Hello, has anyone else received an email like this? I wonder if it's related to Mturk, because it's very poorly explained here
Okay, so everyone feel free to correct me (don't, please) but they are trying to crack down on untaxed earnings in the "gig economy." So this is just like a normal work form in a way, like filling out a W4 when you start work. It does mean that they will start deductions if they don't receive the info. I kind of have a bit of a background on these forms...so many of these forms per year (700-ish). In another area of work I had to deal with W9s being filled out, and if they weren't, federally they would start taking 25% from our contractors if they received no tax information. However, my info is from work in 2009, so the retained 25% might have jumped to 30%, don't know. But as long as you fill it out, it's not a scary bad thing. It's just basically a way to start proper accounting by the government. And yeah, being taxed if you make enough. That part I won't answer because that's best left to a tax professional. I won't comment on state issues, because this form is federal.
If they do those electronically, some people (me included) are likely screwed because I think you need access to whatever email you started (assuming you know it) with to actually access the tax central site. I know I could never access it and need to wait for the mailed 1099-K to show up yearly.
I doubt it is very dificult to copy Amazon's logo and post it in an email. Did you check the address of the link, at worst you can copy the email address (right click on the address or web link, select copy address or link) and then paste it in a text document. You can examine the link for invalid info. Most tax stuff is handled by a Human Resources Department. What the heck is a w-8, guess I'll have to Google it. My first instinct is that it is scam. But I presumed what sounded like a onsensical department from the IRS was a scam, but actually opeing the envelope, the documents were legitmate (it said my account was paid, no further action required). I worked with some people who thought it was funny to crank call people to see their reaction to a serious request for something. If people will do it for fun others will do it for money. Good luck!
