How tax preparers request a 1099-MISC from clients
By Arthur Teboul, DokuTrak · Published
In short
Ask each client for every 1099-MISC they received for the year, with a short note on what each payment was: rent, royalties, a prize or other income. Each box lands on a different part of the return. For rental income, ask for the property’s expenses in the same request. Send it in February, once the forms are out.
Why tax preparers need a 1099-MISC
Since tax year 2020, pay for freelance work is reported on the 1099-NEC, so a 1099-MISC now points to other kinds of income. Box 1 rents usually go on Schedule E alongside the property’s expenses. Box 2 royalties go on Schedule E, or on Schedule C if the client is in the business of creating the work. Box 3 other income, such as prizes or awards, generally goes on Schedule 1 without self-employment tax.
What exactly to ask for
Copy B of every 1099-MISC for the tax year, with the client’s note on each one. For rents, ask in the same request for the property’s expenses: mortgage interest, property tax, insurance, repairs, management fees. For royalties, ask about related costs. For box 3, ask for the letter or agreement behind the payment, which tells you how it should be treated.
What to check when it arrives
- Each amount is read from the right box, because box 1, box 2 and box 3 go to different schedules.
- Rents on the form agree with the client’s own rent records; a property manager’s 1099-MISC may show gross rents before fees.
- Box 4 federal withholding and any state withholding are carried to the return.
Email to send your client
Replace the bracketed parts. The same text fits in the message of a DokuTrak request (up to 1,000 characters).
Subject: Any 1099-MISC forms you received
Hi [Client name],
I need any 1099-MISC you received for last year. These forms cover payments such as rent collected by a property manager, royalties, prizes and other one-off income, so please send each one with a quick note on what it was for.
If one is for rent, please add the expenses for that property in the same message: repairs, insurance, property tax, management fees. A simple list is fine.
Could you send everything by [date]? If you expected a form and it has not come, tell me who should have sent it and I will help you follow up.
Thank you, [Your name]
Ask once. DokuTrak does the chasing.
- Your client uploads from one link, with no account and no password.
- Reminders go out on a schedule, by default 2, 5, 10 and 14 days after the request, until the file arrives.
- With AI review switched on in your workspace (it is off by default), each upload gets a first pass that flags a file that is not a 1099-MISC or an unreadable or blurry scan. It says so when it is not sure.
- You accept every file or mark it for re-upload, and your client gets the note by email. The AI never accepts a file.