Does an S corp get a 1099? Generally, no

The rule

A business that pays you for services generally reports it on Form 1099-NEC. But the IRS instructions list payments that don’t need one, and the first is: generally, payments to a corporation, including an LLC that is treated as a C or S corporation. The same exception applies to Form 1099-MISC.

So once your business has elected S status, a client paying the business generally doesn’t owe you a 1099. Some will send one anyway. Your income is the same either way: the S corporation reports all of its income on its own return, whether or not a 1099 arrived.

The exceptions

Some payments to corporations must still be reported:

• Attorneys’ fees, on Form 1099-NEC. A law firm gets a 1099 even if it is a corporation.
• Payments by a federal executive agency for services, on Form 1099-NEC.
• Medical and health care payments, on Form 1099-MISC, box 6.
• Gross proceeds paid to an attorney, on Form 1099-MISC, box 10.

Tell your clients: Form W-9

Clients learn how your business is taxed from Form W-9, which they ask you to fill out. It has a box for the tax classification: individual or sole proprietor, C corporation, S corporation or partnership. After the election takes effect, give clients an updated W-9 that shows S corporation.

Your own pay: Form W-2

The salary your S corporation pays you is wages, and wages paid to employees are reported on Form W-2, not a 1099. Your share of the profit reaches your own return through the Schedule K-1 from Form 1120-S.

The 1099s your S corporation sends

Your S corporation may pay others: a contractor, a freelancer, a landlord. For tax years beginning after 2025, the minimum threshold for reporting many of those payments rose to $2,000, and it may be adjusted for inflation starting in 2027. The same corporation exception applies to your payments: a contractor that is itself a corporation generally doesn’t get one, except in the cases above.

Sources

• Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC (Rev. December 2026)
• Form W-9 (Rev. March 2024)
• Shareholder’s Instructions for Schedule K-1 (Form 1120-S) (2025)

Every figure was read on an official page and checked a second time. Checked October 24, 2026. How we check facts.

An explanation of public rules, not tax advice.