Where the template comes from
Sign in to the IRIS Taxpayer Portal, choose to upload a CSV with form data, and download the blank 1099-NEC template. IRIS checks the header row of your upload against that template, so keep the header exactly as it is: same columns, same order, same wording. The column names below are the ones in the IRS's published formatting guidelines for IRIS CSV files.
Use one file per form type and per payer, and keep each file to 100 forms or fewer.
Publication 1220 amount codes to 1099-NEC boxes
In a FIRE file, each payee (B) record holds up to 18 payment amounts, numbered 1–9 and A–J. Which box each one belongs to depends on the form, and the codes don't always line up with box numbers.
| Pub 1220 amount code | IRIS 1099-NEC column |
|---|---|
| 1 | Box 1 - Nonemployee Compensation |
| 4 | Box 4 - Federal income tax withheld |
Formatting that trips people up
- Amounts are dollars, not cents. A FIRE file stores $1,500.00 as
000000150000. In the CSV it's1500or1500.00. - Leave unused amounts blank. An empty cell, not a zero.
- Names are split. FIRE has one name line; IRIS wants first, middle, last and suffix for people, or a business name line for companies. The FIRE name control (the first four letters of the last name) tells you where the surname starts.
- Address lines are 35 characters at most. Longer FIRE address lines have to be split between Address Line 1 and Line 2.
- TIN type has to be stated. SSN, ITIN, ATIN or EIN, which FIRE only partly records.
- Corrections don't go in this template. Corrected (G or C) records are made in the IRIS portal itself.
All 54 columns, in order
| # | Column | From a FIRE file |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Form Type | |
| 2 | Tax Year | |
| 3 | Payer TIN Type | |
| 4 | Payer Taxpayer ID Number | |
| 5 | Payer Name Type | |
| 6 | Payer Business or Entity Name Line 1 | |
| 7 | Payer Business or Entity Name Line 2 | |
| 8 | Payer First Name | |
| 9 | Payer Middle Name | |
| 10 | Payer Last Name (Surname) | |
| 11 | Payer Suffix | |
| 12 | Payer Country | |
| 13 | Payer Address Line 1 | |
| 14 | Payer Address Line 2 | |
| 15 | Payer City/Town | |
| 16 | Payer State/Province/Territory | |
| 17 | Payer ZIP/Postal Code | |
| 18 | Payer Phone Type | |
| 19 | Payer Phone | |
| 20 | Recipient TIN Type | |
| 21 | Recipient Taxpayer ID Number | |
| 22 | Recipient Name Type | |
| 23 | Recipient Business or Entity Name Line 1 | |
| 24 | Recipient Business or Entity Name Line 2 | |
| 25 | Recipient First Name | |
| 26 | Recipient Middle Name | |
| 27 | Recipient Last Name (Surname) | |
| 28 | Recipient Suffix | |
| 29 | Recipient Country | |
| 30 | Recipient Address Line 1 | |
| 31 | Recipient Address Line 2 | |
| 32 | Recipient City/Town | |
| 33 | Recipient State/Province/Territory | |
| 34 | Recipient ZIP/Postal Code | |
| 35 | Office Code | |
| 36 | Form Account Number | |
| 37 | 2nd TIN Notice | |
| 38 | Box 1 - Nonemployee Compensation | Amount code 1 |
| 39 | Box 2 - Payer made direct sales totaling $5,000 or more of consumer products to a recipient for resale | |
| 40 | Box 3 - Excess golden parachute payments | |
| 41 | Box 4 - Federal income tax withheld | Amount code 4 |
| 42 | Combined Federal/State Filing (CF/SF) Check all states that apply. | |
| 43 | State 1 | |
| 44 | State 1 - State Tax Withheld | |
| 45 | State 1 - State/Payer state number | |
| 46 | State 1 - State income | |
| 47 | State 1 - Local income tax withheld | |
| 48 | State 1 - Special Data Entries | |
| 49 | State 2 | |
| 50 | State 2 - State Tax Withheld | |
| 51 | State 2 - State/Payer state number | |
| 52 | State 2 - State income | |
| 53 | State 2 - Local income tax withheld | |
| 54 | State 2 - Special Data Entries |
Doing it by hand, or not
For a handful of forms, typing them straight into the IRIS portal is quickest. For more, you can fill this template in a spreadsheet using the tables above. If your accounting software only exports a Publication 1220 file, my FIRE to IRIS converter does the mapping, name splitting and file splitting for you, in your browser, so the SSNs in the file are never uploaded.
This page describes file formats, not tax rules. Check what belongs on each form with the IRS instructions or your tax professional.