How to Get a 1099-INT From a Bank

Banks and other financial institutions issue Form 1099-INT each year to report interest income. Copies go to the IRS, your state tax department and you, if you earned at least ​$10​ during the tax year. Your bank's deadline for sending out 1099-INTs is ​January 31​. You should contact the bank by mid-February if you don't receive the expected copy.

Banks must send Form 1099-INT to all customers who:

• Earned at least ​$10​ in interest in the tax year ​or​
• Earned interest on which the bank withheld and paid a foreign tax ​or​
• Were subject to backup withholding rules, which kick in if the bank doesn't have your Social Security Number or other taxpayer identification or if you failed to report all your interest and dividend income on a previous federal tax return.

Banks don't file a 1099-INT for interest paid to a corporation, tax-exempt organization, IRA or other tax-sheltered accounts. Non-U.S. banks do not file Form 1099-INT on foreign interest paid outside the United States.

Banks report only the interest paid during the tax year. In some cases, the payment date occurs when you submit a request for payment, such as when you cash in a U.S. Savings Bond.

If you enroll in online banking, you may be able to get your 1099-INT by visiting the bank's website and checking your statements and documents. Many financial institutions allow you to print copies or download PDFs of your tax forms.

If you prefer, you can phone your bank's customer service department or send it an email requesting the form. You can also discuss why you never received one. The postal service might have lost it, or the bank may have determined that it did not have to issue you one.

Pay particular attention to any cases where the financial institution doesn't have your taxpayer ID number (TIN). If you fail to provide a valid one, the IRS may impose a penalty and backup withholding.

You must pay tax on your interest income unless the interest is tax-exempt or earned in a tax-sheltered account such as an IRA. Typical sources of taxable interest income include bank accounts, certificates of deposit, money market accounts and deposited insurance dividends. So-called "dividends" from credit unions, cooperative banks, building and loan associations, mutual savings banks and federal savings and loan associations are actually interest.

Interest payments from Treasury debt are taxable at the federal level but exempt from state and local income taxes. You can include in your federal taxable income interest from U.S. savings bonds or postpone taxes until the bonds mature or you redeem them.

When you purchase bonds below their issued price, you may receive taxable interest as an original issue discount, reported on Form 1099-OID. Include taxable OID on Schedule B and Form 1040.

​Read More​: About the Different Types of 1099 Tax Forms: What You Should Know

Some interest is tax-exempt, including that from qualified municipal bonds, savings bonds redeemed to pay for qualified higher education expenses and interest on insurance dividends left on deposit with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

​Read More​: What Does Tax Exempt Mean?

You must report all taxable and tax-exempt interest greater than ​$0.50​ on your federal tax form, even if you didn't receive a 1099-INT. If you receive ​more than $1,500​ in taxable interest for the year, you'll have to list each payer and amount on Schedule B of Form 1040. You may have to use Schedule B for several other reasons described in the IRS instructions.

In any event, you must enter your total tax-exempt and taxable interest income on ​Lines 2a and 2b​, respectively, of Form 1040. Attach your Schedule B, if any, to your 1040.

​Read More​: How Much Do I Need to Make in Order to Report on a 1099-INT?