Category: TaxBandits

Does Your Trucking Business Need to File 1099-NEC and W-2?

Running your trucking business is no easy task, there are so many different demands and requirements. This includes filing and distributing Forms W-2 and 1099-NEC each year.

If you employ truck drivers or hire them as independent contractors, you are required to file Forms W-2 with the Social Security Administration (SSA) and/or 1099-NEC Form with the IRS. 

If you fail to file as needed, you can risk your business’ IRS compliance and cause difficulty for your drivers when it comes time for them to file their own taxes. 

Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered! Our sister product TaxBandits can help you e-file your Forms W-2 and 1099, they’re the experts!

Here’s a quick rundown of everything you need to know about Forms 1099-NEC and W-2.

When are the Form W-2 and 1099-NEC Deadlines?

The IRS and SSA require that employers file Forms 1099-NEC and W-2 and distribute copies to their employees and independent contractors. The deadline to do this is January 31, 2022. 

What is Form W-2? 

The Form W-2 is a wage tax form that reports the wages you paid to your employees and the taxes that you withheld from their pay. This includes social security, Medicare, and income taxes. 

Your employees need a copy of their Form W-2 in order to complete their own personal taxes and properly report their income to the IRS. 

What is Form 1099-NEC?

Businesses should report all non-employee compensation using Form 1099-NEC for the 2021 tax year. The deadline to file and distribute Form 1099-NEC is also January 31, 2022. 

If your drivers are independent contractors rather than full-time employees on your payroll, you will need to complete Form 1099-NEC instead of a W-2 Form, if you paid them $600 or more 

It is still very important that you provide your independent contractors with a copy of their Form 1099-NEC, as they will need this information to report their income when filing their taxes. 

Check Out TaxBandits!

TaxBandits also helps you fulfill your federal and state e-filing requirements for Forms 1099-NEC, W-2, and many more IRS tax forms including other 1099 forms, the 94x Series forms, and ACA Forms. 

TaxBandits has easy options for handling your recipient copies. When you select our postal mailing services, we ensure that all of your forms are printed and mailed to USPS Validated addresses.

You can also choose online Tax Form Access. This allows your employees to view and download their forms at any time through a secure portal. 

Ready to handle your filing today? Create your free TaxBandits account now!

What Every Trucker Needs to Know About 1099s & W-2s

If you employ any truck drivers (whether full-time employees or independent contractors) you have to report information about how you paid them to the IRS.

If you are a trucking company employee or a trucking independent contractor, you also have to report information about your income to the IRS.

For both parties, this is where 1099s and W-2s come in.

Let’s go over everything you need to know about 1099 Forms and W-2s.

W-2s for employers

The W-2 is designed to report tax information about full or part-time employees (i.e. any employees who receive income that had social security tax, income tax, or Medicare tax withheld).

As an employer, you will use the W-2 to report whatever salary, income with social security, income tax, or Medicare tax you withheld, and any compensations you offered throughout the tax year. You must also send a copy of the W-2 to each of your employees for their personal taxes.

W-2s for truck drivers

As an employee, you will use the information from your employer’s W-2 to file your personal taxes. This will include information like the amount of state and federal tax withheld and total income.

1099s for Employers

The 1099 is designed for anyone who is paid $600 or more in the tax year and does not have taxes withheld for them.

As an employer, you will use Form 1099-MISC to report what the compensation you gave independent contractors.

What employers need to file 1099s

Here’s all the information you’ll need to file 1099s:

Your Information:

  1. Business Name
  2. Business Address
  3. EIN (Employer Identification Number)

Independent Contractor Information:

  1. EIN
  2. OR Social Security Number
  3. Address
There are also additional federal and state details you will need to research depending on what state you live in.
This includes all miscellaneous incomes you provided, the state income, payer state number, and state tax withheld. If you don’t have your subcontractor’s information available, you can request it through a W-9 Form.

1099s for trucking independent contractors

You will take the information provided to you by your employer on their 1099 and use it to report income that was not previously taxed. This means you will most likely end up owing money to the IRS for state and federal taxes, social security and medicare.

trucking independent contractor who used taxbandits for form 1099

The easiest way to file trucking 1099s and W-2s

The easiest solution for filing trucking 1099s and W-2s (and even those W-9s we talked about) is to use our sister product TaxBandits.

Their e-filing solutions make everything simple for you! Just follow the step by step questions and they will populate your forms for you! Pricing starts at just $1.99 per form.

 
 
 

A Complete Guide to the 1099 Form and W-2 Form

How do you know whether or not you need to file W-2 Forms or 1099 Forms for your employees?

It all depends on what role you play in the trucking industry and your drivers’ tax classification.

If you’re an owner-operator or fleet manager, you should determine if new hires are full-time employees or independent contractors from the start.

This will affect what paperwork you need to keep up with to stay compliant.

Here’s everything you need to know about the 1099 Form and W-2 Form.

Trucking Taxes

W-2 Form

The W-2 Form is used to report salary, income with social security, income or Medicare tax withheld, and any compensations offered throughout the tax year.

Employers must file W-2 Forms electronically with the SSA (Social Security Administration) for their employees each year.

In addition, employers must send copies of W-2 Forms to employees so that they can use W-2 information to complete their personal tax returns.

So, if you’re a business owner, who do you need to file W-2 for?

Essentially, employees/drivers will need to receive a W-2 Form if you provided them with income that had social security, income, or Medicare tax withheld.

This means that most company drivers will receive a W-2 Form.

If you’re an independent contractor, you’ll have to cover your end of government expenses. Therefore, you’ll receive a 1099 Form, which is used to report miscellaneous income.

If you’re an agent or commission driver, you might have the “Statutory Driver” box checked on your W-2. Statutory and self-employed drivers should also fill out Schedule C to assess business profit and loss.

The e-filing deadline for filing W2 online is January 31, 2020, but it’s important to understand what classification your employees fall into in order to prepare for various tax deadlines.

1099 Form

If you own a trucking company and hire employees to drive your trucks, you’ll need to file 941, 940, and issue W-2s.

However, if you hire drivers as independent contractors that make more than $600, you’ll need to provide them and the IRS a 1099 Misc. Form.

Independent contractors will then use the information on this 1099 Form to file their tax returns.
If you are just a truck driver driving on your own, or a leased driver, you’ll also need the 1099 Form, which is also known as the 1099 contractor form. 

As a driver, if you own or lease your truck, you could be an independent contractor. Make sure you know your employment classification upon hire.

If you’ve hired independent contractors for your company, you’ll need to complete 1099 filing for them.

Staying Tax Compliant

Keeping up with employer taxes is critical to staying compliant with the IRS and keeping your employees and contractors happy.

Understand whether you need to file W-2 or complete a 1099 filing based on the employment type of your hires.

If you’re still unsure what to file, contact the team at TaxBandits, and they’ll be happy to help.

TaxBandits is an IRS-authorized e-file provider for employer taxes. Use this service to save time on taxes and avoid IRS wait times and penalties.
No matter what forms you need to file, TaxBandits can help you file quickly. Prepare for year-end ahead of time by understanding what you need to file to stay IRS compliant.