Am I safe from having to declare these as taxable income?

Question

I had several gigs as a freelancer that paid less than 600 dollars, while I had several gigs as a freelancer that paid more than 600 dollars but I was never sent 1099's for them nor do they have my EID or SSN... my total gross income for the year is only about 22,000... would it be dangerous to leave either or both of these types of income off my tax return?

For all but a few of these gigs I was paid by check.

Also some jobs asked me to fill out 1099 forms at the start of the job, but so far I've only received 1 1099. I moved halfway through the year and contacted those places to make sure they send my 1099's to the correct address and I still haven't received anything from them.

Answer 1

youre not required to receive a 1099 for the gigs under $600. an honest taxpayer would report at least the gigs that paid over $600 (wink wink). but honestly, the IRS has no knowledge of this income earned if you did not receive a 1099 from these places, especially if you were paid in cash.

Answer 2

You legally MUST declare all of the income, whether or not you received a 1099. Leaving any income off of your return is always dangerous. If you receive a 1099, the IRS is already aware of it. Any time there is an audit trail (those checks) it's just plain foolish to risk it.

The magic $600 requirement on filing 1099s is just to ease the administrative burden on taxpayers, it does NOT mean that unreported income is not taxable. If anyone who paid you anything is audited, the IRS will follow the money trail to see if it was claimed by someone.

Answer 3

NEVER assume anything. If you itemized deductions on your federal 2010 return and deducted state and local income taxes, you MUST claim any state and local refunds received in 2011 as income on your 2011 federal return. That's true even if you didn't receive a Form 1099-G. The 1099-G may have been lost in the mail or may be late. Or you may be in a state like MO that does not mail them out any more unless you specifically sign up for a mailed copy on line. I had to go on line to get my MO 1099-G this year.

Answer 4

call your old boss and ask for 1099