airbnb tax rules are confusing. On one hand they said if the earnings are under $600 they would not issue 1099. On the other hand they said if exceed $20000 they would issue 1099. Which is which? I called airbnb support and they are confused as well.
It changed and it has nothing to do with Airbnb. Originally, and up to late Dec 2022, the new law about providing 1099s for anything over $600 through third-party payers (Airbnb but also Venmo,etc) was to take effect for 2022 but the congress or senate, I don’t remember which, but they delayed it.
For 2022 the previous IRS rules apply: 200+ transactions and $20,000+ in transactions to receive a 1099.
Seriously, Airbnb does not have its own tax rules. 
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You need to read my post more carefully. They apply the tax rules in a very confusing manner. Some times talks about $600. Other time talks about $20000. This is from their website: " Starting January 1, 2022, the American Rescue Plan Act will require Airbnb to issue a 1099 form for all Hosts with annual earnings of $600 or more** from bookings .
Rather you need to read my post more carefully. Airbnb does not have its own tax rules (understanding this is the key to your woes). They apply tax rules as dictated by the IRS just like everyone else does.
Yep. I’ll just repost my initial response for you here:
Originally, and up to late Dec 2022, the new law (e.g. from the American Rescue plan) about providing 1099s for anything over $600 through third-party payers (Airbnb but also Venmo,etc) was to take effect for 2022 but the congress or senate, I don’t remember which, but they delayed it.
For 2022 the previous IRS rules apply: 200+ transactions and $20,000+ in transactions to receive a 1099.
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Is it possibly 200+ transactions OR $20,000 in transactions?
I ask because we received a 1099 from Airbnb. We had more than $20,000 in transactions but not 200+ transactions.
OR if the rule you cite is correct Airbnb in our situation chose to issue a 1099 anyway – maybe we said we are a professional Host and that triggered the 1099?
It is and. However, that requirement has to do with whether or not a TPSO (third-party payment provider) will receive a fine for not sending a 1099-k. There is nothing that says that they can’t send one if they want to, they just aren’t required to send one.
Originally the requirement for a TPSO to send a 1099-k was going to decrease to $600 for 2022. However, they pulled that at the end of the year and 2022 is now officially deemed as a “transitional period” for these changes. I just went and verified this. There’s a (dull) and comprehensive IRS release that goes into this transition period decision.
They mention that because of the transitional nature for 2022, that some people might receive a 1099-k for 2022 even if they don’t meet both or either of the former requirements (200&$20,000). I think the explanation for why you received one is likely that simple.
I’d point out that it’s as simple as that a lot of TPSOs were already locked and loaded, so to speak, to send out 1099-ks when it all changed right before Xmas and will just send some out even if they don’t have to. I imagine that most of the money and time it took to get all of that organized and ready to go was already spent anyway.
The other scenario in which someone gets a 1099-k without meeting any requirements is if they are subject to backup withholding. You’ll always get one if you have backup withholding on it.
There are other reasons that someone would be subject to backup withholding (like if they didn’t file their taxes for a few years) but it’s also possible that some Airbnb hosts filled out their information late enough that Airbnb was required to withhold. That’s not Airbnb stuff, it’s IRS rules.
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I’d add that it doesn’t make much difference whether or not you received one when you weren’t required to receive one, assuming you were going to report your income accurately anyway.
And something handy that I think a lot of people may not know about is that you can create an account on Irs.gov and look up your past tax transcripts but also see what exactly the IRS received for your account for any given year. And it shows them line by line so you can always go in an compare what you received with what the IRs received. It proves useful now and then.
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@HostAirbnbVRBO I just thought of something else!
There are a few states that require a 1099-k and have a lower minimum for it. I looked it up and MA is one of those states. I don’t know what the MA threshold is but it is for sure one of those states (it always is isn’t it, lol ,) I only had to do MA taxes once and it was a while ago now.
If you know that you didn’t meet the federal requirement of 200 transactions and $20,000 then for you, it’s most likely it’s because you are in MA. If you look at the 1099 you received I think that it may only have been sent to MA and not the Feds.
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