Last week, both Amazon and Instacart has issued 1099s to their drivers and shoppers via email. Back in 2017, Amazon Flex only released 1099s by snail mail and there was no digital copy available. Now in 2019, Amazon Flex drivers can access the documents online through the Amazon website. It is not available from the Amazon Flex app, unfortunately.
Instacart has always released 1099s digitally through Payable. Payable typically sends out an email to every Instacart shopper with a link to access their 1099 forms. You can view it online and download it in PDF format.
The 1099 form summarizes how much the company paid you last year and this is the number you report on your taxes as business income. The 1099 forms make it easier for you to file your taxes, but it is not required. The 1099 form also helps you verify that they reported the correct amount to the IRS. Any type of discrepancy between what you put on your taxes and what the company reports on a 1099 can lead to an audit to reconcile the difference between the 1099 and your tax filing.
For additional tax resources, check out my popular online course for Delivery Driver Taxes for Amazon Flex Drivers and Instacart Shoppers!
Amazon Flex 1099 Tax Forms
I got an email last week that outlined how to get your tax forms:
IMPORTANT TAX RETURN DOCUMENT NOW AVAILABLE
Your 2018 IRS Form 1099-MISC is now available.
To download your form electronically, follow these steps:
- Go to https://taxcentral.amazon.com
- Log in with your Amazon Flex email and password
- In the “Year-end tax forms” section, click “Find Forms”
- Click “Download”
If you did not select electronic delivery as your exclusive delivery preference, a hard copy will also be mailed to your address on file.
Have tax form questions or trouble downloading? Send an email to: 1099@amazon.com
Keep in mind that this is your 1099 from Amazon company-wide, not just for Amazon Flex. If you also have an affiliates account or seller account through Amazon, all of your earnings will be reported on this 1099. If you want more detail about Amazon Flex income, you will need to dig through your bank deposits. Amazon deposits money differently when it is coming from Amazon Flex, Amazon Affiliates and Amazon advertising.
The good thing about the Amazon Flex is that there is no commission or fees to worry about. What you see on your 1099 is what you received directly from Amazon, so the income on the 1099 is what you report on your tax returns.
The Amazon Flex 1099 form should show the same amount of net deposits you received from Amazon (Amazon Flex, Affiliates, Advertising) last year. If it does not, you should email [email protected] to fix the error since you may be audited if the IRS sees a difference, which will be harder to fix in the future.
Instacart Shopper 1099 Tax Forms
Yesterday, Payable sent an email to every Instacart shopper notifying them that their 1099 is available to view and download. Below is the email I received:
Your 1099-MISC from Instacart is here!
Instacart has completed your 2018 1099-MISC, and it is now available for you in Payable. You can access it from any device, download the PDF, and even get answers to any tax questions you may have.
View your 1099-MISC now:
View Tax Form
If you have questions about the form amounts or details, please contact Instacart at: 1099@instacart.com
The information on the Instacart 1099 form is pretty easy to read. The only box that should be filled in is box 7 under “non-employee compensation.” This should be the same as the sum of all of your deposits form Instacart last year. If the two sums don’t match, email [email protected] to have it fixed.
Delivery Driver Tax Forms
Luckily, the tax forms from delivery companies tend to be much simpler than Uber and Lyft taxes in that delivery companies do not take out fees and commission from your gross pay. This makes filing taxes a lot easier since you only have to list one number as income and then list all of your deductions.
One tip about filing delivery driver taxes is that this income is considered business income, so you cannot use the basic editions of TurboTax. You will need to get the self-employed and business edition of TurboTax to file your taxes. You cannot list this income under W2 income since it isn’t considered W2 income and if you do (which you shouldn’t and can’t), you will lose a lot of deduction options. In addition, you may get audited form the IRS since your tax filing doesn’t line up with your 1099 forms.
For additional tax resources, check out my popular online course for Delivery Driver Taxes for Amazon Flex Drivers and Instacart Shoppers!
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