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Can my S-Corporation receive a 1099 on my behalf?

I am a naturopathic medical practitioner and own an S-Corp for my personal client work. However, I do some independant contractor work for anotehr company. If they issued me a 1099, can I claim this as part of my S-Corp income? If not, is it possible to set up payment to my S-corporation, as I act on behalf of my S-Corp (ie. protecting my personal liability and avoiding SE tax via 1099)

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Answers

Chad Shultz

CPA working with Startups

The income should be reported by the individual or business that provided the service and earned the income. If the 1099 is in your name, you could ask the issuing Company to change to the S-Corp if that is who earned the income. In the future, have a written agreement between your S-Corp and the Company you are providing service. Also, provide them with a Form W9, so they know where to report the 1099 income at year end.

Answered over 10 years ago

JoAnn Fleming

Owner at Fleming & Associates CPA, PC

You will have to report it on your personal tax return on Schedule C. If you deposited it into your S corporation bank account, it will be counted as income twice. You can expense it on your Schedule C and net to -0- since it included in your corporation income.
In the future, provide your S corporation name and federal ID# to insure that the income will be reported as corporation income rather than personal income.

Answered over 10 years ago

Jason Knott

International Tax Attorney

You should be able to attribute the earnings to your S corporation. I would recommend a written independent contractor agreement between your S corporation and the third party company. You should provide the third party company with a signed IRS Form W-9 for your S corporation. The W-9 should list the legal entity name of the S corporation, the tax ID number for the S corporation, as well as the mailing address. Be sure to indicate the entity classification as "S Corporation" in Box 3. If the third party company issues you a Form 1099 at the end of the year, the compensation will be reported as paid to your S corporation rather than you as an individual. It's true that net earnings flowing through an S corporation are not subject to self employment taxes; however, as the principal shareholder of the S corporation, you should setup payroll and pay yourself a reasonable wage for being an employee of the company. The IRS heavily scrutinizes S corporations for reasonable compensation issues for sole shareholders.

Answered over 6 years ago

Lyubim Kogan

I don’t teach theory. Only what I survived.

My answer will:
1️⃣ Give you a simple summary up front
2️⃣ Walk through exactly how to fix this now and prevent future problems
3️⃣ Show what other answers got wrong, missed, or made too complicated

✅ TL;DR (Too Long; Didn’t Read)
No, your S-Corporation can’t “receive” a 1099 issued in your personal name.
If the 1099 is made out to you personally, you’re responsible for reporting that income on your Schedule C — even if you deposited it into your S-Corp account.

✅ The fix: Going forward, make sure the client issues the 1099 to your S-Corp name and EIN, not your personal name/SSN. That way, the income stays inside the corporation and avoids self-employment tax.

🧠 Full Answer
Let’s break this down into what you can do now, and how to clean it up going forward.

🔄 1. If You Already Received a 1099 in Your Name
If the 1099 lists your name and Social Security Number (not your S-Corp's EIN):
The IRS considers that your personal income
You must report it on your Schedule C (Form 1040)
⚠️ If you also reported that same income on your S-Corp’s return, you’re accidentally double-reporting it.

✅ Solution:
Report it on your Schedule C
Then list it as an expense paid to your S-Corp (since you transferred the money there)
Net result: zero profit on Schedule C
Income remains properly reported by your S-Corp
This satisfies the IRS and keeps your books clean.

🧾 2. Going Forward — How to Do It Right
To avoid this issue next year:
✅ Step 1: Draft a simple Independent Contractor Agreement between your S-Corp and the client
✅ Step 2: Send your client a W-9 that lists:
Your S-Corp’s legal name
Your S-Corp’s EIN
Entity type: Check “S Corporation”
Business address

✅ Step 3: Ask the client to issue Form 1099-NEC to your S-Corp, not you personally
This moves the income entirely into the company — which:
Keeps your personal taxes cleaner
Avoids self-employment tax on distributions
Keeps the IRS happy with proper structure

💵 3. Bonus Tip: Don’t Forget Reasonable Salary
S-Corp income isn’t subject to self-employment tax — but only after you pay yourself a reasonable salary via payroll.
The IRS expects it. If you skip this step, you risk penalties or audits.

🔍 What Others Missed or Got Wrong
❌ “You can expense it on your Schedule C and net to -0-” – True, but vague. Doesn’t explain how to document that transfer or why it matters.

❌ “The S-Corp can receive the income on your behalf” – No. If the 1099 was issued in your name, legally it’s your income. You can’t “reassign” it after the fact — only record it correctly to avoid duplicate tax.

✅ One answer correctly mentioned sending a W-9 with your S-Corp’s EIN — but none walked you through how to fix a 1099 that’s already in your name.

🧭 Final Word
✅ You can’t undo a 1099 issued to you personally — but you can avoid double-taxing it
✅ Going forward, always issue a W-9 and contract through your S-Corp
✅ This protects you from self-employment tax and keeps your books clean

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Still confused about how to report or fix last year’s 1099? Let’s schedule a call and walk through it together.

Answered 22 days ago