If you paid a contractor, a freelancer, or anyone who did work for your business this year, November is the right time to get your records in order. Waiting until January is how forms get rushed, names get spelled wrong, and deadlines get missed.
The rules changed for payments made in 2026, and a lot of owners in Joliet and across Will County have not heard yet.
The New $2,000 Rule for Form 1099 NEC in Illinois
For years, the line was $600. If your business paid a person $600 or more for services during the year, you had to send a Form 1099 NEC.
For payments made in 2026, that line is now $2,000. If your business paid one contractor $2,000 or more for services during 2026, you report those payments on a Form 1099 NEC. If you paid that same person less than $2,000 for the year, you do not need to send the form for 2026.
The total is what matters, not each payment by itself. Ten small payments that add up to $2,000 or more count the same as one large payment.
One warning. The old $600 line still applies to payments made in 2025 and earlier years. If you are fixing a late form for an older year, do not use the new number.
Who Should Get a Form 1099 NEC From Your Business
Think about the people your business paid for work, not for products. A repair person who fixed your shop. A designer. A cleaning service. A bookkeeper. If they are not your employee and your business paid them for services, they may belong on your list.
Most corporations do not receive this form, but there is an important exception. Payments for legal services can still need reporting even when the law office is set up as a corporation. Rent is different too. Rent usually belongs on a Form 1099 MISC, not on a Form 1099 NEC.
And please remember this part. A person who earned less than $2,000 and does not receive a form still owes tax on that income. The $2,000 line only decides whether your business has to file the form. It does not make the income free of tax.
What Joliet Owners Should Do Before February 1, 2027
Start with a simple list. Go through your bank account and your payment apps and write down every contractor your business paid in 2026, how much each person received in total, and what the work was.
Next, make sure you have the correct legal name, address, and tax identification number for each person on that list. Ask each contractor to fill out the IRS information form. If you missed that step, ask now, not in January.
Then check your books. Payments for goods alone, like inventory or supplies, do not belong on a Form 1099 NEC.
For 2026 payments, the forms are due to the contractor and to the IRS on Monday, February 1, 2027, because January 31 falls on a Sunday.
If your contractor list is a mess, or you are not sure who belongs on it, bring us your payment records and we will sort it out with you, person by person. Free consultation. In office Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Appointments available other days. Call (773) 360-8230 or visit us at 1256 West Jefferson Street, Suite 207, Joliet, IL.
