How to File 1099s Online for 2026 (Without a Filer Code)

There are three ways to file 2026 Forms 1099-NEC and 1099-MISC: yourself in the IRS's free IRIS portal, through a paid filing service, or through a filer like Poof. IRIS costs nothing but needs an IRS filer code (a TCC) that the IRS says can take up to 45 days, so apply this month if that is your plan. A paid service or Poof files under its own code, so you never need one. The forms are due February 1, 2027.

The old FIRE system closes for good on November 19, 2026, at 3 p.m. Eastern. Whoever filed your 1099s through FIRE last year needs a new plan this year. Here is what each option involves and what it costs.

The deadlines

January 31, 2027 is a Sunday, so the usual date moves to Monday. If you file 10 or more information returns in total, counting 1099s and W-2s together, you must file electronically. Who needs a form at all changed this year too: the threshold is now $2,000 for most payments. The 2026 threshold guide covers who still gets one.

Option 1: File yourself in the IRS's IRIS portal

The IRIS Taxpayer Portal is the IRS's own filing website. It is free, and the IRS says you can prepare and file information returns there without software or a third-party provider. It handles 1099-NEC and 1099-MISC, and you don't need a Form 1096.

What it takes:

• An IRIS Taxpayer Portal TCC. It is five characters and starts with "D". A TCC from FIRE or any other IRS system doesn't work in the portal.
• An EIN. The application doesn't accept a Social Security number or ITIN. A sole proprietor who has been filing under an SSN needs to get an EIN first.
• Time. IRS Publication 5717 says to allow up to 45 calendar days for the TCC. The IRIS FAQ says it is usually done within 24 hours but could take up to 45 days. Plan for the long end and apply now.
• Your own copies to the contractors. IRIS generates PDF copies you can download and print, up to 100 at a time, and that satisfies the requirement to furnish them. But IRIS doesn't email or mail anything. Getting each copy to each contractor by February 1 is your job.
• Limits. Up to 100 forms per submission; CSV uploads hold up to 250 records.

IRIS is the right choice if you have an EIN, file every year, and don't mind mailing or emailing the copies. It is the wrong choice if it is already January and you don't have a TCC.

Option 2: A paid filing service

A filing service files under its own TCC, so you skip the application. Most also send the contractors' copies for a fee. These are the federal e-file prices for a small filer, exactly as listed on each company's pricing page on November 2, 2026.

A few notes on reading this table:

• Prices drop with volume. Every service has lower tiers above these counts. If you file dozens of forms, look at the tier you will actually land in.
• Intuit's pricing page carries a 2025 label and doesn't name a tax year. QuickBooks includes unlimited 1099 e-filing with Contractor Payments, Payroll, and Bill Pay Premium or Elite. It isn't included with Simple Start, Essentials, or Plus.
• eFile4Biz's page doesn't say whether its e-file-only price includes any copy for the contractor.
• State filing differs. Some services file state copies through the IRS's combined federal/state program at no extra charge; others charge per form. Poof files with the IRS only. If your state wants its own copy, check how you will send it.
• Prices change. Check the page on the day you file.

What 8 contractors cost

Say you paid 8 contractors $2,000 or more in 2026, and all 8 agreed to get their copies by email.

At this size the differences are small: the paid options run from $12.45 to $34.94. Poof's total is lower here mostly because the first 3 forms are free. At higher volume, the services' lower tiers come into play, and the comparison shifts. For mailed copies, add the per-copy mail price from the table above.

The bigger cost is usually not the filing fee. It is the January week spent chasing W-9s, totaling payments, and finding out on January 28 that nobody has a TCC. The W-9 guide covers the part that takes the longest.

Option 3: Let Poof file them

Poof files your 1099s under its own TCC, whether or not you keep your books in Poof. It is one page in five steps:

1. Your business. Your legal name, EIN, address, and phone, typed once.
2. Who you paid. Type your contractors in, upload a spreadsheet, or connect your bank and pick the payments Poof finds. Poof brings in the year's payments back to January 1 and keeps them out of any books.
3. Their W-9s. One click emails every contractor a W-9 link. For anyone without an email, Poof gives you a link to text them. A board shows who's in, and Poof reminds the rest every 5 days, up to 3 times.
4. Review and approve. Every contractor, the form and box, the amount, and how their copy goes. One signature, your name, title, and "I agree", approves the forms and authorizes Poof to file them.
5. Poof files. After the year ends, Poof files 1099-NEC and 1099-MISC with the IRS, emails each contractor who agreed to it their copy, and mails the rest first-class. You get the IRS receipt by email, or exactly what to fix.

You never apply for a filer code. Poof checks each tax ID's format before it files; if you want the IRS to confirm the name and number match, its TIN Matching program through e-Services is free. Prep is free, the first 3 forms each year are free, then $2.49 a form. Emailed copies are free and mailed copies are $1.79.

Your 2026 forms are filed in January 2027, after the year ends, so the time to set this up is now, while contractors still answer email about W-9s.

Which one to pick

• You have an EIN, file every year, and have time in January: IRIS. Apply for the TCC this month.
• You already pay for QuickBooks Payroll, Contractor Payments, or Bill Pay Premium: your 1099 e-filing is already included. Use it.
• You want someone else to file and send the copies: a filing service or Poof. Compare the per-form price at your volume, what the contractor copy costs, and whether you need state filing.
• You file for clients: the rules and prices are different. See filing 1099s for your clients.

Whatever you pick, start with the list. The free 1099 vendor tracker totals each contractor by how you paid them and flags who crosses $2,000.

*General information, not tax advice; your CPA has the final word.*

*Written by Austin Semple, a former controller: two years in audit, seven running the books for small businesses, and the founder of Poof. Poof collects the W-9s, files your 1099s with the IRS under its own filer code, and sends every contractor their copy. File your 1099s with Poof: the first 3 forms each year are free.*