This Form 1042-S 2026 guide explains the IRS Foreign Person's U.S. Source Income Subject to Withholding. Form 1042-S identifies income, exemption, rate, recipient and withholding information under the applicable reporting rules. It is not a general statement that all foreign-person income is taxed at the same rate. Codes and status documentation must match the actual payment and recipient facts.
Reviewed October 31, 2026. This is an independent guide. The version and availability information below identifies the IRS documents used for this page.
What Form 1042-S 2026 does and who prepares it
A withholding agent reports the covered income and withholding information to a foreign recipient and the IRS.
For the connected reporting route, see Form 1042. Keep the role of that document separate from the task explained on this page.
| Official form | Form 1042-S |
|---|---|
| IRS title | Foreign Person's U.S. Source Income Subject to Withholding |
| Guide period | 2026 |
| Target version | 2026 |
| Availability | Current IRS catalog PDF |
| Last checked | October 31, 2026 |
Get the Form 1042-S 2026 PDF and check its status
Use the IRS source to confirm the document before completing a real filing. The download link is a reference to the official file; it is not a statement that every copy inside the PDF may be printed and submitted. Follow any instructions about electronic filing, scannable copies, recipient copies or attachments.
Which version of Form 1042-S 2026 should you use?
The 2026 in the title identifies the tax year or calendar-year information addressed by this guide. For a 2026 income reporting document, the preparation or filing activity may occur in 2027. Do not change the income year simply because the calendar has changed. The exact filing or furnishing date comes from the instructions for this form and the filer circumstances.
Records to gather for Form 1042-S 2026
- Payment and withholding records.
- Recipient foreign-status certificates.
- Income-code support.
- Treaty documentation when applicable.
- Filing and correction records.
Keep a working reconciliation with these records. It should show the source of each reported item, any correction made before filing and the reason a different amount appears on a connected form. This is especially useful when a statement is corrected or a prior-year balance continues into the current calculation.
How to work through Form 1042-S 2026
- Confirm applicability. Start with the purpose, filer category and version of the form. Complete any eligibility or applicability question before spending time on the numerical calculation.
- Prepare the source workpapers. Gather the records listed below and reconcile their totals. Keep prior-year balances, current-year transactions and estimated payments separate where they serve different purposes.
- Complete dependent calculations first. When a line refers to another form, schedule or worksheet, finish that supporting calculation first. Preserve any classification, limitation and carryforward information.
- Follow the line sequence. Use the actual line labels and arithmetic in the applicable form. A line number from an older version may refer to something different after a revision.
- Reconcile the filing package. Check names, identifying numbers, tax periods, totals and required attachments. Then use the filing method, signature process and deadline that apply to this filer and form.
Form-specific IRS instructions and reporting details
The following points retain the operative wording of the IRS documents linked above. Read each point with its stated conditions and the applicable form version. References to another form or section describe a connected requirement; they do not mean that every reader must file every referenced document.
Every withholding agent (defined in Definitions, later) must file an information return on Form 1042-S to report amounts paid during the preceding calendar year that are described under Amounts Subject to Reporting on Form 1042-S, later. However, withholding agents who are individuals are not required to report a payment on Form 1042-S if they are not making the payment as part of their trade or business and no withholding is required to be made on the payment.
For example, an individual making a payment of interest that qualifies for the portfolio interest exception from withholding is not required to report the payment if the portfolio interest is paid on a loan that is not connected to the individual’s trade or business. However, an individual who is a withholding agent paying an amount that actually has been subject to withholding is required to report the payment. Also, an individual paying an amount on which withholding is required must report the payment, whether or not the individual actually withholds.
See Multiple Withholding Agent Rule, later, for exceptions to reporting when another person has reported the same payment to the recipient. Note that there may be a payment for tax purposes, even if there is no net payment. For example, see Regulations section 1.871-15(i) for when there is a dividend equivalent.
Additional reporting conditions
Amounts subject to reporting on Form 1042-S are amounts from U.S. sources paid to foreign persons (including persons presumed to be foreign) or included in a U.S. payee pool that are reportable under chapters 3 and 4, even if no amount is deducted and withheld from the payment because of a treaty or Internal Revenue Code exception to taxation or if any amount withheld was repaid to the payee.
Amounts subject to reporting are amounts from sources within the United States that constitute (a) FDAP income (including deposit interest); (b) certain gains from the disposal of timber, coal, or domestic iron ore with a retained economic interest; and (c) gains relating to contingent payments received from the sale or exchange of patents, copyrights, and similar intangible property. A payment is also subject to reporting if withholding under chapter 4 is applied (or required to be applied) to the payment.
Amounts subject to reporting on Form 1042-S include, but are not limited to, the following amounts to the extent they are from U.S. sources.
Calculations and supporting information
Payments by U.S. Withholding Agents In general. U.S. withholding agents making payments described under Amounts Subject to Reporting on Form 1042-S, earlier, must file a separate Form 1042-S for each recipient who receives the income. Furthermore, withholding agents are not permitted to report multiple types of income on a single Form 1042-S (or substitute Form 1042-S) furnished to a recipient or on Copy A filed with the IRS. These filers must use a separate Form 1042-S (or substitute form) for information reportable on a single type of income.
Exceptions and related reporting
A QI that is applying the special pool reporting allowance provided in the QI agreement for certain partnerships or trusts (Agency Option) must file separate Forms 1042-S reflecting reporting pools for each partnership or trust that has provided reporting pool information in its withholding statement. A QDD cannot use the Agency Option.
For purposes of chapter 4, a QI that is an FFI may use chapter 4 reporting pool code 47 to allocate payments made to the partnership’s or trust’s payees that are nonparticipating FFIs and should report the partnership or trust as the recipient on Form 1042-S.
For chapter 3 purposes, if the payment is made directly by the partnership or trust to the recipient, the QI may use reporting pool code 31 (agency withholding rate pool—general) or 32 (agency withholding rate pool—exempt organization) as the chapter 3 status code (unless the QI is acting as a QDD with respect to the payment).
However, to the extent required in the QI agreement, the QI must file separate Forms 1042-S for partners, beneficiaries, or owners of such partnership or trust that are indirect partners, beneficiaries, or owners, and for direct partners, beneficiaries, or owners of such partnership or trust that are intermediaries or flow-through entities.
Further form details
An NQI and a flow-through entity are withholding agents and must file Forms 1042-S for amounts paid to recipients. However, an NQI or a flow-through entity is not required to file Form 1042-S if it is not required to file Form 1042-S under the Multiple Withholding Agent Rule, later.
An NQI or a flow-through entity may report payments made to recipients to the extent it has failed to provide to another withholding agent the appropriate documentation and complete withholding statement for either chapter 3 or 4 purposes or when an NQI receives a payment of an amount realized subject to section 1446(f) withholding from a broker that does not agree to report on Form 1042-S the NQI account holders receiving the payment.
Further form details
A withholding agent should use exemption code 11 (QSL that assumes primary withholding responsibility) for chapter 3 purposes only if the withholding agent makes a substitute dividend payment to a financial institution (including a QI) that represented on its Form W-8IMY that it is acting as a QSL for the account associated with the form. A withholding agent should use exemption code 12 (payee subjected to chapter 4 withholding) for chapter 3 purposes if the recipient has been withheld upon under chapter 4 and thus chapter 3 withholding does not apply.
When reporting a payment subject to chapter 4 withholding, ensure that 30% tax is withheld, remitted to the IRS, and correctly reported on Form 1042-S. See Special instructions for use of chapter 3 exemption codes, later. A withholding agent should use chapter 3 exemption code 23 for distributions made by a QIE to a qualified foreign pension fund (or an entity all of the interests of which are held by a qualified foreign pension fund) that are exempt under section 897(l).
A withholding agent should use chapter 3 exemption code 24 for income paid to a foreign government or an international organization that is exempt under section 892.
Reading the lines and boxes
These selected labels come from the linked target PDF. They are a reading aid, not a replacement for the full line instructions or a completed calculation. Match the label and document version before transferring any amount.
| Line or box | Label in the source form | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Income 2 Gross income 3 Chapter indicator. Enter “3” or “4” | Identify the income or transaction category before entering a total. Preserve the distinction between gross amounts, adjustments and the resulting taxable or reportable figure. |
| 3a | Exemption code | Check the applicable line instructions and keep the source workpaper with the return records. Transfer only the information that matches the field and reporting period. |
| 5 | Withholding allowance | Reconcile the relevant payment or withholding record with the tax period and category requested here. A reported payment is not necessarily the final tax liability. |
| 7a | Federal tax withheld | Reconcile the relevant payment or withholding record with the tax period and category requested here. A reported payment is not necessarily the final tax liability. |
| 7b | Check if federal tax withheld was not deposited with the IRS because | Reconcile the relevant payment or withholding record with the tax period and category requested here. A reported payment is not necessarily the final tax liability. |
Further selected fields
| Line or box | Label in the source form | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| 7c | Check if withholding occurred in subsequent year with respect to a | Use the date or tax period requested by this particular field. A payment date, acquisition date and return year can describe different facts. |
| 14a | Primary withholding agent’s name (if applicable) | Use the identity of the person or entity requested on this line. Check that the name and identification number agree with the underlying tax records. |
| 7d | Check if you are a qualified intermediary, withholding foreign | Reconcile the relevant payment or withholding record with the tax period and category requested here. A reported payment is not necessarily the final tax liability. |
| 15 | Check if pro-rata basis reporting | Use the supported tax basis or cost measure requested by the instructions. Book value, original purchase price and adjusted tax basis can differ. |
| 8 | Tax withheld by other agents | Reconcile the relevant payment or withholding record with the tax period and category requested here. A reported payment is not necessarily the final tax liability. |
A practical example
A foreign recipient receives an income statement and compares the payment and withholding details with its records. The withholding agent checks the underlying status documentation and any correction process before changing a reported code or amount.
This example illustrates the order of the review. It does not assume an unverified deduction, exemption, treaty rate or final tax amount. The applicable form instructions and the actual records determine the result.
Common mistakes to avoid with Form 1042-S 2026
- Read the income and exemption codes with the applicable instructions.
- Do not apply a reduced rate without the required support.
- Reconcile the recipient statement with the withholding agent annual reporting.
Questions about Form 1042-S 2026
Does receiving or downloading this form mean I must file it?
A withholding agent reports the covered income and withholding information to a foreign recipient and the IRS. The form purpose and the applicable filing or furnishing conditions determine the action. Downloading a blank PDF does not itself create a filing obligation or establish eligibility for a tax benefit.
Is the revision date always the same as the tax year?
No. Some forms show a tax year, while continuing-use forms show a revision date and ask separately for the reporting period. Check the actual document and instructions. Do not relabel a payment or transaction solely because it was reported in a later calendar year.
What should I do if the underlying information is wrong?
Read the income and exemption codes with the applicable instructions. Keep the original record and the correction trail. The issuer correction process, an amended return and an updated certificate can be different procedures. Choose the process that matches the document and the actual error.
Which records should I keep with the completed form?
Retain the source documents, applicable worksheets, submitted version and filing or furnishing confirmations. For this form, the working file should include payment and withholding records, recipient foreign-status certificates, income-code support. Keep continuing balances and prior-year support for as long as they remain relevant under the applicable recordkeeping rules.
Related forms and next steps
Use these guides when the connected issue applies to your records. Each page has its own purpose, reporting year and availability status.