The purpose of this revenue procedure is to set forth the 2012 requirements for:

This revenue procedure contains specifications for these information returns:

For purposes of this revenue procedure, a substitute form or statement is one that is not published by the IRS. For a substitute form or statement to be acceptable to the IRS, it must conform to the official form or the specifications outlined in this revenue procedure. Do not submit any substitute forms or statements listed above to the IRS for approval. Privately published forms may not state, “This is an IRS approved form.”

Filers making payments to certain recipients during a calendar year are required by the Internal Revenue Code (the Code) to file information returns with the IRS for these payments. These filers must also provide this information to their recipients. In some cases, this also applies to payments received. See Part 4 for specifications that apply to recipient statements (generally Copy B).

In general, section 6011 of the Code contains requirements for filers of information returns. A filer must file information returns electronically or on paper. A filer who is required to file 250 or more information returns of any one type during a calendar year must file those returns electronically.

Although not required, small volume filers (fewer than 250 returns during a calendar year) may file the forms electronically. See the legal requirements for filing information returns (and providing a copy to a payee) in the 2012 General Instructions for Certain Information Returns and the 2012 Instructions for Form 1042-S. In addition, see the current revision of Publication 1220, Specifications for Filing Forms 1097-BTC, 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, 5498, 8935, and W-2G electronically through the IRS FIRE system.

The IRS prints and provides the forms on which various payments must be reported. Alternatively, filers may prepare substitute copies of these IRS forms and use such forms to report payments to the IRS.

Further information impacting Publication 1179, such as issues arising after its final release, will be posted on IRS.gov at www.IRS.gov/pub1179.

The following changes have been made to this year’s revenue procedure:

Form recipient means the person to whom you are required by law to furnish a copy of the official form or information statement. The form recipient may be referred to by different names on various Forms 1099 and related forms (“borrower,” “debtor,” “donor,” “employee,” “insured,” “participant,” “payer/borrower,” “policyholder,” “student,” “transferor,” or, in the case of Form W-2G, the “winner”). See Section 1.3.4.

Filer means the person or organization required by law to file with the IRS a form listed in Section 1.1.2 with the IRS. As outlined earlier, a filer may be a payer, creditor, recipient of mortgage or student loan interest payments, educational institution, broker, barter exchange, person reporting real estate transactions; trustee or issuer of any educational savings account, individual retirement arrangement or medical savings account; lender who acquires an interest in secured property or who has reason to know that the property has been abandoned, or certain donees of motor vehicles, boats, and airplanes.

Substitute form means a paper substitute of Copy A of an official form listed in Section 1.1.2 that totally conforms to the provisions in this revenue procedure.

Substitute form recipient statement means a paper statement of the information reported on a form listed in Section 1.1.2. This statement must be furnished to a person (form recipient), as defined under the applicable provisions of the Code and the applicable regulations.

Composite substitute statement means one in which two or more required statements (for example, Forms 1099-INT and 1099-DIV) are furnished to the recipient on one document. However, each statement must be designated separately and must contain all the requisite Form 1099 information except as provided under Section 4.2. A composite statement may not be filed with the IRS.

Paper substitutes for Form 1096 and Copy A of Forms 1097-BTC, 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, 5498, W-2G, 1042-S, and 8935 that totally conform to the specifications listed in this revenue procedure may be privately printed and filed as returns with the IRS. The reference to the Department of the Treasury — Internal Revenue Service should be included on all such forms.

If you are uncertain of any specification and want it clarified, you may submit a letter citing the specification, stating your understanding and interpretation of the specification, and enclosing an example of the form (if appropriate) to:

You may also contact the Substitute Forms Program via e-mail at substituteforms@irs.gov. Please enter “Substitute Forms” on the Subject Line. Forms 1096, 1097-BTC, 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, 5498, W-2G, 1042-S, and 8935 are subject to annual review and possible change. Therefore, filers are cautioned against overstocking supplies of privately printed substitutes.

Some Forms 1097-BTC, 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, 5498, W-2G, 1042-S, and 8935 that include logos, slogans and advertisements may not be recognized as important tax documents. A payee may not recognize the importance of the payee copy for tax reporting purposes due to the use of logos, slogans, and advertisements. Thus, the IRS has determined that logos, slogans and advertising will not be allowed on Forms 1096 or Copy A of Forms 1097-BTC, 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, 5498, W-2G, 1042-S, 8935, or any payee copies, with the following exceptions:

The IRS e-file logo on the IRS official payee copies may be included, but it is not required, on any of the substitute form copies.

The information return and payee copies must clearly identify the payer’s name associated with its employer identification number.

Logos and slogans, may be used on permissible enclosures, such as a check or account statement, other than information returns and payee copies.

As indicated in Sections 1.3.1 and 5.1.3, of this revenue procedure, Forms 1096, 1097-BTC, 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, 5498, W-2G, 1042-S, and 8935 are subject to annual review and possible change. If you have comments about the restrictions on including logos, slogans, and advertising on information returns and payee copies, send or email your comments to: Internal Revenue Service, Attn: Substitute Forms Program, SE:W:CAR:MP:T:M:S, 1111 Constitution Avenue, NW, Room 6526, Washington, DC 20224 or substituteforms@irs.gov.

Proposed substitutes of Copy A must be exact replicas of the official IRS form with respect to layout and content. Proposed substitutes for Copy A that do not conform to the specifications in this revenue procedure are not acceptable. Further, if you file such forms with the IRS, you may be subject to a penalty for failure to file a correct information return under section 6721 of the Code. The amount of the penalty is based on when you file the correct information return. The penalty is:

Copy B and Copy C of the following forms must contain the information in Part 4 to be considered a “statement” or “official form” under the applicable provisions of the Code. The format of this information is at the discretion of the filer with the exception of the location of the tax year, form number, form name, and the information for composite Form 1099 statements as outlined under Section 4.2.

Copy B, of the forms below, are for the following recipients.

Copy C of the following forms are:

Form identifying numbers (for example, 9191 for Form 1099-DIV) must be printed in nonreflective black carbon-based ink in print positions 15 through 19 using an OCR A font. The check boxes to the right of the form identifying numbers must be 10-point boxes. The “VOID” checkbox is in print position 25 (1.9” from left vertical line of the form). The “CORRECTED” check box is in print position 33 (2.7” from left vertical line of the form). Measurements are from the left edge of the paper, not including the perforated strip. See Exhibits G and Q.

The substitute form Copy A must be an exact replica of the official IRS form with respect to layout and content. To determine the correct form measurements, see Exhibits A through FF at the end of this publication.

Hot wax and cold carbon spots are not permitted on any of the internal form plies. These spots are permitted on the back of a mailer top envelope ply.

Use of chemical transfer paper for Copy A is acceptable.

The Government Printing Office (GPO) symbol must be deleted.

Color and paper quality for Copy A (cut sheets and continuous pinfeed forms) as specified by JCP Code 0-25, dated November 29, 1978, must be white 100% bleached chemical wood, optical character recognition (OCR) bond produced in accordance with the following specifications.

Chemical transfer paper is permitted for Copy A only if the following standards are met:

All copies must be clearly legible. Fading must be minimized to assure legibility.

All print on Copy A of Forms 1097-BTC, 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, 5498, and the print on Form 1096 above the statement, “Return this entire page to the Internal Revenue Service. Photocopies are not acceptable.” must be in Flint J-6983 red OCR dropout ink or an exact match. However, the four-digit form identifying number must be in nonreflective carbon-based black ink in OCR A font.

The shaded areas of any substitute form should generally correspond to the format of the official form.

The printing for the Form 1096 statement and the following text may be in any shade or tone of black ink. Black ink should only appear on the lower part of the reverse side of Form 1096, where it will not bleed through and interfere with scanning.

Separation between fields must be 0.1 inch.

Except for Forms 1097-BTC, 1099-R, and 1099-MISC, the numbered captions are printed as solid with no shaded background.

Other printing requirements are discussed below.

You must initiate or have a quality control program to assure OCR ink density. Readings will be made when printed on approved 20 lb. white OCR bond with a reflectance of not less than 80%. Black ink must not have a reflectance greater than 15%. These readings are based on requirements of the “Scan-Optics Series 9000” Optical Scanner using Flint J-6983 red OCR dropout ink or an exact match.

The following testers and ranges are acceptable:

Important information: The forms produced under these specifications must be guaranteed to function properly when processed through High Speed Scan-Optics 9000 mm scanners. Forms require precision spacing, printing, and trimming.

Density readings on the solid J-6983 (red) must be between the ranges of 0.95 to 0.90. The optimal scanning range is 0.93. Density readings on the solid black must be between the ranges of 112 to 108. The optimal scanning range is 110.

Type must be substantially identical in size and shape to the official form. All rules are either ¹/₂-point or ³/₄-point. Rules must be identical to those on the official IRS form.

Generally, three copies A of Forms 1098, 1099, 3921, and 3922 are contained on a single page, 8 inches wide (without any snap-stubs and/or pinfeed holes) by 11 inches deep.

There is a .33 inch top margin from the top of the corrected box, and a .2 to .25 inch right margin, with a +/-120 (0.05) inch tolerance for the right margin. If the right and top margins are properly aligned, the left margin for all forms will be correct. All margins must be free of print. See Exhibits A through FF in this publication for correct form measurements.

These measurements are constant for certain Forms 1098, 1099, and 5498. These measurements are shown only once in this publication, on Form 1098 (Exhibit C). Exceptions to these measurements are shown on the rest of the exhibits.

The depth of the individual trim size of each form on a page must be 323 inches, the same depth as the official form.

Copy A (three per page; two per page for Forms 1097-BTC, 1099-B, 1099-DIV, 1099-K, 1099-MISC, 1099-R, 3921, 3922, 5498, or 1042-S) of privately printed continuous substitute forms must be perforated at each 11″ page depth. No perforations are allowed between the 3²/₃″ forms or 5¹/₂″ forms on a single copy page of Copies A.

The words “Do Not Cut or Separate Forms on This Page” must be printed in red dropout ink (as required by form specifications) between the three forms or two forms per page.

You must include the OMB Number on Copies A and Form 1096 in the same location as on the official form.

The words “For Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act Notice, see the current version of the General Instructions for Certain Information Returns” must be printed on Copy A; “For more information and the Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act Notice, see the 2012 General Instructions for Certain Information Returns” must be printed on Form 1096.

A postal indicia may be used if it meets the following criteria:

The printer’s symbol (GPO) must not be printed on substitute Copy A. Instead, the employer identification number (EIN) of the form’s printer must be entered in the bottom margin on the face of each individual form of Copy A, or on the bottom margin on the back of each Form 1096.

The Catalog Number (Cat. No.) shown on the forms is used for IRS distribution purposes and should not be printed on any substitute forms.

The form must not contain the statement “IRS approved” or any similar statement.

The form recipient’s name, street address, city, state, ZIP code, and telephone number (if required) should be typed or machine printed in black ink in the same format as shown on the official IRS form. The city, state, and ZIP code must be on the same line.

The following rules apply to the form recipient’s name(s):

Because certain states require that trust accounts be provided in a different format, filers generally should provide information returns reflecting payments to trust accounts with the:

Although handwritten forms will be accepted, the IRS prefers that filers type or machine print data entries. Also, filers should insert data in the middle of blocks well separated from other printing and guidelines, and take measures to guarantee clear, dark black, sharp images. Photocopies are not acceptable.

Use the account number box on all Forms 1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, 5498, and W-2G for an account number designation when required by the official IRS form. The account number is required if you have multiple accounts for a recipient for whom you are filing more than one information return of the same type. Additionally, the IRS encourages you to include the recipients’ account numbers on paper forms if your system of records uses the account number rather than the name or TIN for identification purposes. Also, the IRS will include the account number in future notices to you about backup withholding. If you are using window envelopes to mail statements to recipients and using reduced rate mail, be sure the account number does not appear in the window. The Postal Service may not accept these for reduced rate mail.

Machine-printed forms should be printed using a 6 lines/inch option, and should be printed in 10 pitch pica (10 print positions per inch) or 12 pitch elite (12 print positions per inch). Proportional spaced fonts are unacceptable.

Substitute forms prepared in continuous or strip form must be burst and stripped to conform to the size specified for a single sheet before they are filed with the IRS. The size specified does not include pin feed holes. Pin feed holes must not be present on forms filed with the IRS.

Mail completed paper forms to the IRS service center shown in the Instructions for Form 1096 and in the 2012 General Instructions for Certain Information Returns. Specific information needed to complete the forms mentioned in this revenue procedure are given in the specific form instructions. A chart, showing which form must be filed to report a particular payment, is included in the 2012 General Instructions for Certain Information Returns.

The following specifications give the format requirements for substitute Form W-2G (Copy A only), which is filed with the IRS.

A filer may use a substitute Form W-2G to file with the IRS (referred to as “substitute Copy A”). The substitute form must be an exact replica of the official form with respect to layout and content.

You must follow these specifications when printing substitute Copy A of the Form W-2G.

If you do not use the official IRS form to furnish statements to recipients, you must furnish an acceptable substitute statement. Information presented in substitute statements should be in a point size large enough to be easily read by recipients. To be acceptable, your substitute statement must comply with the rules in this Part. If you are furnishing a substitute form, see Regulations sections 1.6042-4, 1.6044-5, 1.6049-6, and 1.6050N-1 to determine how the following statements must be provided to recipients for most Forms 1099-DIV and 1099-INT, all Forms 1099-OID and 1099-PATR, and Form 1099-MISC or 1099-S for royalties. Generally, information returns may be furnished electronically with the consent of the recipient. See Section 4.6.1.

The rules in this section apply to Form 1099-B, 1099-INT (except for interest reportable under section 6041), 1099-DIV (except for section 404(k) dividends), 1099-OID, and 1099-PATR only. You may furnish form recipients with Copy B of the official Form 1099 or a substitute Form 1099 (form recipient statement) if it contains the same information as the official IRS form (such as aggregate amounts paid to the form recipient, any backup withholding, the name, address, and TIN of the person making the return, and any other information required by the official form). Information not required by the official form should not be included on the substitute form except for state income tax withholding information.

Exception for supplementary information. The substitute form may include supplementary information that will assist the payee with completing his or her tax return. Such information could include expense and cost basis factors related to the reporting for widely held fixed investment trusts (WHFITs), as required under Regulation section 1.671-5. It can also include information related to the purchases of debt instruments, such as bond premium, market discount or acquisition premium. The substitute statement should disclose to the payee that such supplementary information is not furnished to the IRS. See Section 4.3 for additional requirements when providing supplemental information with the Form 1099-B that is not furnished to the IRS.

Form 1099-B. Brokers that use substitute statements should segregate dispositions of noncovered securities from covered securities, and further segregate long-term and short-term dispositions of covered securities (for 2011 these segregations were not required; they are required for 2012 dispositions). They may also segregate long-term from short-term dispositions of noncovered securities, to the extent that date acquired is known. For 2012 dispositions and 2012 dispositions for which aggregation is done, the substitute Forms 1099-B may have up to five separate sections, each with a heading identifying which securities are included in the list, and each separately totaled. Each section, after totaling or within the heading for the section, should indicate how to report the transactions on Form 8949, as indicated.

For each section, each transaction may include information not reported to the IRS, such as basis, date acquired, and gain or loss. Therefore, for short-term dispositions where basis was not reported to the IRS, basis and date acquired may be shown just as it would be shown for short-term dispositions where basis was reported to the IRS.

For 2012 dispositions, each of the applicable sections must have Sales Price and Cost or Other Basis (if known) separately totaled. Net gain or loss, if included for any of the sections, may also be totaled.

The substitute form requirements in the following paragraphs also apply to Form 1099-B.

Form 1099-INT, DIV, OID, and PATR. A substitute form recipient statement for Forms 1099-INT, 1099-DIV, 1099-OID, or 1099-PATR must comply with the following requirements:

You may enter a total of the individual accounts listed on the form only if they have been paid by the same payer. For example, if you are listing interest paid on several accounts by one financial institution on Form 1099-INT, you may also enter the total interest amount. You may also enter a date next to the corrected box if that box is checked.

Statements to form recipients for Forms 1097-BTC, 1098, 1098-C, 1098-E, 1098-MA,1098-T, 1099-A, 1099-C, 1099-CAP, 1099-G, 1099-H, 1099-K, 1099-LTC, 1099-MISC, 1099-Q, 1099-R, 1099-S, 1099-SA, 3921, 3922, 5498, 5498-ESA, 5498-SA, 8935, W-2G, 1099-DIV (only for section 404(k) dividends reportable under section 6047), and 1099-INT (only for interest of $600 or more made in the course of a trade or business reportable under section 6041) can be copies of the official forms or an acceptable substitute.

To be acceptable, a substitute form recipient statement must meet the following requirements.

A composite form recipient statement is permitted for reportable payments of interest, dividends, original issue discount, patronage dividends, and royalties. The following forms may be included on a composite substitute statement, when one payer is reporting more than one of these payments during a calendar year to the same form recipient.

Generally, do not include any other Form 1099 information (for example, 1098 or 1099-A) on a composite statement with the information required on the forms listed in the preceding sentence.

Although the composite form recipient statement may be on one sheet, the format of the composite form recipient statement must satisfy the following requirements in addition to the requirements listed earlier in Section 4.1.2, 4.3 and 4.4, as applicable.

A composite form recipient statement for the forms specified in Section 4.1.3 is permitted when one filer is reporting more than one type of payment during a calendar year to the same form recipient. A composite statement is not allowed for a combination of forms listed in Section 4.1.3 and forms listed in Section 4.1.2.

Although the composite form recipient statement may be on one sheet, the format of the composite form recipient statement must satisfy the requirements listed in Section 4.2.1 as well as the requirements in Section 4.1.3. A composite statement of Forms 1098 and 1099-INT (for interest reportable under section 6049) is not allowed.

A filer may include Form 1099-B information on a composite form with the forms listed in Section 4.1.2. Therefore supporting, explanatory, or comparable relevant information for covered and noncovered lots on the 1099-B portion of the composite statement can be included. This information includes display on the payee statement of data elements such as basis for noncovered lots, explanatory remarks on permissible basis adjustments for covered lots descriptions of the type of transaction (merger, buy to close, redemption, etc.), identification of contingent payment debt obligations, and lot relief methods.

If you wish to provide additional information to the investor on the same substitute recipient Form 1099-B, the form must follow the rules set forth in this Section 4.3 and should clearly delineate how the information is presented. Any information presented should make reference to its corresponding number on the official form as appropriate. You should clearly categorize each type of information you are reporting.

An additional separate legend is required that explains exactly which pieces of information are and which are not reported to the IRS to the extent, if any, the information is not already identified as not being reported to the IRS as described in Section 4.1.2. It should clearly explain how the information is presented. You may present this legend in a way that is consistent with your design as long as it clearly indicates which information is being provided to the IRS. Additionally, a reminder to taxpayers that they are ultimately responsible for the accuracy of their tax returns is also required.

Form 1098 recipient statements (Copy B) must contain the following legends:

Recipient statements for these forms must contain the following legends:

Copies B, C, and in some cases, D, 1, and 2 are included in the official assembly for the convenience of the filer. You are not legally required to include all these copies with the privately printed substitute forms. Furnishing Copies B and, in some cases, C will satisfy the legal requirement to provide statements of information to form recipients.

Copy A (“For Internal Revenue Service Center”) of all forms must be on top. The rest of the assembly must be arranged, from top to bottom, as follows. For:

Perforations are recommended between forms on all copies except Copy A to make separating the forms easier. Recipient copies, including those that are printed on a single sheet of paper, must be easily separated. The best method of separation is to provide perforations between the individual copies. Each copy should be easily distinguished whatever method of separation is used.

Perforations or other means of separation are required between forms on all copies except Copy A to make separating the forms easier. Exception: Copy A of Form W-2G may be perforated.

If you are required to furnish a written statement (Copy B or an acceptable substitute) to a recipient, then you may furnish the statement electronically instead of on paper. This includes furnishing the statement to recipients of Forms 1098, 1098-E, 1098-MA, 1098-T, 1099-A, 1099-B, 1099-C, CAP, DIV, G, H, INT, K, LTC, MISC, OID, PATR, Q, R, S, SA, 3921, 3922, 5498, 5498-ESA, 5498-SA, and 8935. It also includes Form W-2G (except for horse and dog racing, jai alai, sweepstakes, wagering pools, and lotteries).

If you meet the requirements listed below, you are treated as furnishing the statement timely.

The recipient must consent in the affirmative and not have withdrawn the consent before the statement is furnished. The consent by the recipient must be made electronically in a way that shows that he or she can access the statement in the electronic format in which it will be furnished. You must notify the recipient of any hardware or software changes prior to furnishing the statement. A new consent to receive the statement electronically is required after the new hardware or software is put into service. Prior to furnishing the statements electronically, you must provide the recipient a statement with the following statements prominently displayed:

Additionally, you must:

For more information, see Regulations section 31.6051-1. For electronic furnishing of Forms 1098-E and 1098-T, see Regulations sections 1.6050S-2 and 1.6050S-4. For electronic furnishing of Forms 1099-R, 1099-SA, 1099-Q, 5498, 5498-ESA, and 5498-SA, see Notice 2004-10, 2004-1 C.B. 433.

Paper substitutes of Copy A for Form 1042-S, Foreign Person’s U.S. Source Income Subject to Withholding, that totally conform to the specifications contained in this procedure may be privately printed without prior approval from the Internal Revenue Service. Proposed substitutes not conforming to these specifications must be submitted for consideration.

The request should be submitted by November 15 of the year prior to the year the form is to be used. This is to allow the Service adequate time to respond and the submitter adequate time to make any corrections. These requests should contain a copy of the proposed form, the need for the specific deviation(s), and the number of information returns to be printed.

Form 1042-S is subject to annual review and possible change. Withholding agents and form suppliers are cautioned against overstocking supplies of the privately printed substitutes.

Copies of the official form for the reporting year may be obtained from most Service offices. The Service provides only cut sheets of these forms. Continuous fan-fold/pin-fed forms are not provided.

Instructions for withholding agents:

The Paperwork Reduction Act (the Act) of 1995 (Public Law 104-13) requires that:

This information must be provided to any users of official or substitute IRS forms or instructions.

The OMB requirements for substitute IRS forms are:

All substitute forms (Copy A only) must state “For Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act Notice, see the 2012 General Instructions for Certain Information Returns.” (or “For Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act Notice, see separate instructions.” for Copy A of Form 1042-S).

If no instructions are provided to users of your forms, you must furnish them with the exact text of the Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act Notice.

You can order official IRS forms and information copies of federal tax materials at local IRS offices or by calling the IRS National Distribution Center at 1-800-829-3676. Other ways to get federal tax material include the following.

The DVD contains approximately 2,500 tax forms and publications for small businesses, return preparers, and others who frequently need current or prior year tax products. Most current tax forms on the DVD may be filled in electronically, then printed out for submission and saved for recordkeeping. Other products on the DVD include the Internal Revenue Bulletins, Tax Supplements, and Internet resources and links for the tax professional. For system requirements, contact the National Technical Information Service (NTIS) at http://www.ntis.gov.

Prices are subject to change. The cost of the DVD if purchased from NTIS at http://www.irs.gov/formspubs/article/0,,id=108660,00.html is $30 (with no handling fee). If purchased using the following methods, the cost for each DVD is $30 (plus a $6 handling fee). These methods are:

Revenue Procedure 2011-60, 2011-52 I.R.B. 934, dated December 27, 2011, is superseded.

Exhibits A through FF illustrate some of the specifications that were discussed earlier in this revenue procedure. The dimensions apply to the actual size forms, but the exhibits have been reduced in size.

Generally, the illustrated dimensions apply to all like forms. For example, Exhibit C shows 11.00″ from the top edge to the bottom edge of Form 1098 and .85″ between the bottom rule of the top form and the top rule of the second form on the page. These dimensions apply to all forms that are printed three to a page.

Keep in mind the following guidelines when printing substitute forms.