Foreign independent contractors must submit IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E to certify their foreign status and claim any applicable tax treaty benefits. The US company may also need to file Form 1099-NEC if certain conditions are met, though this is more common for domestic contractors.
Payments made to corporations, except those made for medical or health care services and attorney fees, are not required to be reported on Form 1099 MISC. Non-Employee payments – Non-employee payments are reported in Box 7 of Form 1099 MISC.
There are several versions of Form 1099 for foreign contractors and each one is designed for different types of income. For the purpose of reporting payments made to foreign or independent contractors, a business will need Form 1099-NEC (Non-Employee Compensation), which is what people generally mean by Form 1099.
Once you've hired and accurately classified a worker as an international contractor, you'll need to set up payments to the contractor. You will not be responsible for issuing form 1099 to track the source income of foreign workers.
Foreign remote contract workers don't require visas because they are based outside of the US. While these workers may have to come into the country occasionally to fulfill their contractual obligations, they shouldn't have any issues entering as long as they can provide proof that their stay will be temporary.
Form 1099 is used to report payments made to an independent contractor. Expat business owners may need to file Form 1099 when working with contractors abroad. Failing to file Form 1099 as required could result in penalties.
The form to report nonresident alien income is the 1042-S Foreign Person US Source Income Subject to Withholding (exception - NRA employees subject to tax withholding get a W-2), where as US Citizens or Resident Aliens receive a W-2 Wage and Tax Statement for employees, or some receive a 1099-MISC Miscellaneous Income.
Form 1099-NEC and 1099-MISC: If your business pays a foreign contractor with a temporary TIN (ITIN) $600 or more for services provided within the United States, then you can file Form 1099-NEC or Form 1099-MISC to report these payments to the IRS.