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Getting ready for year-end: your checklist

A big-picture checklist for the last quarter of the year and the first weeks of January, so W-2 and 1099 season doesn't sneak up on you. For button-by-button steps, see the "Quarterly and year-end tax forms" guide.

1. Re-check every worker's classificationPeople's situations change — a contractor becomes a regular hire, a family-exempt teenager turns 18, an H-2A contract ends. Walk through Employees and confirm each person's Classification is still correct before generating year-end forms.
2. Confirm addresses and SSNs are currentW-2s get mailed to whatever home address is on file, so make sure every employee's address is current. Double-check Social Security numbers too — a wrong SSN is one of the more common causes of IRS penalty notices.
3. Get your W-9s together for 1099 contractorsFor anyone classified as 1099 that you paid $600 or more this year, make sure you have a signed W-9 on file before generating their 1099-NEC. LedgerBarn doesn't collect or store W-9s — keep those in your own records outside the app.
4. Decide how you'll file: e-file vs. paperIf your W-2s and 1099s combined add up to 10 or more forms, e-filing is required — under 10, paper mail is still allowed. See the "Quarterly and year-end tax forms" guide for exactly where to download the e-file uploads or the printable forms.
5. Give yourself real runwayW-2s and 1099-NECs are both due by January 31, to workers and to the SSA/IRS. Don't wait until the last week of January — start the checks above in November or December so there's time to fix anything before the deadline.
6. Sanity-check H-2A and family-exempt W-2s before filingIf you have H-2A or family-exempt workers, open their W-2 and confirm Boxes 3 and 5 (Social Security and Medicare wages) show zero — that's expected for both classifications, not a mistake.
7. Remember who's actually filingLedgerBarn builds the numbers and the forms from your payroll history, but submitting them to the SSA, IRS, or state is your responsibility (or your accountant's). No button in the app files anything on your behalf.