Authority: Form W-8BEN; Instructions for Form W-8BEN (opens in a new tab). Sources
The lessons that teach this
From the free founder back-office course, taught on one company's books, with exercises to work it yourself.
- APVendor onboarding: W-9, W-8BEN and TIN matching › Foreign vendors and the W-8BENForeign contractors give a W-8BEN, not a W-9; services performed abroad get no 1099; and the form lapses after three full calendar years.4 min
- AP1099-NEC and 1099-MISC at year end › Who gets a 1099: Northwind's vendor listNorthwind's year-end vendor list, decided one vendor at a time: classification, what was paid for, how much and how.7 min
For founders
The same idea written for a founder: what it costs a startup that ignores it, and what to do in a real month.
- Contractor or employee? Classification for startupsContractor or employee depends on control, not the contract. The IRS test, state rules, 1099s, payroll registration and the cost of getting it wrong.
- Form 1099-NEC for startups: threshold, deadline, e-filingWho gets a 1099-NEC, the new $2,000 threshold, why a W-9 comes first, what goes on a 1099-K instead, and the deadlines, penalties and state copies.
- W-9s and backup withholding: a vendor onboarding guideWhen to ask for a W-9, how IRS TIN matching works, and what happens when a vendor won’t give you one: 24% backup withholding, owed by you.
What it is not called
Each of these means something else. Use one here and an accountant reading the product notices.
- foreign W-9
- W-8 unqualified
Nearby in the catalog
No component names this concept outright. These sit in the same part of the system.
Also in Payables
Defined in Lexicon. This page is generated from that document, so the two can't disagree.