First, I'll provide instructions directly replying to your questions about a 1099. Second, it sounds like you are actually an employee, so I'll include how you can decide and what you can do if you are actually an employee.
Form 1099 indicates that you are self-employed/independent contractor. In this case:
- If a business that pays you doesn't issue a form 1099-misc, it's not your responsibility to make them follow the rules.
- When you are self-employed, it is your responsibility to track all of your income and expenses. I'll include tips for re-calculating what you earned during the year, below.
Based on your question, it sounds like you might actually be an employee.
- If your employer tells you when to work, how to work, where to work, with what to work with and how to do your work. You are most definitely, an employee.
- To qualify as self-employed, there must be some autonomy to your position.
- For help more information for deciding if you are really an employee, please refer to the following IRS resource HERE.
If you think you are an employee, you can file form SS-8 with the IRS, asking them to decide if you are an employee. This isn't handled in TurboTax, but it's straight forward to complete. You can learn more about the form HERE and access the form HERE.
In either case, you should still file your taxes by the due date, April 17th, to avoid fines/penalties. To do so, you need to re-create your income.
- If you deposited checks into your bank account, then you could:
- Download all your bank statements from your online banking account (or ask your bank to provide you them if you have problems getting them from online), or
- Once you have your statements, go month-by-month and record how much your checks or deposits were.
If you don't use a bank account or you were paid in cash, you'll need to estimate your income as best you can. I'd recommend getting out spreadsheet, or just paper, and a calendar and going by month by month. Keep this for your records.
Once you have your numbers, you should file as an employee or self-employed, whichever you think is right (based on the above info). If you file as an employee, you must file the form SS-8.
To do so in TurboTax:
- As self-employed, you'll add your self-employed business under Business Income & Expenses and enter your income as 'other income'.
- As an employee, you'll enter your info on a W-2 in box 1, 3, and 5. Leave the tax boxes if you don't think taxes haven't been withheld.
- Continue
entering your W-2
- When you come to the screen that says, "Do any of these uncommon situations apply to
this W-2?" select Substitute form - I didn't get a W-2 from my
employer and need to complete a substitute form
- Answer the questions that follow. You'll file form 4852 and need to paper file your return.
