three things to check. Line 1 is the name on your tax return: if you are a sole proprietor or a single-member LLC treated as disregarded, that is your own name, and your business name goes on line 2. On line 3a, tick how you are taxed. Then sign and date it.
Please upload it here: [secure upload link]. Please do not send your Social Security number by regular email or DM.
If you are not a US citizen or other US person, do not fill in the W-9. Tell me where you are based and we will sort out the right form.
Thanks,
[your name]
The checklist, with dates
| When | Step |
|---|---|
| Before the first payment | Get the W-9. Record name, classification and taxpayer ID in a restricted file. |
| Before the first payment | Put fee, deliverables, product value and payment method in writing. Our usage rights guide covers the other clause you need, and how to hire UGC creators covers the rest of the deal. |
| Every payment | Log date, amount, method and fair market value of any product, per creator. |
| By December 31, 2026 | Total each creator for the year. Chase missing W-9s. If you will e-file, get set up on IRIS, the IRS's free portal, which needs a Transmitter Control Code first. Do not leave that to late January. |
| January 2027 | Prepare forms on the December 2026 revision. Count all your information returns: 10 or more in total means you must e-file. |
| By Monday, February 1, 2027 | Send creators their copy and file 1099-NEC with the IRS. The IRS date is January 31, and the instructions move a date that falls on a weekend to the next business day. They do not print February 1 itself. There is no automatic extension for the 1099-NEC. |
| March 1 or March 31, 2027 | File any 1099-MISC with the IRS. The IRS dates are February 28 on paper, a Sunday in 2027, so March 1, and March 31 electronically. The creator's 1099-MISC copy has the same January 31 date as above. |
| After filing | Keep copies for at least 3 years, or 4 years if backup withholding was imposed. |
Missing a date is priced per form. The IRS penalty table for returns and statements due in 2027 shows $60 up to 30 days late, $130 from 31 days late through August 1, $340 after August 1 or if not filed, and $690 for intentional disregard. Have your accountant review the file before you send it.
If you are still setting a budget for US creators, our UGC rates guide shows what they charge, which tells you how fast a repeat creator reaches $2,000.
Hiring a US creator for your next campaign? Post your brief and let creators apply. Payment is held until the work is approved.
Post your briefFAQ
Are influencers 1099 or W-2?
Most creators hired per project are independent contractors, so 1099 if the rules are met. It depends on the facts: the IRS looks at control over the work, the business side and the type of relationship. Ask an accountant about any full-time role.
What is the 1099 threshold for influencers in 2026?
$2,000 or more in the year to one payee, for payments in tax years beginning after 2025. It may be adjusted for inflation from 2027.
Do I send a 1099 if I paid a creator through PayPal?
Card and third-party network payments go on Form 1099-K from the network, not on your 1099-NEC. Confirm how your provider treats your payment type, and do not rely on this for a personal transfer.
When is the 1099-NEC due for 2026 payments?
The IRS date is January 31. In 2027 that is a Sunday, and the instructions move it to the next business day, Monday, February 1, 2027. That covers both the IRS filing and the creator's copy.
Do I need a W-9 from a creator in the UK or UAE?
No. The form says to use it only if you are a US person, and it points others to Form W-8 or Form 8233. Ask an accountant what reporting or withholding applies to the payment.
Sources
- IRS: Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC (Rev. December 2026)
- IRS: Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC (Rev. April 2025)
- IRS: General Instructions for Certain Information Returns (2025)
- IRS: Information return penalties
- IRS: About Form W-9
- IRS: Form W-9 (Rev. March 2024)
- IRS: Instructions for the Requester of Form W-9
- IRS: Understanding your Form 1099-K
- IRS: Instructions for Form 1099-K
- IRS: Form 1099-K FAQs, third party filers
- IRS: Independent contractor (self-employed) or employee?
- IRS: Independent contractor defined
- IRS: E-file information returns with IRIS
- Cornell Legal Information Institute: 26 CFR 1.6041-1
