How to Order IRS Form 1096: Deadlines, Filing, and Penalties

To order IRS Form 1096, request the official scannable version directly from the IRS through its online form-ordering page, or buy genuine Copy A forms from an approved office supply retailer or tax software vendor. You cannot print a usable Form 1096 from the PDF on the IRS website. The official form is produced on special paper with red ink that IRS processing equipment reads, and a downloaded copy will not scan. The IRS states directly on the PDF that filing a printed version may trigger a penalty.¹

Ordering Forms Directly From the IRS

The IRS takes orders through its “Order Paper Information Returns and Employer Returns” page. Delivery takes about 15 business days, and orders placed early in filing season often run longer because demand spikes.² If the forms for the tax year you need have not yet been printed when you order, the IRS may hold your whole order until they are ready. Order well ahead of your deadline.

The same scannable-form rule applies to Copy A of every information return that Form 1096 transmits — the 1099 series, 1098s, 5498s, and W-2Gs. Order those at the same time. The recipient copies and your file copies can be printed normally; only the IRS copy has to be the official red-ink version.

Buying Official Forms From Third Parties

Office supply retailers and tax software providers sell IRS-approved forms. Confirm the pack is labeled as Copy A intended for IRS submission before you buy. Any form the IRS scanner cannot read counts as an incorrect filing, and the penalty for that is the same as for filing late.

Do You Actually Need Form 1096?

Most filers no longer do. Starting with returns filed on or after January 1, 2024, anyone submitting 10 or more information returns in a year must file electronically. The threshold aggregates across form types: four 1098s plus six 1099-As is 10, and all of them must be e-filed.³ Electronic filers do not use Form 1096 at all.

Form 1096 applies only when you file fewer than 10 information returns for the year and are submitting them on paper. If you cross the 10-return threshold and file paper anyway without an approved waiver, the penalty runs up to $340 per return on the returns above the threshold.³ A hardship waiver is available through Form 8508 filed at least 45 days before your returns are due, and first-time requests are granted automatically.⁴

If you would rather skip paper altogether, the IRS accepts electronic information returns through both the older FIRE system and the newer IRIS platform. FIRE is scheduled for retirement after the 2027 filing season.⁵

Filling Out the Form Once It Arrives

Form 1096 is short. Enter your business name, address, and contact information, plus either your EIN or your SSN, not both. Sole proprietors and nominees who do not otherwise need an EIN use their SSN; everyone else uses the EIN.³

Three summary boxes do the substantive work: the total number of returns you are transmitting, the total dollar amount reported across them, and, in Box 4, total federal income tax withheld. For many common forms, including the 1099-NEC, Box 4 is zero.³

One Form 1096 transmits one type of information return. If you are sending both 1099-NECs and 1099-DIVs, prepare two separate 1096s, one for each type. Bundling different return types under a single 1096 is among the most common errors the IRS flags.⁶

Someone with authority has to sign: an officer for a corporation, a partner for a partnership, the owner for a sole proprietorship, or the fiduciary for an estate or trust. An authorized representative can sign in any of these roles.⁷

Mailing the Batch

Place Form 1096 on top of the Copy A returns it covers. Do not staple, tape, or paper-clip the pages together. Anything binding them interferes with scanning.⁶

The IRS routes paper information returns to one of three submission processing centers — Austin, Kansas City, or Ogden — based on your principal business location or legal residence. Look up your state on the IRS “Where to File Form 1096” page and use the exact address listed there.⁸ Filers located outside the United States use the Austin address.⁶

USPS Certified Mail establishes proof of mailing. If you use a private carrier, only specific service levels from DHL Express, FedEx, and UPS qualify as IRS-designated private delivery services; standard ground shipping does not.⁹

Deadlines

Form 1096 is due on the same date as the returns it transmits.

Form 1099-NEC: January 31, whether paper or electronic. For 2026, January 31 is a Saturday, so the deadline moves to February 2, 2026.¹⁰
Most other information returns (1099-MISC, 1098, and similar): February 28 on paper, March 31 if e-filed.¹⁰
Form 5498: June 1, 2026, because May 31 is a Sunday.

Plan your order around the 15-business-day delivery window. Missing a deadline triggers per-return penalties immediately.

Penalties for Using the Wrong Form

Penalties are assessed per return, not per Form 1096, and they apply equally to late filings and incorrect filings. Submitting a return on a non-scannable form counts as incorrect, so does bundling two types of return under one 1096. The 2026 amounts are:¹¹

Up to 30 days late: $60 per return.
31 days late through August 1: $130 per return.
After August 1, or not filed at all: $340 per return.
Intentional disregard: $680 per return or 10% of the amount required to be reported, whichever is greater, with no maximum.

The penalty clock runs from the original due date, not from when you notice the mistake. A small business — one with average annual gross receipts of $5 million or less over the three preceding tax years — gets lower annual caps: $239,000, $683,000, and $1,366,000 across the three tiers. Larger filers face caps of $683,000, $2,049,000, and $4,098,500.⁶

Given that the scannable-form requirement itself can trigger those penalties, the cost of ordering official forms early is trivial next to the cost of filing on a form the IRS cannot read.

1
Internal Revenue Service. Form 1096, Annual Summary and Transmittal of U.S. Information Returns
2
Internal Revenue Service. Order Paper Information Returns and Employer Returns
3
Internal Revenue Service. General Instructions for Certain Information Returns (2025)
4
Internal Revenue Service. Application for a Waiver from Electronic Filing of Information Returns
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Internal Revenue Service. Filing Information Returns Electronically (FIRE)
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Internal Revenue Service. 2025 General Instructions for Certain Information Returns
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Internal Revenue Service. About Form 1096, Annual Summary and Transmittal of U.S. Information Returns
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Internal Revenue Service. Where to File Form 1096
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Internal Revenue Service. Private Delivery Services (PDS)
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Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC (04/2025)
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Internal Revenue Service. Information Return Penalties