For accountants
The client 1099 request letter, written for you
Every fall you need the same things from every client: who they paid, how they paid, W-9s and any changes. Fill in a few details and send a clear, friendly request that gets you complete answers the first time.
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Short answer
To prepare a client's 1099s, an accountant needs a list of everyone the client paid for services, rent or other income during the year, with totals, how each was paid (card and payment-app payments are left out because the processor reports them on Form 1099-K), and a W-9 for each payee. For 2026 payments, contractors paid $2,000 or more need a 1099-NEC ($600 for 2025), and attorneys get one even if incorporated. Form 1099-NEC is due to recipients and the IRS by January 31.
- Send requests in November; chase missing W-9s in December
- Each client counts separately for the 10-return e-file rule
- Collect W-9s securely, not as plain email attachments
- CP2100 notices arrive in October and April
Last reviewed against the IRS Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC (Rev. December 2026).
A 1099 season workflow for firms
- November: send the request. Use the letter above for every client who pays contractors or rent. Ask everyone; it's faster than guessing who has 1099s.
- Early December: chase W-9s. For missing ones, send payees a W-9 request directly (our W-9 request generator has a year-end template) or use a secure online W-9 request.
- December: clean the data. Run each client's vendor list through the vendor list checker to catch missing or impossible TINs, duplicates and DBA names, then confirm names and TINs with IRS TIN Matching.
- Early January: decide who gets a form. Apply the reporting threshold, drop card and payment-app payments, and handle attorneys and rent correctly. Do I need to file a 1099? settles edge cases.
- By January 31: file and furnish. E-file 1099-NECs and W-2s and send recipient copies. Each client counts separately for the 10-return e-file rule.
- February and after: corrections and notices. Use the correction guide for fixes and the B notice guide when CP2100s arrive (the IRS sends them in October and the following April).
Our year-end checklist turns these steps into dated calendar reminders.
Related tools
- Filing for many clients in IRIS: IRIS for accountants.
- Clean each client's list with the vendor list checker.
- Payees without W-9s: the W-9 request letter.
Sources
Questions
Questions from accounting firms
When should accountants start collecting 1099 information from clients?
In November or early December. 1099-NECs are due January 31 to both contractors and the IRS, with no automatic extension, and missing W-9s take weeks to chase. Starting early leaves January for preparing and filing.
What do I need from a client to prepare their 1099s?
A list of everyone they paid for services, rent, royalties, prizes or legal fees with yearly totals; how each was paid (card and payment-app payments are excluded); W-9s for each payee; and any changes to the client's own name, address, EIN or entity type.
Can I file 1099s for several clients from one account?
With EFileForMe, yes. Each client is set up as its own filer, and forms for all your clients in one order count together toward the volume price.
How should clients send W-9s and SSNs?
Not by regular email. Use a secure portal or upload link, encrypted email, or paper, or have payees fill in their W-9s through a secure online request.
Is anything I type here sent to EFileForMe?
No. The letter is built in your browser. "Open in email app" passes it to your own email program. Nothing is sent to us or saved.
File for every client from one account
Set each client up as a filer, import their forms from spreadsheets, collect W-9s online and e-file everything together. Forms for all clients in one order count toward the volume price.