I am a breeder who sold a puppy to a customer who is requesting a w-9

[sherrims]

I sold a puppy to a customer who 3 days later put the pup to sleep.  She said she owns a business and is requiring a w-9 from us with my ein or ssn.  $350 of the purhcase was on paypal for deposit and the remainder was cash, which I claim on taxe

Am I required to provide that to her for the purchase of a puppy? 

[Critter]

You did not work for her or her business in any capacity so you are not required to fill in a W-9 or is she required to send you a 1099.   What is her business?  Is it a pet store ?   Sadly it sounds like she is trying to justify a personal expense as a business one. 

You simply sold her a puppy which is no different than any other business supply would be for instance paper or ink.  You should have issued her a receipt for the purchase ... part of the receipt came from Paypal and the rest you should have sent her some kind of invoice. 

[Carl]

I am assuming you are self-employed and in the business of selling animals. This means that all of your business income and associated business expenses are reported on SCH C as a physical part of your personal 1040 tax return. That is, unless your business is set up as something other than a single member LLC or sole proprietorship. So yes you are required to provide the W-9.  But you are ***NOT*** required to provide them your SSN and I recommend you never under any circumstances do so. Instead, provide them your business EIN. If you don't yet have an EIN for your business then you can get one in about 10 minutes and it's absolutely free. Just go to https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/apply-for-an-employer-identification-n... and work it through.

You can get a blank IRS Form W-9 at https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw9.pdf

FInally, if this particular customer of yours has paid you *LESS* that $600 during the entire tax year, then they are not required to issue you a 1099-MISC and have absolutely no legal need for your business EIN. But there's really nothing wrong with them requesting it, or you providing it to them. For amounts less than $600 while the 1099-MISC is not required, it is still optional. When they issue you the 1099-MISC the income they paid to you for the entire tax year should be reported in box 7. But if it's in box 3 that's fine too.

[Critter]

Short answer ... it will not hurt you either way because the income was already reported on your return. 

[Critter]

Read the 1099-misc requirements ... nowhere does the purchase of personal items or inventory require a 1099.  Her proof of payment is in the receipt you gave them ... and in your case you also had a contract.   I would point out these rules to her in response to her request.  I would also be cautious as this may be the start of a legal proceeding. 

https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/am-i-required-to-file-a-form-1099-or-o...

[sherrims]

Thanks Critter, our signed contract served as our receipt but our customer reported us to BBB for not providing our tax ID :( 

I thought it seemed odd but I want to be sure before I send our EIN

[sherrims]

Thank you Carl, for the links and information.  That's clear and makes good sense, Monday I'll get that EIN and get it to our customer. TY

[sherrims]

Agreed on the legal proceedings. This customer notified the AKC, county animal control, dept of justice, and bbb before contacting us and all cases have been investigated and closed.  We're keeping all of our documentation, thank you. I'll do more research on the 1099-Misc and 1099-K. ... and get that EIN Monday to protect my ssn. TY

[Critter]

What does the BBB have to do with a tax ID number unless your state requires it for sales tax collection ... if you are a sole proprietor you are not required to have one and no one can force you do get one ... however if having one will fix the issue you currently have then they are free and fast to obtain.