Below is a list of IRS forms you need to complete for each new employee or contractor you hire.
I suggest you do not let your new employees work until all of these forms have been completed.
For contractors, do not pay them more than $600 before their forms have been completed. I suggest you hold their contractor check until you have the paper work in hand.
For all employees and contractors I also recommend you get a photocopy of their social security card and drivers license if possible.
A well organized file cabinet and folder system to keep up with this information will save you a lot of time later. At our company we both file the paper forms and scan and attach an electronic version of the forms to our employee and contractor records within Service Autopilot.
Employee Forms:
Form I-9 (I also recommend photocopying the employees social security card)
Contractor Forms:
Form W-9 – keep on file a minimum of 4 years
Form 1099-MISC – you must file before January 31st each year for every contractor paid over $600
Request EIN – if your contractor needs an EIN number
Other Forms:
Links to Your State – to locate additional forms or research tax questions
Spanish Version of I-9 – DO NOT submit this version to the IRS. Use it only as a reference when helping Spanish speaking workers complete the English version. This is only accepted in Puerto Rico.
Spanish Version of W-9
Notes:
New Employees fill out the I-9 and W-4 and receive a W-2 at the end of the year.
New Contractors fill out the W-9 and receive a 1099 at the end of the year. Contractors do not have to complete the I-9.
In addition to the IRS forms we have each employee sign a short employee agreement and each contractor sign a contractor agreement.
We also have a short information sheet we complete for each employee (this information is also keyed into Service Autopilot). It asks for emergency contact information, drivers license expiration date, keeps up with uniforms assigned, pay rate, birth date, marital status, etc.
All of our hiring packets are pre-assembled. This makes it easy to ensure all the forms are completed on time. For example, if you hire 20 new employees / contrators each year prepare 25 packets every January. Then, when you hire someone you simply grab one of the packets.
This simple process every January will ensure you are in compliance with the IRS at all times.
Question: Do you have any information you keep up with that I didn’t mention? — please click on the post and comment at the bottom
