Extensions for 1099-NEC and W-2 are not automatic: the paper Form 8809 must meet one of the line 7 criteria, be signed under penalties of perjury and reach the IRS by January 31. This is the statement that goes with it, criterion by criterion. Read it below, copy the text, print it, or download the .docx for your letterhead.
Template from tincompliance.com. The statement that accompanies a paper Form 8809 (Rev. 12-2025) requesting an extension for Forms 1099-NEC or W-2, or an additional 30-day extension for other forms. These extensions are not automatic: the request must meet one of the line 7 criteria, be signed under penalties of perjury, be on paper (the FIRE fill-in and IRIS do not take them), and reach the IRS by the due date, January 31 for 1099-NEC and W-2. No additional 30-day extension is allowed for W-2 or 1099-NEC. Attach the statement to the form; mail to the address in the form instructions (Ogden).
Filer: [legal name], EIN [00-0000000]
Forms: [1099-NEC / W-2 / additional 30-day extension for: form types]; tax year [YYYY]; number of returns: [n]
Date: [date]
[Check one and delete the others:]
☐ The filer suffered a catastrophic event in a federally declared disaster area that made the filer unable to resume operations or made necessary records unavailable.
☐ Fire, casualty, or natural disaster affected the operation of the filer.
☐ Death, serious illness, or unavoidable absence of the individual responsible for filing the information returns affected the operation of the filer.
☐ The filer was in the first year of establishment.
☐ The filer did not receive data on a payee statement such as Schedule K-1, Form 1042-S, or the statement of sick pay required under section 31.6051-3(a)(1) in time to prepare an accurate information return.
[State what happened, when, and how it prevented timely filing. Be specific and datable: the event date, the FEMA declaration number for a disaster, the dates records or systems were unavailable, the name and role of the responsible individual and the dates of the absence, the date the business was established, or the payee statement not received and from whom. State what has been done to file: the date the returns are expected to be ready and how they will be filed (IRIS, FIRE, SSA Business Services Online).]
[Connect the facts to the returns: which returns cannot be completed accurately by the due date and why, and that the recipient statements have been or will be furnished by January 31 (or that a Form 15397 has been filed for them).]
Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have examined this statement and the accompanying Form 8809, and to the best of my knowledge and belief they are true, correct, and complete.
[Signature] [Name], [Title] [Date]
Keep a copy of the form, the statement and the mailing record. An extension of time to file is not an extension of time to furnish recipient statements; those need Form 15397 by the statement due date. If the request is denied, file as soon as possible: returns filed within 30 days of the due date stay in the lowest penalty tier.
A general-purpose starting point, not legal advice. Your facts, and your counsel, control what you send.