It seems the 1099 filing, emailing, and mailing to contractors is different this year?? Does e-file only send contractors hard mail copies?

I’m confused about what I just did. I chose efile only (just the basics) because I didn’t want to pay for a subscription.  But, now I don’t know if copies were mailed or emailed to my contractors like previous years. If I look at my filings it says submitted and mailed, but I’ve no way to know if QuickBooks will mail on my behalf or it’s assuming I mailed hard copies myself?  Frustrating. 

Let me ease your confusion, @Shane_d.

When e-filing in QuickBooks Online (QBO), the program will automatically submit the mentioned forms for you and you'll have to option to let your contractors view and print their 1099s. When in the process of e-filing 1099s, you're prompted to choose the delivery option for your contractor's copies, however, if you don't see this option, you've already opted to provide your contractors' online access to their 1099s when you added them to QuickBooks. You can confirm with your contractors if they've already received the email.

You can also utilize this article to know more about e-file in QBO: Get answers to your 1099 questions.

Additionally, should you need to print your 1099s for future purposes, feel free to browse through this article to know how: Print your 1099 and 1096 forms.

You can always get back here if you've got further questions with regard to e-filing 1099s in QuickBooks Online. I'm always here to assist you thoroughly. Take care and have a great day!

Thanks for the input.  I’m still not certain what happened.  It seems that in order to have options for delivery method to your contractors, the new subscription service was required. Otherwise, e-file only was the only option other than manual printing and mailing. That was different from last year. No subscription requirement was a part of the process previously, and those delivery options were presented as a part of filing 1099s for a small fee without having to go to the office depot for a pack of 50 or worry about them being sold out in smaller quantities. It was super very convenient. Because that method was gone this year, I chose the e-file only method thinking that maybe I would get some option to verify email addresses and select delivery options, but none were offered. I then went forward with the subscription thinking I had to do it only to pay my prorated month and then be told I had nothing to file. I don’t know that a direct deposit feature is worth the monthly fee for a handful of contractors, but now that I’ve subscribed, I’ll probably look into it further. When I view my filings that were done through the e-file only, it says submitted and mailed to the contractors. That was the part that I was unsure about because it gave me no indication it was included nor address verification during the process if that was happening. I was able to download the PDF versions of the 1099s and email them out to my contractors directly. I contacted one of them to be on the lookout for a hardcopy being mailed from QuickBooks, but they did not receive any emails about signing up to view online.

I hear your sentiments and can see how it impacts your experience, @Shane_d. Let me share some info about our delivery method and how your contractors access their copies.

As mentioned by my colleague above, the availability of delivery options depends on how you set up your contractors in the program. If you opted-in to provide your contractors' online access to their 1099s, then the said delivery method won’t show up during filing. Otherwise, you can choose how you want to send their 1099 copies.

Once you set up or enroll in E-File & E-Pay to electronically file and pay your payroll taxes in QuickBooks, we take care of everything for you. This includes sending your contractors a copy. Please know that after the form is submitted to the IRS, your contractors will get an email when it's ready for download. 1099s should be postmarked to contractors by January 31. See this guide to learn more: Understand how contractors get their 1099s.

When that day comes, they can view or print their forms. They just need to select the link in the email to sign in. Then, let them click the Clients menu and Forms to get a copy.

You can read these resources to learn how to print and make corrections after you e-filed them:

• Print your 1099 and 1096 forms
• Correct or change 1099s in QuickBooks

You can get back to this thread anytime if you need further assistance with your payroll forms. Just let me know by adding a comment below. I’ll be here. Always take care!

I didn’t opt in or sign up for anything.  In previous years any contractors paid throughout the years would appear on a review page before finally submitting the 1099s. On that page I could verify all addresses and emails, and then submit and pay a fee depending on how many contractors were processed. They would get an email and a mailed copy which was made clear and assured within the filing process.  As long as I completed before the deadline it was a seamless process.  This year I faced much ambiguity. I felt forced down a subscription path and the “E file only” option appeared to be stripped of other services (“just the basics”) which I enjoyed in previous years, such as the review screen with the emails and addresses and the assurance that contractors received both. I’ve resolved this on own by emailing the pdfs directly and will follow up with my contractors, but my sentiment is unfavorable, unsatisfied, and unresolved regarding the new pigeon hole filing process as well as the answers supplied within this forum. 

I have the same issue as Shane and you did not adequately answer his question. I have QBO but do not have payroll and did not sign up for Contractor payment or direct deposit for them. I selected e-file only and in the Contractors Copy column it says "Mailed". What does that mean? Did Intuit send the 1099's by mail, email or do we have to print out and mail each one? It is not clear.

Same! I e-filed through QBO on Jan 22 as in prior years, and my contractors haven't received an email or mailed copy though the 1099 filings screen indicates both under the recipient's copy column and has since Jan 23. Frustrating. 

Hi sgeisler,

It isn't the kind of experience we want you to come across.

If it's been over a month since the 1099 forms were submitted, I suggest reaching out to our payroll support team. One of the agents has tools that can check your account to verify the status.

You can contact them through the ? Help icon. 

Furthermore, I've added here an article that has detailed instructions when filing 1099s: General Instructions for Information Returns.

I'm always around whenever you have payroll concerns.