1096 Form

Forum|Forum|8 months ago
January 8, 2026
6 replies
391 views

The IRS say form 1096 must be printed using red ink. I don't have a color printer. With the IRS accept the 1096 form I printed using Turbo Taxes home and business software.

TurboTax Home & Biz Windows

VolvoGirl

Level 15

I don’t think it means red ink. It means it needs to be on the official red preprinted forms. Technically……You can get the red forms at office supply stores but you have to fill it out yourself. I used to go to the library to use a typewriter. Just copy the plain copy Turbo Tax prints out.

But when I had one to mail in I just mailed the Turbo Tax printout.

AmeliesUncle

Level 15

Is there a reason why you aren't e-filing your 1099s?

VolvoGirl

Level 15

In the Windows Desktop Home & Business program you can prepare them 2 ways, using Quick Employer Forms or doing them on your desktop.

If you use the built in W2/1099 reporter inside the Desktop Home & Business program you can only print and mail them. If you don't have many, you can renter it again into Quick Employer Forms so you can efile the forms to the IRS.

How to create W2s and 1099

https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/forms/help/how-do-i-create-w-2-and-1099-forms-in-turbotax/00/25869

user17679132381Author

Level 2

Thank you for all your responses. They were helpful. You asked why I don't file electronically. Clearly I should have. But of the three companies I have two only had one 1099 and it was the same as last year so it was just easy to do it that way. Unfortunately I didn't notice the error in the date - the 1096 has 2024 and not 2025. I mailed those two in already. That doen't even address the 1096 red form issue. I notice all this when I went to do the third company that has seven 1099's. I found the 2024 error then and reading more I found out about the red form issue.

At the moment I haven't done anything more with TT. I did request 1096 forms from the IRS. I have a call later today with someone from TT's presidents office.

To me the bigger issue is the wrong year on the 1096. I can't believe no one pointed this out before me. I don't understand why that hasn't been fixed. I may file electronically. It is annoying to have to reenter the information for eveyone. Thanks again. Mark