Amazon Flex 1099 Taxes: A Complete Guide (Forms, How To File Them and More)

Delivering packages for Amazon is a lucrative way to make extra money by working on Amazon Flex.

But, There’s something you need to consider, If not you’ll have to pay late fees in 2023.

Why?

As an independent contractor, you also need to provide your income report while getting paid as a driver.

That report will result in Amazon Flex taxes, which will be deducted from your total earnings.

So, that’s exactly what I’m about to walk you through.

Let’s get started now 

Key Points

Do Amazon Flex Drivers Have To Pay Taxes on All Earnings?

Yes, Amazon Flex Drivers have to pay taxes on all earnings.

You as a driver must inform all of your earnings and pay all the taxes needed to deduct from it.

In earnings, I’m talking about the income and the tips you get working as a driver.

But, Can you put some money aside from tax deduction?

I’ll walk you through this further 

What taxes do Amazon Flex Drivers have to pay 

So, you know that flex drivers are in the tax deduction.

Why?

As an Amazon Flex driver, you work independently, meaning you are an independent contractor to work whenever you want and make your own decisions.

But everything has a price to pay, similarly, in exchange for the freedom you have, you’ll have to pay taxes.

Here are the two tax types that every flex driver has to know:

1. Self-employment taxes

Self-employment taxes are combined into Social Security Taxes and Medicare Taxes.

As it sounds, these taxes are specifically designed for self-employed flex drivers.

If you work part-time, that usually happens and you reach an income of $400 or more, this will be taxed by 15.3%. 

The given tax rate is considered double that of the normal employees, however, If you use some calculators to ensure how much taxes are required to pay, you can save extra money for it.

2. Income taxes

As before, Income taxes are a combination of Federal Taxes and State Taxes.

How much federal income tax you’ll pay in this section caps in which tax bracket your income falls.

The income is the total of your all earnings, such as through Amazon Flex delivery, other delivery jobs, W 2 employment, etc.

On the other hand, state tax is directly influenced by the state you are in. If you live in Alaska or Florida, you won’t have to pay any state tax at all.

So, take a sneak peek at the State Tax rates of your current state.

What Tax Forms Do Drivers Get From Amazon Flex?

There are several forms that are required to use as a flex driver to report your overall earnings.

I have given the forms’ names below and explained why they are used for:

The 1099 NEC form 

This form is used to report your annual earnings from the package-delivering job you do for Amazon Flex.

This is a kind of tax form that flex drivers get from Amazon directly in their mail on the last day of January and is also sent to the IRS. If made more than $600 in back year 

If you earn less than $600, you won’t get a form from Amazon. In this case, you’ll have to report your earnings without having the 1099 NEC form.

In case you want to get the 1099, head over to amazon.com for a copy.

Schedule C form 

In addition to the 1099 NEC form, there’s a Schedule C form that’s used for deducting other business costs from the total income or gross income.

This form will help you save extra money from tax deductions, but you’ll have to fill it out.

Schedule SE form 

This is the third and last tax form.

In its name, the SE stands for self-employment. Therefore, it’s used to calculate the self-employment tax that drivers owe.

How to file Amazon Flex Taxes As A Driver 

So, We have dived enough on what kind of tax forms to know, 

Now let’s discuss how to file taxes:

1. Grab All the Tax forms 

First of all, pile up all the important forms and documents for the tax report.

According to the state you are in and the IRS, If you work entirely on Amazon Flex App as a driver and it’s your main stream of income, you won’t need any additional forms along with 1099 NEC, Schedule C, and Schedule CE.

On the flip side, If you want to have additional income that leads you to be an employee, and work on Amazon Flex by side. The W-2 form is an additional document you should have.

This form you’ll get from your employer to report annual income as well as the taxes that are withheld from the paychecks you received in the year.

Further, you’ll need to lay down your status, such as If you’re the head of a household, single or married person.

When you evaluate the tax bracket in which category your income falls, you’ll know your status for filing taxes.

2.  Take The Tax Write-Offs 

As a flex driver, you can decrease the amount of taxes you’ll have to pay by laying down the tax deductions.

The tax write-offs are of two kinds: Standard and Itemized Deduction, in which you can choose anyone.

The Standard Deduction is a fixed amount set by the government, while, Itemized Deduction lets you itemize your deductions by listing specific eligible expenses. 

Therefore, you should choose one that results in lower tax liability.

Write Offs For Car expenses 

Being a flex driver requires you to spend on car expenses in which gas cost is the main reason that reduces a significant portion of your income.

During tax deduction, it’s important to write off all car costs that come with delivering packages, such as Gas, oil, repair, tire, insurance, parking, registration, and more If you have.

Write Offs For Additional Expenses 

There are some extra expenses except for cars or vehicles that you must also deduct. 

This includes Android or iPhone expenses for data plans and phone bills, delivery bags, flex reflective vests, delivery gears, handheld scanners, etc 

Further, fill up the Schedule C form by including additional expenses you may have as above. 

If you have a priority of tracking all the expenses you have during the job, it’ll be easy for you to report all costs when filling out the form.

Furthermore, for having a record of how much you spend and when you get paid, Amazon Flex has a debit card feature for you to keep track of all of your costs related to delivering packages.

Fortunately, If you use it for gas expenses, you’ll get 6% cashback each time to pay for fuel consumption and more.

3. Add Forms to the 1040 Form 

After filling up all the required forms I mentioned earlier, Schedule C and SE.

The next step is to add them to the 1040 form, where you’ll need to mention any earnings you have from W-2 jobs too.

When You Can File The Amazon Flex Taxes as a Driver 

As long as you keep track of your expenses to write-offs, you find that the total taxes you have to pay will begin to reduce.

So, when do you need to pay them?

Because Amazon Flex drivers don’t work as W-2 employees and they are independent about their schedules of working and expenses, they have different rules when it comes to tax payments.

Such as your taxes won’t be accepted by the IRS intentionally, but drivers are allowed to pay through a credit or debit card digitally, check, etc.

In the matter of paying, you should not make an annual tax payment schedule as you’ll have to pay a lot if you haven’t put aside some income separately for tax.

Instead, paying quarterly can be a good schedule to not get a ton of tax bills that can cause you headaches.

The best schedules in days for tax payment are:

• 15th April

• 15th June

• 15th September

• 15th January 

The IRS is quite strict about tax payments If you fail or forget to be punctual for paying taxes, you’ll be in penalty for being late.

These late fees can go from 0.5% of the taxes to 25% as you begin to be late.

What Services Can Amazon Flex Driver Use For Taxes

Filling out taxes is a critical work that can lead you to face issues If miss something.

Here’s a list of services you can use as a flex driver:

Tax Softwares 

Tax software is specifically designed for businesses, and delivery gig workers like you, for filing income tax returns with government tax authorities, such as the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the United States. 

Use tax preparation software like TurboTax, H&R Block, or TaxAct to easily file your taxes. 

Many of these programs have specific sections designed for self-employed workers.

Tax Professionals 

They have years of experience regarding taxes and how to fill them.

If you don’t know about tax filing, consider hiring someone who specializes in self-employment and gig economy income. 

They can provide with you personalized guidance and help maximize deductions.

Tax Calculators 

There are many online tools and resources that can make you work smoother than before.

Just by including your base pay, tips, and any bonuses, or incentives you receive. You can get all calculations done within a second.

Such as a quarterly tax calculator (for planning quarterly payments), a 1099 tax calculator, how much to aside For 1099 Taxes, federal and state income tax brackets, etc.

FAQs

The Bottom Line 

So, that’s the end of all discussions about Amazon Flex taxes, their types, forms to fill out, and more.

Overall, reporting your earnings before being late is a crucial thing to consider. 

Further If you can’t file the taxes take help from the resources given above or use additional services to fill up the information wisely.

Finally, let me know about how much taxes you pay and what questions you still have to ask me, in the comment section. As I’m always open to answers.