2003 HTML Instructions for Forms 1099, 1098, 5498, & W-2G,

Instructions for Forms 1099, 1098, 5498, and W-2G - Main Contents

Table of Contents

Note

Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless otherwise noted.

What's New for 2003

Form 1098-T. Final Regulations section 1.6050S-1 issued in December 2002 describes the reporting rules for completing Form 1098-T for 2003. The reporting under the prior optional instructions and the final regulations is the same except as noted below.

Changes to the reporting rules include:

No reporting is required for courses for which no academic credit is offered by the institution. This is true even if the student is enrolled in a degree program.
No reporting is required for formal billing arrangements between an institution and a governmental entity, as well as arrangements between an institution and an employer.
An insurer must file Form 1098-T for each individual to whom reimbursements or refunds of qualified tuition and related expenses were made in 2003.
An institution or insurer, in addition to its name, address, and phone number, may also include information on a third party service provider. See Information contact and service provider on page ET-2.

Magnetic media/electronic reporting. For Forms 1098-E and 1098-T filed after December 31, 2003, you are required to file magnetically or electronically if filing 250 or more returns. See Magnetic Media/Electronic Reporting in the 2003 General Instructions for Forms 1099, 1098, 5498, and W-2G for more information.

Penalties. For Forms 1098-E and 1098-T filed after December 31, 2003, penalties may be imposed for failure to file or failure to furnish correct forms. However, under certain circumstances, the penalties may be waived. See the 2003 General Instructions for Forms 1099, 1098, 5498, and W-2G for more information.

Items To Note

General instructions. In addition to these specific instructions, you should also use the 2003 General Instructions for Forms 1099, 1098, 5498, and W-2G. Those general instructions include information about:

Magnetic media and electronic reporting requirements
Penalties
Who must file (nominee/middleman)
When and where to file
Taxpayer identification numbers
Statements to recipients
Corrected and void returns
Other general topics

You can get the general instructions from the IRS Web Site at www.irs.gov or by calling 1-800-TAX-FORM (1-800-829-3676).

Form W-9S. You may use Form W-9S, Request for Student's or Borrower's Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification, to obtain the student's or borrower's name, address, social security number, and student loan certification to be used when filing Form 1098-E or 1098-T. Use of Form W-9S is optional; you may collect the information using your own forms, such as financial aid applications, and procedures. You may collect the student's or borrower's information on paper or electronically.

Electronic submission of Form W-9S. An educational institution, insurer, or lender may establish a system for students and borrowers to submit Form W-9S electronically, including by fax. Generally, the electronic system must:

Ensure the information received is the information sent and document all occasions of user access that result in the submission.
Make reasonably certain the person accessing the system and submitting the form is the person identified on
Form W-9S.
Provide you with the same information as the paper
Form W-9S.
Be able to supply a hard copy of the electronic
Form W-9S if the IRS requests it.

Also, if an electronic Form W-9S is used to obtain the borrower's certification that all the loan proceeds are solely used to pay qualified higher education expenses, your electronic system must require, as the final entry in the submission, an electronic signature by the borrower whose name is on Form W-9S. The signature authenticates and verifies the submission. See Announcement 98-27, 1998-1
C.B. 865.