Will you get a 1099-K? The threshold changed back
Updated August 8, 2026 · 5 min read
Short answer
The federal 1099-K threshold is more than $20,000 and more than 200 transactions in a calendar year — both, not either. The planned $600 rule was repealed by the July 2025 tax act before it ever applied. Some states set lower thresholds, so a form can still arrive below the federal line.
- Federal threshold: more than $20,000 AND more than 200 transactions. You need to cross both.
- The $600 rule, and the $2,500 interim step, were repealed before taking effect.
- No form does not mean no tax. Income is reportable whether or not a form is issued.
- Several states have their own, lower thresholds — you may get a form your neighbour doesn't.
- Rideshare drivers often get a 1099-NEC too, for bonuses and incentives, which is a different form with a different threshold.
What is the 1099-K threshold now?
More than $20,000 in payments and more than 200 transactions in the calendar year. Both conditions have to be met before a payment platform is required to issue you a Form 1099-K.
This is the old rule, restored. A 2021 change would have dropped the threshold to $600 with no transaction minimum; it was delayed repeatedly and then repealed outright by the tax act signed in July 2025, along with the $2,500 interim figure that had been floated for 2025. The $20,000 / 200 threshold applies for 2025 and onward.
Will a typical rideshare driver cross it?
On transaction count, easily — 200 trips is a few weeks of full-time driving. On dollars, it depends entirely on how your platform reports. Some report gross fares including the portion they keep, which pushes the number up fast; others report differently.
The practical answer for a part-time driver is that you may well get no 1099-K at all, and that changes nothing about what you owe. The threshold governs whether a platform has to send a form. It has never governed whether income is taxable.
That distinction is where people get into trouble, because a year with no form feels like a year with nothing to report. It isn't.
Why did another driver get a form when you didn't?
State rules. A number of states set their own 1099-K thresholds below the federal one, and several are dramatically lower. If you drive in one of them, a platform may issue you a form on a few thousand dollars.
This also means a form can arrive for a year in which you were confident none would. Do not treat “I didn't get one last year” as a forecast, and check your state's own rule rather than the federal number.
How do tips show up on it?
Tips paid through the platform are generally included in the gross amount a 1099-K reports, and your platform's annual summary will normally break tips out as a separate line. Keep that summary — it is what lets you separate tip income from fare income at filing time.
That separation matters more than it used to, because tips now have their own deduction. See whether you qualify for the tip deduction — rideshare drivers are on the IRS list, but it is a deduction against income tax only and it does not reduce self-employment tax.
Tips taken outside the platform — cash, or a tap-to-tip tag in your car — will not appear on any 1099-K. They are still income, they still count as qualified tips, and the only record of them is the one you keep.
Questions people ask
- Do I have to report Uber income if I don't get a 1099?
Yes. Reporting thresholds decide whether a platform must send you a form; they have never decided whether income is taxable. Self-employment income is reportable from the first dollar.
- Is the 1099-K threshold $600?
No. The $600 rule was repealed by the July 2025 tax act before it took effect. The federal threshold is more than $20,000 and more than 200 transactions.
- What is the difference between a 1099-K and a 1099-NEC for drivers?
A 1099-K reports payments processed on your behalf — your fares and in-app tips. A 1099-NEC reports non-employee compensation, which for drivers usually means bonuses, referrals and incentives. Many drivers receive both, and the thresholds are different.
- Do cash tips go on a 1099-K?
No. Nothing outside the payment platform appears on it. Cash tips remain reportable income and your own log is the only record of them.
Where these numbers come from
- IRS — Understanding Your Form 1099-K — what a 1099-K reports and who issues it
- Avalara — One Big Beautiful Bill Act changes 1099 reporting thresholds — repeal of the $600 rule and restoration of $20,000 / 200
- IRS — Gig Economy Tax Center — income being reportable whether or not a form is issued