Fillable Form 1096 (2017)

What is Form 1096?

Form 1096, or Annual Summary and Transmittal of U.S. Information Returns, is a one-page transmittal form that serves as a cover sheet that reports payments and the summary of any returns you are mailing to the Internal Service Revenue (IRS). The form itself requires information such as your Employer Identification Number (EIN), the number of forms you are submitting alongside it, and so on.

Make sure that you have all other tax forms prepared and ready for filing before submitting them alongside IRS Form 1096.

You should only use IRS Form 1096 if you are physically filing the accompanying forms; otherwise, if you choose to file electronically, you do not have to use Form 1096. According to the IRS, if you have 250 or more of any type of information return, you must file electronically.

Filing electronically helps to keep all the information sorted and organized so that all tax forms and information contained in them can be kept secure. The process of E-filing Form 1096, however, is not without its own risks and possible obstacles, much the same as physically filing IRS Form 1096 or any other IRS form.

Thus, whether you seek to file electronically or physically, it may be beneficial to consult a tax professional to help you keep each separate IRS form you need to file in order.

Who Needs to Use Form 1096?

U.S. taxpayers, particularly professionals who paid more than $600 non-employee compensation to independent contractors in a financial year and used Form 1099, should fill out and submit IRS Form 1096 when submitting paper reports to the IRS. This applies to both big and small business owners, and further details, should they be required, are available through the IRS website.

This may require paper forms and other documents and/or information (such as particular tax forms or receipts) from said independent contractors, so it is best to make sure that the necessary contact information is retained in order to obtain the necessary information. Forms 1097, 1098, 3921, 3922 5498, 8935, and W-2G are legal forms that also need Form 1096.

When is Form 1096 due?

In general, the due date for IRS Form 1096 depends on the information returns you are submitting.

With Forms 1097, 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, or W-2G, file the form by February 28 each year, along with the returns it summarizes.

With Forms 5498, file by June 1. The due dates may vary, depending on many factors, including holidays or weekends. Stay updated with IRS’s announcements during filing seasons to avoid missing deadlines, or enlist the services of a tax professional in order to keep your deadlines and requirements in order.

Every type of form you submit to the IRS must come with its own Form 1096 cover sheet. The federal agency treats every version of its forms as a separate type of form. As an example, you should use different Form 1096 copies for different versions of Forms 1099.

Make sure to double check with all of the above forms that you are submitting, however, if they have their own specific deadlines by which they must be submitted. There are many different kinds of tax form, so it is highly important that you keep track of all the tax form documents.

What Happens if I File the Form Late?

Filing IRS forms late results in penalties. Whether it's Form 1096, or documents reporting the federal income tax withheld from you, a failure to report payments made to employees, or even simply an annual summary of your withheld federal income tax or business earnings and taxes, any form of failure to submit IRS forms on time will incur penalties of varying severity.

If you submit within 30 days of the due date, the penalty is $50 per form. The penalty increases to $100 after 30 days. If you still fail to file by August 1, the penalty becomes $260. If you deliberately fail to file, the penalty becomes $530, and so on.

Separate form submissions have separate rules, and so can also incur different penalties besides simple fines.

How to Fill Out Form 1096?

To complete Form 1096, if you are the filer, you will need to provide personal and tax-related information. The form also requires details related to the forms you are transmitting.

Provide the name (filer) and address of your business, the name of the person to contact, telephone number, email address, and fax number.

Box 1 asks for your Employer Identification Number (EIN).

Box 2 asks for your Social Security Number (SSN).

Box 3 asks for the total number of forms you are submitting with Form 1096.

Box 4 asks for the total federal income tax withheld on all the forms you are submitting. Enter “0” if you did not withhold any amount.

Box 5 asks for the total amount of reported payments on all the forms you are submitting.

Box 6 has checkboxes that you should mark. Enter an “X” in one of the boxes to indicate the type of form you are filing.

After providing the required information, sign the form, provide your title, and add a date.

Submission

You should submit Form 1096 with all information returns to the following:

Submit Form 1096 with all information return to:

Internal Revenue Service
Austin Submission Processing Center
P.O. Box 149213
Austin, TX 78741

if your principal business, office or agency, or legal residence in the case of an individual, is in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, Vermont, and Virginia;

Internal Revenue Service Center
P.O. Box 219256
Kansas City, MO 64121-9256

if your principal business, office or agency, or legal residence in the case of an individual, is in Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming; and finally, submit Form 1096 with all information return to

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service Center
Ogden, UT 84201

if your principal business, office or agency, or legal residence in the case of an individual, is in California, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Louisiana, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and West Virginia