Breaking Down Recent Changes and Compliance Issues Involving Forms W-8 and W-9

Author: Steven D. Mercatante

Per the IRS Education Provider Standards this course must be COMPLETED by 12/31/2028 to receive credits. NOTE: Go to My Professional Profile in your CCH CPELink account settings to ensure your name, and PTIN number; matches your PTIN card

IRS Forms W-8 and W-9 require organizations like yours to collect very specific information about your payees. Besides regulating withholding, payers must make sure that the forms are current, complete and accurate. How can you ensure a proper form that will not subject your company to penalties, interest or tax?

In this course, industry expert and corporate tax attorney Steven D. Mercatante Esq. takes a look some of the more common problems experienced by CPA’s, accounts payable, and tax departments related documenting and validating payee information using the IRS Forms W-8 and W-9. He not only identifies the issues, but offers solutions and best-practices for addressing them.

Publication Date: April 2025

Designed For
If you are new to 1099/1042-S reporting, you supervise 1099 compliance and want to stay on top of changes in the law, or if you are a CPA and would benefit from more in depth training.

Topics Covered

• W-8 Overview
• The W-9
• W-9/W-8 Validation for 1042/1042-S Filing
• W-9/W-8 Payee/Payment in Practice
• Who is My Payee Non-U.S. Status Red Flags
• 1042/1042-S Reporting and Purchase Invoices
• 1042/1042-S Payment Sourcing
• 1042-S Reportable Income
• W-8s and Treaty Benefits
• Wrap Up of General W-8 Validation Tips

Learning Objectives

• Identify what's new for Form W-9/W-8 due diligence rules
• Describe the latest strategies for validating IRS Forms W-9, W-8, and 8233
• Recognize how to develop best practices strategies for backup withholding (including rules and determining your deposit schedule)
• Identify Form W-9 do's and don'ts: including tips on validating Form W-9s when multiple names are provided, handling undocumented payees, service payments that require the reporting of a related good, and validating exempt organization payees
• Recognize and apply proven techniques for handling payee treaty benefit requests on Forms W-8 and the steps to validate foreign TINs
• Identify when to use each form W-8: Scenarios to consider
• Recognize best practices for validating payees from U.S. possessions
• Describe key data points to capture from Forms W-8/W-9 and ensure compliance with IRS reasonable cause regulations
• Identify how to spot Form W-8 & W-9 red flags before it's too late
• Identify how to document & validate sole proprietors, single member LLCs, partnerships, LLCs owned by other entities, S-Corps, and more
• Identify processes for dealing with recent IRS changes to the Form W-9

Level
Basic

Instructional Method
Self-Study

NASBA Field of Study
Taxes (2 hours)

Program Prerequisites
None

Advance Preparation
None