W-9 form for freelancers: when clients ask and how to fill it out

The W-9 is one page and takes five minutes, but it's also the document that most often holds up a freelancer's first payment. Accounts payable won't set you up as a vendor without it, and a wrong name or number can lead a client to withhold 24% of your payments. Here's when it comes up and how to fill it out correctly.

Why clients ask for it

A business that pays you $2,000 or more for services in a year (for payments made after 2025) has to file Form 1099-NEC with your tax ID on it. It gets that information from your W-9. Many companies ask every vendor for one, regardless of the amount, because it's simpler than tracking who will cross the threshold. Expect the request when you sign the contract or send your first invoice, and sometimes from payment platforms that pay you on a client's behalf.

If you don't provide a correct taxpayer identification number, the payer generally has to start backup withholding: holding back 24% of each reportable payment and sending it to the IRS. You get credit for it when you file, but it's cash you don't have in the meantime.

Which version to use

The current form is the March 2024 revision. It added line 3b and changed how LLCs report their tax classification on line 3a. The IRS also published a draft revision in June 2026; use whichever version the IRS lists as current on its About Form W-9 page when you fill it out. A client may also have its own online vendor form that asks the same questions.

Line by line

1. Line 1, Name: the name on your income tax return. For a sole proprietor or a single-member LLC treated as a disregarded entity, that's your own name, not the business name.
2. Line 2, Business name: your DBA or the LLC's name, if it's different from line 1. Leave it blank otherwise.
3. Line 3a, Tax classification: most freelancers check "Individual/sole proprietor". A single-member LLC that hasn't elected corporate treatment also checks that box. An LLC taxed as a C corporation, S corporation or partnership checks the LLC box and writes C, S or P.
4. Line 3b: only for partnerships, trusts and estates with foreign partners, owners or beneficiaries giving the form to a flow-through entity. Sole proprietors skip it.
5. Line 4, Exemptions: corporations and certain other entities can be exempt from backup withholding or FATCA reporting. Most freelancers leave it blank.
6. Lines 5 and 6: the mailing address where you want your 1099. Use an address you'll still have in January.
7. Line 7: optional account numbers. Usually blank.
8. Part I, TIN: your Social Security number or your EIN. Use the one that matches the name on line 1 for IRS records: a sole proprietor can use either; a disregarded single-member LLC uses the owner's SSN or EIN, not an EIN issued to the LLC for payroll.
9. Part II, Certification: sign and date it. By signing you certify the TIN is correct and that you're not subject to backup withholding (cross out item 2 only if the IRS has told you that you are).

Example: a sole proprietor with a business name

Line 1  Name: Jordan Lee
Line 2  Business name: Lee Studio
Line 3a Classification: [x] Individual/sole proprietor
Line 3b (blank)
Line 4  Exemptions: (blank)
Line 5  Address: 512 Pine St
Line 6  City, state, ZIP: Portland, OR 97204
Part I  Employer identification number: 12-3456789 (Jordan's own EIN as a sole proprietor)
Part II Signed: Jordan Lee   Date: 10/17/2026

Jordan uses an EIN so the Social Security number doesn't sit in every client's vendor files. The EIN is free from the IRS and takes a few minutes online. The name on line 1 is still Jordan's own, because a sole proprietorship isn't a separate taxpayer.

Mistakes that hold up payment

• Business name on line 1 for a sole proprietorship. The IRS matches the name on line 1 with the TIN, so a DBA there with your SSN causes a mismatch notice for the client.
• An EIN that belongs to a different entity, such as an old partnership or an LLC you closed.
• Checking "C corporation" or "S corporation" because the business is an LLC. An LLC checks the LLC box and writes its tax classification, or checks "Individual/sole proprietor" if it's disregarded.
• An unsigned form. Part II must be signed and dated, or the client can treat it as if you never sent one.
• An old address. The 1099 goes to the address on file in January, and many clients won't send a corrected copy.

If something changes (you form an LLC, get an EIN or move), send your clients an updated W-9 before their next payment. Keep a copy of every W-9 you send with the date, so you can check what each client has if a 1099 arrives with the wrong details.

Sending it safely

A W-9 carries your tax ID, so treat it like a check with your account number on it. Upload it to the client's vendor portal or send it through an encrypted or access-controlled link rather than as a plain email attachment, and confirm who asked for it before replying. Requests that come out of nowhere, from someone you don't work with, are a common phishing trick. The IRS lets a requester accept a W-9 electronically when its system meets IRS requirements, so an e-signed form is often fine; ask the client what it accepts.

When you're the one asking

If you hire a subcontractor, a writer or a developer for your own projects, you're the payer. Get a W-9 from them before the first payment, keep it on file (the requester keeps it; it isn't sent to the IRS), and use it to file a 1099-NEC if you pay them $2,000 or more for the year.

Doing it in SoloWOS

SoloWOS doesn't fill out or file tax forms. You can share your completed W-9 PDF through Document Tracking with a passcode, an expiration date and downloads switched on, then revoke the link once the client confirms they have it. The page stops loading for anyone who still has the URL.

Need a signature image for a PDF? The free signature generator makes one in your browser.

This guide is general information, not tax advice. If you're unsure which classification applies to your LLC, check with a tax professional before you sign.