My son worked as a youth soccer referee in 2019. He worked games for a number of different leagues and tournaments but was paid by a central pay service and was issued a single 1099-MISC. For some of the games a 4% association fee was withheld from his game pay. So even though technically he had earned $1160.50 during the year, the amount reported on the 1099-MISC was only $1102.20, which was the total amount deposited into his bank account for the year.
My question is whether I should report the amount on the 1099-MISC or the amount he has technically earned. The only reason I want to report the larger amount is because he has contributed the larger amount to his Roth IRA . If I report the smaller amount, would I have to withdraw $14.30 from his Roth IRA so his contribution matches his earned income?
He has an excess Roth contribution either way. If the association had reported $1160 of gross income, he would be required to report the $58 fee as a business expense which reduces his net taxable income on schedule C. The IRS takes the position that failing to report expenses in order to show higher income and claim some tax benefit is just as improper as claiming excess expenses to show a lower income.