What each form is, who sends it, when it shows up and what to do with it. Every form links to the IRS's own page, so the current version and instructions are always one click away.
Shows what you were paid last year and what was already withheld for federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare (plus state tax, if any). Box 1 is usually lower than your salary because pre-tax 401(k) contributions and health premiums come out first. Box 12 codes show things like 401(k) contributions (code D) and HSA contributions (code W).
What to do with it: You need one from every employer you worked for during the year. Check your name, Social Security number and totals against your last pay stub before you file.
Tells your employer how much federal income tax to take out of each paycheck. It stays with your employer. It doesn't go to the IRS and isn't part of your return.
What to do with it: A big refund means too much was withheld all year. A big bill means too little was. Update it after a marriage, a baby, a second job or new side income. The IRS Tax Withholding Estimator helps you fill it in.
Shows the health coverage your employer offered you during the year.
What to do with it: Nothing to file and nothing to enter. Keep it with your tax records.
Gives a business your name, address and Social Security number (or EIN) so it can send you a 1099. It doesn't go to the IRS.
What to do with it: Only send it to someone you know is paying you. It contains your Social Security number, and a surprise W-9 request by email is a common scam.
Reports what a business paid you for work when you weren't its employee, so no tax was withheld. For payments made in 2026 and later, businesses generally send one once they've paid you $2,000 or more in the year. Through 2025 the threshold was $600.
What to do with it: The income is taxable whether or not you get a form. It goes on Schedule C, and you also owe self-employment tax on the profit.
Reports payments you received for selling goods or services. Apps and marketplaces send one when your payments top $20,000 and 200 transactions in a year. Card processors report payments of any amount.
What to do with it: The total isn't all profit. Selling your own used stuff for less than you paid usually isn't taxable, and money from friends and family (splitting dinner, a gift) isn't income and shouldn't be on a 1099-K. Keep records of what you originally paid for anything you sold.
Catches income that isn't pay for work: rents, prizes and awards, royalties of $10 or more, and other income. The $2,000 threshold applies here too for payments made in 2026 and later.
What to do with it: Each box goes to a different place on your return, which is why tax software asks what the payment was for.
Where a freelancer, sole proprietor or single-member LLC reports business income and subtracts business expenses. The result is your business profit.
What to do with it: Only business expenses count, and any personal use has to be carved out. This is where the "write it off" myths fall apart.
Figures the Social Security and Medicare tax on self-employment profit. Since no employer pays half, you pay both halves: a combined 15.3% (12.4% Social Security up to a yearly wage cap, plus 2.9% Medicare), applied to about 92% of your profit.
What to do with it: Half of the tax is deductible. Set money aside as you earn it, because nothing is withheld.
How you pay tax during the year on freelance, investment or other income that nothing is withheld from.
What to do with it: Generally needed if you expect to owe $1,000 or more when you file. Paying late can bring an underpayment penalty even if you pay in full by April. If you also have a day job, raising your W-4 withholding can cover it instead.
Reports interest you earned, generally when it's $10 or more. Interest from a high-yield savings account or CD is taxed as ordinary income in the year it's earned, even if you never withdraw it. Interest on U.S. Treasury bills, notes and bonds is exempt from state income tax.
What to do with it: Report all interest, including small amounts that didn't come with a form.
Reports dividends and capital gain distributions. Qualified dividends (box 1b) are taxed at the lower long-term capital gains rates. Ordinary dividends are taxed like wages. Index funds pay dividends even if you never sell a share.
What to do with it: Reinvested dividends are still taxable in a regular brokerage account. Inside an IRA or 401(k) you won't get one.
Reports investments you sold: what you got, what you paid (your cost basis), and whether you held them more than a year. Gains on investments held more than a year get lower long-term rates.
What to do with it: Brokerages often send corrected forms into March, so wait until the consolidated 1099 is final before you file. Sales go on Form 8949 and Schedule D.
Reports money that came out of a retirement account, including rollovers and Roth conversions. The code in box 7 tells the IRS what kind of distribution it was (code G, for example, is a direct rollover).
What to do with it: A 1099-R doesn't always mean tax is owed: a direct rollover usually isn't taxable. Withdrawals before age 59½ are usually taxed plus a 10% penalty, with exceptions.
Reports IRA contributions (including ones made by the April deadline for the prior year), rollovers, Roth conversions and the account's year-end value.
What to do with it: You don't need it to file. It's a record, so check that it matches what you reported.
Tracks after-tax money (your "basis") in traditional IRAs and reports Roth conversions. It's the form behind a "backdoor Roth."
What to do with it: Skipping it can mean paying tax twice on the same money later. Keep a copy of every year's 8606.
Reports money you took out of a health savings account.
What to do with it: Withdrawals for qualified medical expenses are tax-free. You show that on Form 8889, so keep your receipts.
Reports HSA contributions for the year and the account's value.
What to do with it: It's a record. Contributions made through payroll also show on your W-2 in box 12, code W.
Reports HSA contributions, figures your deduction, and shows that withdrawals went to medical costs.
What to do with it: Required even if all your contributions came through payroll.
Reports withdrawals from a 529 plan. It goes to whoever received the money: the account owner or the student.
What to do with it: Withdrawals spent on qualified education costs are tax-free. Earnings on other withdrawals are taxed plus a 10% penalty, with exceptions. Match withdrawals to tuition and other expenses in the same year.
Reports tuition paid or billed and any scholarships or grants.
What to do with it: Used to claim the American Opportunity or Lifetime Learning credit. Expenses paid with tax-free 529 money can't also be used for a credit.
Reports mortgage interest you paid ($600 or more), and often property taxes and points.
What to do with it: It only lowers your taxes if you itemize deductions, and most people take the standard deduction instead.
Reports student loan interest you paid ($600 or more).
What to do with it: You may be able to deduct up to $2,500 of student loan interest without itemizing, if your income is under the limit.
Shows your Marketplace coverage, premiums and any premium tax credit paid in advance.
What to do with it: You need it to file Form 8962 and reconcile the credit. Don't file your return without it.
Reports canceled debt. Forgiven debt is generally taxable income.
What to do with it: There are exceptions, including insolvency and bankruptcy, which are claimed on Form 982. Check that the amount is right.
Reports unemployment compensation and state or local tax refunds.
What to do with it: Unemployment is taxable federally. A state tax refund is taxable only if you deducted state taxes by itemizing the year before.
Reports larger gambling winnings and any tax withheld. The reporting threshold depends on the type of game.
What to do with it: All gambling winnings are taxable, with or without a W-2G. Losses count only if you itemize, only up to your winnings, and starting in 2026 only 90% of losses count.
The main return. Every W-2, 1099 and schedule on this page feeds into it. People 65 and older can use Form 1040-SR, which has larger print.
What to do with it: Wait until every form has arrived, including corrected brokerage forms, before you file.
Gives you six more months, to mid-October, to file your return.
What to do with it: It extends the time to file, not the time to pay. Estimate what you owe and pay it by April to avoid penalties and interest.
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Federal forms only; your state may have its own. Thresholds and dates are the general rules for tax year 2026, and the IRS page for each form has the details for your situation. This is general education, not tax advice. Have a money question instead? Try the FAQ or the glossary.