Do ai HAVE to fill out w-9 form for them???

Last weekend I painted for an organization... Not for profit. After the gig, was a little upset because when I approached the organizer to get paid, she said she would send me the check next week??

So this morning, she emailed me to email her a w-9 form to she can cut me my check... Do i have to send it to her? Arent my taxes my business? It doesnt say anywhere in my contract that i will provide that... In fact it states i will be paid upon completion, which I didn't.

Does anyone have experience in this??

Thank you in advance,
Lynne

I wish I could help you, but I have no idea. I have worked for a few corp. that required me to provide a W-9, but it was arranged well before the event. I also knew what their payment schedule was- ie. exactly when the office was going to write/mail my check. They told me all of these things durring the booking process- I didn't ask, they told me straight up front.

I told one company no that I was not willing to pay taxes on the money I made at that time because I just started. They liked my work so much and paid me cash. Its just a way for companies to keep track of who they pay and where they money goes to. You have to make a certain amount to claim monies on your taxes if you want to pay taxes on it. I have a full time 9-5 job and if I were to fill out W-9s, that income would be added to my regular yearly salary.(to my understanding) SOOOoo I was not ready to do that.

If IRS ever writes you about it. Just pay the money (taxes on it) It will be little to nothing,... if it doesnt happen often.

Sending a W-9 is a normal mode of business. Most large corporations & Not-for-Profits request them because they must keep track of every bit of money spent. You can either put down your social security number or request a tax ID number from the IRS & use that on all your W-9's(it's really easy to do). Many companies will not use you if you don't fill out a W-9 & it will lock you out of a lot of great gigs.

It shouldn't be a problem to provide a W9. It doesn't necessarily mean that the income will be reported to the IRS. If you make less than a certain amount per year you are not required to report the income anyway. Although I suggest filing, especially if you have spent much money on your business this year. (Fuel costs, training, paints, camera, printer, LOTS of deductions.) It could end up actually saving you from paying taxes that you'd have otherwise had to pay.