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Form 1099-NEC for landlords: who gets one, the $2,000 threshold and deadlines

Paid a handyman, plumber or cleaner this year? Here's how to tell whether they need a Form 1099-NEC from you, what changed for 2026 payments and the dates to put in your calendar.

Updated October 20, 2026 · by Tidy Landlord

Why landlords get asked about 1099s

Schedule E asks two yes-or-no questions near the top. Line A asks whether you made any payments during the year that would require you to file Forms 1099, and line B asks whether you did or will file them (Schedule E instructions). If you paid contractors to work on your rentals, you need a real answer to both.

Step 1: Check whether your rental is a trade or business

Forms 1099-NEC and 1099-MISC are only for payments made in the course of your trade or business. Personal payments aren't reportable. The instructions say you're engaged in a trade or business if you operate for gain or profit (IRS 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC instructions). Whether a particular rental meets that test depends on your facts, such as how many units you own and how actively you run them, so if you're unsure, ask your tax professional before January, not after.

Step 2: Apply the four-part test

You generally must report a payment as nonemployee compensation in box 1a of Form 1099-NEC when all four of these are true:

You paid someone who isn't 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.
Your payments to that payee for the year reached the reporting threshold.

Step 3: Use the right threshold for the year

For tax years beginning after 2025, the minimum reporting threshold went up to $2,000, and it may be adjusted for inflation starting in 2027 (IRS instructions, What's New). In practice:

Payments made in 2025 (forms filed in early 2026) used the old $600 threshold.
Payments made in 2026 (forms due in early 2027) need a 1099-NEC when one payee received $2,000 or more from you for services during the year.

Add up everything you paid each payee over the whole year, across all your rentals, rather than looking at invoices one by one. Five $500 jobs from the same handyman add up to $2,500.

Step 4: Leave out what doesn't count

Card and payment-app payments. Payments made with a credit card or payment card, and certain third-party network payments, are reported by the payment settlement entity on Form 1099-K, not by you on Form 1099-NEC.
Corporations. Payments to a corporation, including an LLC taxed as a C or S corporation, generally don't need a 1099-NEC.
Except lawyers. Attorneys' fees of $2,000 or more paid in the course of your trade or business go in box 1a even if the law firm is incorporated.
Merchandise. Payments for merchandise, freight, storage and similar items aren't reported, so your hardware-store runs stay off the list.
Employees. A superintendent on your payroll gets a Form W-2, not a 1099-NEC.

One more rule works the other way: if a property manager collects rent for you, the manager must use Form 1099-MISC to report the rent paid over to you, so you may receive a 1099-MISC yourself (IRS instructions).

Step 5: Get a W-9 before the first payment

To file, you need each payee's legal name, address and taxpayer identification number. Contractors give you these on Form W-9 (IRS: About Form W-9). Ask for it before you pay the first invoice, when the contractor is keen to get paid; chasing it in January is much harder. Store W-9s somewhere secure, not in a shared spreadsheet. If a payee won't provide a TIN, you may have to backup withhold on reportable payments, so talk to your tax professional before paying them.

Step 6: File and send by the deadline

Form 1099-NEC must be filed with the IRS by January 31, and the contractor gets their copy by the same date. If the date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, the due date is the next business day (IRS instructions). January 31, 2027 is a Sunday, so forms for 2026 payments are due Monday, February 1, 2027.

If you file 10 or more information returns in total, counting all types together, you must e-file. Fewer than 10 can still go on paper, but e-filing is free through the IRS's IRIS Taxpayer Portal, which lets you e-file up to 100 returns at a time, enter them by hand or upload a CSV, and download the copies for your payees. You need an IRIS Transmitter Control Code (TCC) first, so apply well before January (IRS: IRIS).

Then answer Schedule E lines A and B: "Yes" on line A if any payment needed a 1099, and "Yes" on line B once you've filed them.

Canada and Quebec: no 1099s, but Quebec has the RL-31

Form 1099-NEC is a US form. Quebec landlords have a different year-end slip to plan for: if rent was paid or payable for a dwelling on December 31, you must file an RL-31 slip with Revenu Québec and give each tenant or subtenant who signed the lease their copy, the RL-31.CS, by the last day of February (Revenu Québec: RL-31). Tenants use it to claim the solidarity tax credit. If you file more than five slips, you must file online. When the deadline falls on a weekend, Revenu Québec moves it to the next business day; for 2025 slips it moved from Saturday, February 28 to Monday, March 2, 2026 (Revenu Québec: filing deadline). February 28, 2027 is a Sunday, so for 2026 slips expect Monday, March 1, 2027.

A simple year-round routine

Keep a contractor list with each payee's type (individual, partnership, corporation or attorney) and whether you have their W-9. Log every payment with the date, property, amount and how you paid (check, bank transfer, cash, card or app). In early December, total each payee's year so you know exactly who needs a form, and whose W-9 you're still missing, before the January rush.

Frequently asked questions

What is the 1099-NEC threshold for 2026?

$2,000. For tax years beginning after 2025, the threshold for reporting nonemployee compensation rose from $600 to $2,000 per payee for the year, and it may be adjusted for inflation starting in 2027 (IRS instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC).

Do I send a 1099-NEC to a contractor I paid by credit card or a payment app?

Generally no. Payments made with a credit card or payment card, and certain third-party network payments, are reported on Form 1099-K by the payment settlement entity, not on Form 1099-NEC by you.

Does my lawyer get a 1099-NEC if the firm is a corporation?

Yes, usually. Payments to corporations are generally exempt, but attorneys' fees of $2,000 or more paid in the course of your trade or business are reportable in box 1a of Form 1099-NEC even when the law firm is incorporated.

Sources

This guide is general information to help you organize your records. It is not tax, legal or accounting advice, and rules and amounts change every year. Confirm how they apply to you with a qualified tax professional or the official sources linked above before you file.

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