Commissions or Contract labor expenses

[TheWisdom]

Hello Experts,

I have 2 questions:

1. I paid an independent contractor thousands of dollars (she is a technician) and I don't know where to claim this expense. There are 2 places: line 10 Commissions & fees; and line 11 Contract labor. They are both for 1099-NEC independent contractors. Which one do I use?

2. Fidelity investment sent me the Form 5498 IRA Contribution Information, what do I have to do with it?

[JamesG1]

I like to report only IRS Form 1099-NEC payments under Contract Labor so that it is easy to tie the two together.  But either is acceptable.

IRS Form 5498 reports your total annual contributions to an IRA account and identifies the type of retirement account you have, such as a traditional IRA, Roth IRA, SEP IRA or SIMPLE IRA. IRS Form 5498 will also report amounts that you roll over or transfer from other types of retirement accounts into this IRA. When you claim a deduction for your IRA contributions, you should reference the amounts on the IRS Form 5498.

IRS Form 5498 is for informational purposes only. You are not required to file it with your tax return. This form is not posted until May because you can contribute to an IRA for the previous year through mid-April. This means you will have finished your taxes before you receive this form.

[TheWisdom]

Thanks!

Is there a way to deduct some investment expenses like office expenses?

[fanfare]

It - the 1099 - certainly does not go under commissions.

[TheWisdom]

I don't understand this. "... for a state refund, don't enter this here". I have a 1099-G and I don't know should I enter this here?

[DianeW777]

No, do not enter your 1099-G with your state refund information on this screen.  Instead use the steps below.

1. With your return open in TurboTax, select Income & Expenses to open the Income and expenses summary screen.
2. Scroll down to Other Common Income and select Show more.
3. Then select Start next to Refunds Received for State/Local Tax Returns. This will take you to Did you get a state or local tax refund? screen, answer Yes.
4. On the following screen, enter the info from your 1099-G and Continue.
5. If you have any other refund forms to enter, you can select + Add Another State or Local Tax Refund on the State and Local Tax Refund Summary screen. If not, select Done and answer a few more questions about your refund.
   1. Where do I enter a 1099-G for a state or local tax refund?