Blog Posts
Welcome to the TIN Comply Blog, your go-to resource for insights on TIN Matching, Compliance, IRS Regulations, Identity Validation, and Industry Best Practices. Stay informed, stay compliant, and explore expert perspectives to help your business navigate regulatory challenges.
TIN Matching & Validation
EIN Discovery vs. TIN Matching: What's the Difference and When to Use Each
EIN discovery and TIN matching solve different problems. Here is when to use each, and how they work together when a vendor TIN comes back as a mismatch.
IRS TIN Matching Bulk File Format: How to Prepare, Submit, and Interpret Results
IRS bulk TIN matching takes up to 100,000 name and TIN pairs in a semicolon-delimited text file; the format rules are strict. Here is how to build one that passes.
IRS TIN Matching Result Codes: What Each One Means and What to Do Next
TIN matching result codes tell you whether a name and TIN pair matched IRS records. It covers all nine codes, the likely cause of each and what to do next.
The Real Cost of TIN Matching Errors: Why the IRS Penalty Is the Smaller Number
A TIN mismatch costs $340 per return for returns due in 2026. Staff time on B-Notices, corrected filings and vendor outreach usually costs more; here is the full picture.
Vendor Validation: Why TIN Matching Alone Is Not Enough
A W-9 on file is not a validated vendor. Vendor validation covers TIN matching, EIN verification and sanctions screening, and most AP teams do only one of the three.
What Is TIN Matching? A Complete Guide for AP Teams and 1099 Filers
TIN matching checks a vendor's name and TIN against IRS records before you file. Caught before filing, a mismatch costs nothing; caught after, it brings B-Notices, backup withholding and penalties.
W-9 & Vendor Data
1099 Season Planning Calendar: What AP Teams Should Be Doing Every Month of the Year
Most 1099 filing problems are created in the summer and discovered in January. This month-by-month calendar gives AP teams the actions and deadlines that keep filing season routine.
Inherited a Messy Vendor Master? How to Assess and Clean It Up Before It Costs You
Acquisitions, ERP migrations and years of manual entry leave vendor masters that look complete but are not. Here is how to assess and clean one before filing season.
The Most Common W-9 Errors That Cause IRS Mismatches - and How to Fix Each One
Most W-9 problems are the same few mistakes made by different vendors: wrong name format, wrong entity type, missing TIN, stale information. Here is how each happens and the fix.
The Vendor Compliance Lifecycle: What TIN Validation Looks Like at Every Stage
TIN validation at onboarding is the starting point, not the finish line. Here is what vendor compliance looks like across onboarding, the active relationship, and offboarding.
Vendor Data Hygiene: Why Stale TIN Records Create IRS Problems
Most AP teams validate TINs at onboarding and never again. But vendor data changes constantly, and stale records are the leading cause of B-Notices and 972CG penalties.
W-9 Management: The Complete Guide to Collecting, Validating, and Maintaining Vendor Tax Forms
W-9 management is the foundation of 1099 compliance, yet most teams treat it as a one-time onboarding task. Here is how to collect, validate and keep W-9s current.
IRS Notices & Enforcement
IRS CP2100 and B-Notices: The Complete Step-by-Step Response Workflow
A CP2100 starts a clock: First B-Notices within 15 business days, backup withholding after the payee's 30 business days, and a paper trail for the 972CG. Here is the workflow.
IRS Information Return Enforcement in 2025–2026: Automation, New Thresholds, and What AP Teams Should Know
A smaller IRS workforce now leans on automated matching, the 1099-NEC threshold is $2,000, and 1099-DA reporting is live. Here is what that means for AP teams.
IRS Notice 972CG: What It Means, How to Respond Within 45 Days, and How to Prevent It
Notice 972CG proposes a penalty for TIN mismatches, missing TINs, late filing or the wrong filing method. You have 45 days to respond. Here is what to send.
1099 Reporting & Forms
1099 Reporting for Law Firms: The Attorney Exception, Settlement Rules, and What's Changed for 2025–2026
Law firms pay outside counsel, experts and settlement recipients, and they receive 1099s themselves. This post covers the attorney exception, Box 10 gross proceeds and the 2025 to 2026 thresholds.
1099-K Compliance for Marketplace Platforms: How TPSO Rules Work After the OBBBA, and Why TIN Validation Scales Differently Than Filing Volume
Marketplace platforms file 1099-K, not 1099-NEC, and the threshold is back to $20,000 and 200 transactions. TIN validation at onboarding is the part that does not shrink with it.
Employee vs. Independent Contractor: How the IRS Makes the Determination and What's at Stake
Worker misclassification is a common and costly IRS compliance mistake. Here is how the IRS decides employee or contractor status and what is at stake if you get it wrong.
Form 1099-DA and TIN Compliance: What Digital Asset Brokers Need to Know Now
Form 1099-DA reporting is live for 2025 transactions. Brokers that validate customer TINs now are in a stronger position on backup withholding relief and penalties going into 2027.
IRS Form 1099-K Threshold Changes: What AP Teams and Payment Platforms Need to Know
Congress repealed the $600 1099-K threshold before it took effect. The threshold is $20,000 and 200 transactions for every year, and every payee still needs a valid TIN.
Sanctions, OFAC & AML
AML Compliance and TIN Matching: What AP Teams Need to Know
AML compliance is not only a bank problem. AP teams that pay vendors without TIN validation and sanctions screening carry real exposure, and here is what the connection looks like.
How Sanctions Screening Actually Works: Name Matching, False Positives, the 50% Rule, and Why Onboarding Is Not Enough
Sanctions screening is harder than checking a name against a list. It covers fuzzy matching, false positives, the 50 percent rule and why screening only at onboarding leaves a gap.
OFAC Compliance for Non-Financial Companies: What AP Teams Are Responsible For and Where Programs Fall Short
OFAC strict liability applies to every U.S. company, and AP usually makes the payment that becomes the violation. Here are the lists, the penalties and the screening program OFAC expects.
Sanctions Lists Explained: Which Ones Your AP Team Actually Needs to Screen Against
OFAC is one of 330+ sanctions and watchlists. Who you pay and where they operate decide which others you need to screen against; here is how to tell.
The 6th Anti-Money Laundering Directive: What US Businesses with EU Exposure Need to Know
The EU's 6th Anti-Money Laundering Directive widened criminal liability for money laundering. Here is what it means for US companies paying EU vendors, and which lists to screen against.
Regulatory & Industry
Healthcare Vendor Compliance: OIG Exclusion Screening and TIN Validation
Paying an OIG-excluded provider, even unknowingly, means repaying federal reimbursements and facing additional penalties. Here's what healthcare vendor compliance actually requires.
The Corporate Transparency Act in 2026: What Changed, What Still Applies, and Where Vendor Compliance Goes From Here
Since March 2025, U.S.-formed companies are exempt from beneficial ownership reporting to FinCEN; only certain foreign-formed companies still file. Here is what changed and what compliance teams should do instead.
More Articles
10DLC Brand Rejected for a Tax ID Mismatch? How to Fix It
The most common 10DLC brand rejection is a legal name that does not match the EIN. Here is why it happens and how to find the right name first.
Business Entity Verification (KYB): What a Check Should Include
Business entity verification, or KYB, confirms a company is real, is who it says it is and is not sanctioned. Here is what to check and where each answer lives.
FinCEN Real Estate Report: Verifying the Buyer and Seller Before Closing
FinCEN's residential real estate rule makes settlement agents report the buyer entity, its beneficial owners and the seller. Here is what to verify on each party and which tool fits.
FMCSA Carrier Lookup: What to Check Before You Tender a Load
An FMCSA lookup tells you a carrier is registered. Authority, insurance, out-of-service orders and the payee behind the carrier take a few more checks. Here is the list.
GIIN Lookup: How to Verify a GIIN on Form W-8BEN-E
A GIIN on Form W-8BEN-E is a claim the withholding agent has to confirm on the IRS FFI list. Here is how to look one up and handle a mismatch.
How Offshore AP and Shared Services Teams Run IRS TIN Matching
Vendor onboarding moved to shared services centers abroad, but IRS access did not. Here is how a US payer owns the TIN Comply account and adds offshore staff as users.
How to Verify a Nonprofit's 501(c)(3) Status and EIN
Before a grant, a donation match or a vendor payment to a nonprofit, confirm the EIN is theirs and the exemption is current. Here is where to check.
How to Verify an EIN (and When You Can Confirm It With the IRS)
There is no public IRS site where you type in an EIN and get a yes or no. Here is what verifying one involves and when IRS confirmation is available.
LEI Lookup: How to Find and Verify a Legal Entity Identifier
A Legal Entity Identifier is a 20-character code that identifies one legal entity worldwide. Here is how to look one up, read the record and spot a lapsed LEI.
OFAC Search: How to Check a Name Against the SDN List (and What One Search Misses)
Searching a name on OFAC's site takes seconds. Knowing what a hit means, what a clean result does not prove and how to keep the check current is harder.