F-1
Cat. No. 24333E
1999
Instructions for
Schedule F,
Profit or Loss
From Farming
Use Schedule F (Form 1040) to report farm income and expenses. File it with Form 1040,
1041, 1065, or 1065-B.
This activity may subject you to state and local taxes and other requirements such as
business licenses and fees. Check with your state and local governments for more infor-
mation.
Additional Information. Pub. 225 has samples of filled-in forms and schedules, and lists
important dates that apply to farmers.
General Instructions
Other Schedules and Forms
You May Have To File
Schedule E to report rental income from
pastureland that is based on a flat charge.
Report this income in Part I of Schedule E.
But report on line 10 of Schedule F pasture
income received from taking care of some-
one elses livestock.
Schedule J to figure your tax by averaging
your farm income over the previous 3 years.
Doing so may reduce your tax.
Schedule SE to pay self-employment tax on
income from any trade or business, includ-
ing farming.
Form 4562 to claim depreciation on assets
placed in service in 1999, to claim amorti-
zation that began in 1999, or to report in-
formation on vehicles and other listed
property.
Form 4684 to report a casualty or theft gain
or loss involving farm business property in-
cluding livestock held for draft, breeding,
sport, or dairy purposes.
See Pub. 225 for more information on
how to report various farm losses, such as
losses due to death of livestock or damage
to crops or other farm property.
Form 4797 to report sales, exchanges, or
involuntary conversions (other than from a
casualty or theft) of certain farm property.
Also, use this form to report sales of live-
stock held for draft, breeding, sport, or dairy
purposes.
Form 4835 to report rental income based
on farm production or crop shares if you did
not
materially
participate
(for
self-
employment tax purposes) in the manage-
ment or operation of the farm. This income
is not subject to self-employment tax. See
Pub. 225.
Form 8824 to report like-kind exchanges.
Heavy Highway Vehicle Use
Tax
If you use certain highway trucks, truck-
trailers, tractor-trailers, or buses in your
trade or business, you may have to pay a
Federal highway motor vehicle use tax. See
Form 2290 to find out if you owe this tax.
Information Returns
You may have to file information returns for
wages paid to employees, certain payments
of fees and other nonemployee compensa-
tion, interest, rents, royalties, annuities, and
pensions. You may also have to file an in-
formation return if you sold $5,000 or more
of consumer products to a person on a buy-
sell, deposit-commission, or other similar
basis for resale. For more information, see
the 1999 Instructions for Forms 1099,
1098, 5498, and W-2G.
If you received cash of more than $10,000
in one or more related transactions in your
farming business, you may have to file
Form 8300. For details, see Pub. 1544.
Estimated Tax
If you had to make estimated tax payments
in 1999 and you underpaid your estimated
tax, you will not be charged a penalty if
both of the following apply:
1. Your gross farming or fishing income
for 1998 or 1999 is at least two-thirds of
your gross income, and
2. You file your 1999 tax return and pay
the tax due by March 1, 2000.
For more details, see Pub. 225.
Specific Instructions
Filers of Forms 1041,
1065, and 1065-B
Do not complete the block labeled Social
security number (SSN). Instead, enter your
employer identification number (EIN) on
line D.
Lines A and B
On line A, enter your principal crop or ac-
tivity for the current year.
On line B, enter one of the 14 principal
agricultural activity codes listed in Part IV
on page 2 of Schedule F. Select the code
that best describes the source of most of your
income.
Line C
Under the cash method, include all income
in the year you actually get it. Generally,
deduct expenses when you pay them. If you
use the cash method, check the box labeled
Cash.Complete Parts I and II of Schedule
F.
Under the accrual method, include
income in the year you earn it. It does not
matter when you get it. Deduct expenses
when you incur them. If you use the accrual
method, check the box labeled Accrual.
Complete Parts II, III, and line 11 of Sched-
ule F.
Other rules apply that determine the
timing of deductions based on economic
performance. See Pub. 538 for details.
Farming syndicates cannot use the cash
method of accounting. A farming syndicate
may be a partnership, any other noncorpor-
ate group, or an S corporation if:
1. The interests in the business have ever
been for sale in a way that would require
registration with any Federal or state
agency, or
2. More than 35% of the loss during any
tax year is shared by limited partners or
limited entrepreneurs. A limited partner is
one who can lose only the amount invested
or required to be invested in the partnership.
A limited entrepreneur is a person who
does not take any active part in managing
the business.