Who must file Form 1097-BTC
File Form 1097-BTC if you are the issuer of a qualified tax credit bond (clean renewable energy, new clean renewable energy, qualified energy conservation, qualified zone academy, qualified school construction, or build America bonds of the tax-credit type) or an intermediary (a broker, nominee, mutual fund, partnership or other entity) that holds such a bond or a stripped credit coupon for someone else and is further distributing the credit. Report to each person who is allowed a credit of at least $10 for the year; the ultimate recipient claims it on Form 8912.
The IRS copy is annual, due February 28 or March 31. The recipient statement is quarterly: on or before the 15th day of the second month after the close of each calendar quarter in which a credit allowance date falls, with an annual statement by February 15 that may replace the fourth-quarter report.
Threshold: $10, credit of at least $10 allowed to a recipient for the year; all amounts reportable by the issuer.
What is reported, box by box
| Box | What it reports | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Total | Total credit for the year. |
| 2a and 2b | Code and unique identifier | CUSIP or another unique identifier for the bond, and the code identifying its type. |
| 3 | Bond type | Code for the category of tax credit bond. |
| 5a to 5l | Credit by month | January through December, each credit allowance date. |
| 6 | Comments | |
| Issuer of bond, or its agent, and form recipient checkboxes | Whether the filer is the issuer or an intermediary further distributing the credit. |
Box titles follow the current revision of the form. The IRS reads the payer and recipient name, TIN, address, account number and the money boxes; the state boxes are for the state copy only.
Payments that are not reported on Form 1097-BTC
- Recipients allowed less than $10 of credit for the year (by an intermediary).
- Bonds that provide a direct payment to the issuer rather than a credit to the holder (those are not reported on 1097-BTC).
Due dates and extensions
| Copy | Due | For 2026 returns |
|---|---|---|
| To the IRS, paper | February 28 | Monday, March 1, 2027 (February 28 is a Sunday) |
| To the IRS, electronic | March 31 | Wednesday, March 31, 2027 |
| To the recipient | Quarterly | 15th day of the 2nd month after each quarter; annual statement by February 15, 2027 |
An automatic 30-day extension is available on Form 8809, filed by the due date on paper or through IRIS; a second 30 days requires a hardship showing. Recipient statements can be extended 30 days on Form 15397, online or by fax only. 10 or more information returns of any type in aggregate must be e-filed (T.D. 9972); IRIS is the only IRS intake system from filing season 2027, FIRE having been retired. A payer who e-files the originals must e-file the corrections.
For 2026 forms filed in 2027: January 31 falls on a Sunday, so that deadline moves to Monday, February 1, 2027; February 28 also falls on a Sunday, so the paper deadline moves to Monday, March 1, 2027. March 31 (electronic) and March 15 are weekdays. February 28 does not become February 29 in a leap year. The compliance calendar has every date with the weekend shifts applied.
Withholding and TIN matching
A bond tax credit is not a cash payment and is not subject to backup withholding; the form is outside the IRS TIN Matching program. The holder records are broker account records, so the name/TIN questions are those of Form 1099-INT and 1099-B: account titling, nominees and trusts.
Name and TIN errors on this form
Every information return is matched by the IRS on the first four characters of the payee's name (the name control) against the TIN. A mismatch produces a CP2100 line the following autumn and, unless the solicitation record is in order, a 972CG penalty the year after: $340 per return for 2026 forms filed in 2027 that are late or wrong, $690 for intentional disregard, with annual maximums of $4,191,500 ($1,397,000 for small filers) under Rev. Proc. 2025-32. The errors that recur on Form 1097-BTC:
- Nominee chains. The issuer reports to the registered holder (often a clearing organization or broker), which reports on to its customers; each link files its own 1097-BTC under its own filer TIN.
- Joint and fiduciary accounts follow the 1099-INT first-name-line rule.
The name control calculator shows what the IRS will derive from a name line, and the CP2100 guide covers what to do when the notice arrives.
Recipient statements and substitutes
The recipient statement for Form 1097-BTC need not be a copy of the official form: a substitute may be combined with other account statements or reports, provided every required item is numbered and titled as on the official form, the tax year, form number and form name appear together, the recipient instructions are included, and, for the forms Pub 1099 lists, a telephone number with direct access to someone who can answer questions is shown. Publication 1179 (Rev. Proc. 2026-18) has the specifications; logos, slogans and advertising are not permitted on the statement itself. Statements may be furnished electronically only to a recipient who has affirmatively consented in a way that shows they can access the format, after the disclosures in Pub 1099 part M, and must stay posted through October 15. Copy B may show a truncated TIN (xxx-xx-1234); the IRS copy never may.
Corrections and state copies
A wrong amount, code or checkbox is a Type 1 correction: one corrected return with the CORRECTED box checked. A wrong or missing payee TIN, a wrong payee name, or the wrong form type is a Type 2 correction: a zeroed-out copy of the original plus a new original, in that order. Publication 1099 also says you are not required to file a correction for a missing or incorrect TIN if you meet the reasonable-cause standard, only to use the right TIN on the next return, although the IRS encourages the correction. Details and the paper error charts are on the 1099 corrections page.
Form 1097-BTC is not in the Combined Federal/State Filing program, so any state that requires it must receive it directly. Requirements by state are on the state pages.
Questions people ask about Form 1097-BTC
Why quarterly?
Credit allowance dates fall quarterly and the holder may need the credit for estimated taxes; the regulations require the intermediary to report within about six weeks of each quarter.
Does the issuer report to every holder?
Only to holders of record; brokers and other intermediaries pass the credit through to beneficial owners on their own forms.
Is 1097-BTC in the Combined Federal/State program?
No.
Other federal forms
1042-S · 1098 · 1098-C · 1098-E · 1098-F · 1098-Q · 1098-T · 1098-VLI · 1099-A · 1099-B · 1099-C · 1099-CAP · 1099-DIV · 1099-G · 1099-INT · 1099-K · 1099-LS · 1099-LTC · 1099-MISC · 1099-NEC · 1099-OID · 1099-PATR · 1099-Q · 1099-QA · 1099-R · 1099-S · 1099-SA · 1099-SB · 3921 · 3922 · 5498 · 5498-ESA · 5498-SA · W-2G · 1099-DA · Comparison table
Sources: IRS Publication 1099 (2026), General Instructions for Certain Information Returns, which replaced the separate General Instructions starting with tax year 2026; Instructions for Form 1097-BTC (Rev. April 2025); Pub 1099 (2026) Guide to Information Returns and part M; IRC 54A, 6049(d)(9); Regulations 1.6049-10. Threshold amounts are indexed for inflation from calendar year 2027; check IRS.gov/InflationAdjustment for the current year.