2020 Form 1096 Instructions

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Table of Contents

General Instructions
Specific Instructions

Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless otherwise noted.

Future Developments. top For the latest information about developments related to Form 1096, such as legislation enacted after it was published, go to www.irs.gov/Form1096.

Reminder. top The only acceptable method of electronically filing information returns listed on this form in box 6 with the IRS is through the FIRE system. See Pub. 1220.

Purpose of form. top Use this form to transmit paper Forms 1097, 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, 5498, and W-2G to the IRS.

Caution: If you are required to file 250 or more information returns of any one type, you must file electronically. If you are required to file electronically but fail to do so, and you do not have an approved waiver, you may be subject to a penalty. For more information, see part F in the 2020 General Instructions for Certain Information Returns.

Forms 1099-QA and 5498-QA can be filed on paper only, regardless of the number of returns.

Who must file. top Any person or entity who files any of the forms shown in line 6 above must file Form 1096 to transmit those forms to the IRS.

Enter the filer's name, address (including room, suite, or other unit number), and taxpayer identification number (TIN) in the spaces provided on the form. The name, address, and TIN of the filer on this form must be the same as those you enter in the upper left area of Forms 1097, 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, 5498, or W-2G.

When to file. top File Form 1096 as follows.

Where To File top

Send all information returns filed on paper with Form 1096 to the following.

If your principal business, office or agency, or legal residence in the case of an individual, is located in ▼ Use the following three-line address ▼
Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware,
Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maine,
Massachusetts, Mississippi, New
Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico,
New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas,
Vermont, Virginia
Internal Revenue Service
Austin Submission Processing Center
P.O. Box 149213
Austin, TX 78741
Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho,
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas,
Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri,
Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North
Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South
Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee,
Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming
Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service Center
P.O. Box 219256
Kansas City, MO 64121-9256
California, Connecticut, District of
Columbia, Louisiana, Maryland,
Pennsylvania, Rhode Island,
West Virginia
Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service Center
Ogden, UT 84201
If your legal residence or principal place of business is outside the United States, file with the Internal Revenue Service, Austin Submission Processing Center, P.O. Box 149213, Austin, TX 78741.

Transmitting to the IRS. top Group the forms by form number and transmit each group with a separate Form 1096. For example, if you must file both Forms 1098 and 1099-A, complete one Form 1096 to transmit your Forms 1098 and another Form 1096 to transmit your Forms 1099-A. You need not submit original and corrected returns separately. Do not send a form (1099, 5498, etc.) containing summary (subtotal) information with Form 1096. Summary information for the group of forms being sent is entered only in boxes 3, 4, and 5 of Form 1096.

Box 1 or 2. top Enter you TIN in either box 1 or 2, not both. Individuals not in a trade or business must enter their social security number (SSN) in box 2. Sole proprietors and all others must enter their employer identification number (EIN) in box 1. However, sole proprietors who do not have an EIN must enter their SSN in box 2. Use the same EIN or SSN on Form 1096 that you use on Form 1097, 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, 5498, or W-2G.

Box 3. top Enter the number of forms you are transmitting with this Form 1096. Do not include blank or voided forms or the Form 1096 in your total. Enter the number of correctly completed forms, not the number of pages, being transmitted. For example, if you send one page of three-to-a-page Forms 1098-E with a Form 1096 and you have correctly completed two Forms 1098-E on that page, enter "2" in box 3 of Form 1096.

Box 4. top Enter the total federal income tax withheld shown on the forms being transmitted with this Form 1096.

Box 5. top No entry is required if you are filing Form 1098-T, 1099-A, or 1099-G. For all other forms in the listing that follows, enter the total of the amounts from the specific boxes identified for each form.

Form W-2G Box 1
Form 1097-BTC Box 1
Form 1098 Boxes 1 and 6
Form 1098-C Box 4c
Form 1098-E Box 1
Form 1098-F Box 1
Form 1098-Q Box 4
Form 1099-B Boxes 1d and 13
Form 1099-C Box 2
Form 1099-CAP Box 2
Form 1099-DIV Boxes 1a, 2a, 3, 9, 10 and 11
Form 1099-INT Boxes 1, 3, 8, 10, 11, and 13
Form 1099-K Box 1a
Form 1099-LS Box 1
Form 1099-LTC Boxes 1 and 2
Form 1099-MISC Boxes 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, and 13
Form 1099-NEC Box 1
Form 1099-OID Boxes 1, 2, 5, 6, and 8
Form 1099-PATR Boxes 1, 2, 3, and 5
Form 1099-Q Box 1
Form 1099-QA Box 1
Form 1099-R Box 1
Form 1099-S Box 2
Form 1099-SA Box 1
Form 1099-SB Boxes 1 and 2
Form 3921 Boxes 3 and 4
Form 3922 Boxes 3, 4, and 5
Form 5498 Boxes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 12b, 13a, and 14a
Form 5498-ESA Boxes 1 and 2
Form 5498-QA Boxes 1 and 2
Form 5498-SA Box 1

Corrected returns. top For information about filing corrections, see the 2020 General Instructions for Certain Information Returns. Originals and corrections of the same type of return can be submitted using one Form 1096.