# Who gets a 1099: Northwind's vendor list

> Northwind's year-end vendor list, decided one vendor at a time: classification, what was paid for, how much and how.

Source: https://lopifi.com/learn/1099-nec-and-1099-misc-at-year-end/who-gets-a-1099
Part of: Lopifi — US GAAP books on autopilot, checked by a CPA (https://lopifi.com)

---

**Which vendors get a 1099 for 2026: corporations, law firms, landlords, card payments, foreign contractors?** Northwind's year-end vendor list, decided one vendor at a time: classification, what was paid for, how much and how.

Here is the list as it might stand on December 31, 2026. The drills, the insurance and the rent are in the September book; the others are illustrative. Payments made by card or through a payment network are left out of the total, because the processor reports them on [Form 1099-K](https://lopifi.com/md/glossary/form-1099-k).

| Vendor | Paid by check, ACH or wire | Paid by card | Form | Why |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Drill vendor | 18,000 | 0 | None | Payments for merchandise are not reported on a 1099-NEC or 1099-MISC. |
| Insurance carrier | 7,200 | 0 | None | Payments to a corporation are generally exempt. Legal services are the exception. |
| Landlord (an individual) | 8,000 | 0 | 1099-MISC | Paid at or above the year's threshold by check, ACH, wire or cash. |
| Freelance designer | 1,800 | 0 | None | Below the year's threshold once card payments are left out. |
| Law firm (an S corporation) | 2,500 | 0 | 1099-NEC | Paid at or above the year's threshold by check, ACH, wire or cash. |
| Bookkeeper (a single-member LLC) | 3,000 | 0 | 1099-NEC | Paid at or above the year's threshold by check, ACH, wire or cash. |
| Photographer, paid by card | 0 | 2,400 | None | Paid only by card: the processor reports it on Form 1099-K. |
| Developer in Portugal (W-8BEN) | 4,000 | 0 | None | A foreign payee on a W-8BEN, for services performed outside the US: foreign-source income, and no 1099. |

Who gets a 1099 for 2026, decided by the same function the exercise below checks against.

> “The exemption from reporting payments made to corporations does not apply to payments for legal services.”

— [Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC (Rev. December 2026), Payments to corporations](https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i1099mec), Corporations are generally exempt; law firms are not

> “Enter amounts of $2,000 or more for all types of rents, such as any of the following.”

— [Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC (Rev. December 2026), Form 1099-MISC, box 1](https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i1099mec), Rent goes on Form 1099-MISC

> “Payments for merchandise, telegrams, telephone, freight, storage, and similar items.”

— [Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC (Rev. December 2026), Payments not reported](https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i1099mec), Goods are not reported on a 1099

**Northwind — Under the line in 2026, over it in 2025.** The freelance designer was paid $1,800. In 2025 that would have needed a 1099-NEC; in 2026 it is under the line. The designer still owes tax on every dollar, Northwind still deducts it, and the W-9 still goes on file, because next year the designer may cross the threshold.

**Exercise — Which vendors get a 2026 1099?.** Northwind's vendors for 2026. Choose the form each one gets: 1099-NEC, 1099-MISC or none. Watch the payee's classification, what the payment was for, and how it was paid. Type it in the workbook at https://lopifi.com/playground.

## Where this page's rules come from

- [Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC (Rev. December 2026), Payments to corporations](https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i1099mec) — Corporations are generally exempt; law firms are not (irs)
- [Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC (Rev. December 2026), Form 1099-MISC, box 1](https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i1099mec) — Rent goes on Form 1099-MISC (irs)
- [Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC (Rev. December 2026), Payments not reported](https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i1099mec) — Goods are not reported on a 1099 (irs)
- [Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC (Rev. December 2026), Form 1099-K](https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i1099mec) — Card and payment-network payments are reported on Form 1099-K, not the NEC or MISC (irs)
- [IRC §862(a)(3)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/862) — Services performed outside the US are income from sources without the United States (statute)

## Read further

- https://lopifi.com/md/startups/form-1099-nec-for-startups
- https://lopifi.com/md/startups/contractor-vs-employee
- https://lopifi.com/md/accounting/1099-nec
- https://lopifi.com/md/accounting/form-1099-k
- https://lopifi.com/md/accounting/worker-classification

- **Track:** [Accounts payable](https://lopifi.com/md/learn/ap)
- **Part of:** [1099-NEC and 1099-MISC at year end](https://lopifi.com/md/learn/1099-nec-and-1099-misc-at-year-end) — 7 min
- **Terms taught:** [Form 1099-NEC](https://lopifi.com/md/glossary/form-1099-nec), [Form 1099-MISC](https://lopifi.com/md/glossary/form-1099-misc), [Form 1099-K](https://lopifi.com/md/glossary/form-1099-k), [Form W-8BEN](https://lopifi.com/md/glossary/form-w-8ben), [Payee](https://lopifi.com/md/glossary/payee)
- **Previous:** [1099-NEC and 1099-MISC at year end](https://lopifi.com/md/learn/1099-nec-and-1099-misc-at-year-end)
- **Next:** [Filing 1099s: deadlines, Form 1096 and IRIS](https://lopifi.com/md/learn/1099-nec-and-1099-misc-at-year-end/filing-1099s-iris-and-form-1096)
- **The course:** https://lopifi.com/md/learn