The IRS addressed this subject prior to the reintroduction of the 1099-NEC. If I understood correctly, the swag bags made available to celebrities were treated as taxable income as the items were not truly given as gifts (ie, in admiration, with no ulterior motive). I cannot find anywhere that discusses this subject post-reintroduction. If a celebrity accepts one of these bags now, is it reportable as MISC or NEC?
My assumption is that that particular scenario is MISC. NEC is for independent contractors, correct? IRS says this about ICs: "The general rule is that an individual is an independent contractor if the payer has the right to control or direct only the result of the work and not what will be done and how it will be done." To me, independent contractor implies a legally binding contract between a company and another party that enables the company to sue if the party does not fulfill some obligation. Celebrities aren't required to talk about the things they receive in the swag bags - they may choose to do so if they feel strongly one way or the other about if things are good or bad, but they're not obligated to. Those items received could be solely for personal use and the company can't do a thing about it - there's no contract stating that celebrities will do so in exchange for promotion.
