Your tax forms
W-9 (U.S.), W-8BEN (non-U.S. individual), W-8BEN-E (non-U.S. business), and where each is collected depending on your payout method.
How your tax info is collected depends on your payout method, which is set by your country (see Supported countries). The short version: if you are paid on Stripe Express, Stripe collects and holds your tax form during onboarding, and there is nothing to upload to Rekomi. If you are paid via PayPal, you upload your W-8 form directly to Rekomi.
Which form, and who collects it
| Your situation | Form | Collected and stored by | You upload to Rekomi? |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S., paid via Stripe Express | W-9 | Stripe (during Express onboarding) | No |
| Non-U.S., paid via Stripe Express | W-8BEN (individual) or W-8BEN-E (business) | Stripe (during Express onboarding) | No |
| Non-U.S., paid via PayPal | W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E | Rekomi (you upload at /a/settings) | Yes |
The U.S. always routes to Stripe Express, so U.S. affiliates always provide a W-9 through Stripe, not through Rekomi.
If you are paid via Stripe Express
Stripe collects your tax form as part of Express onboarding, alongside your identity and bank details. There is nothing else to upload to Rekomi. Stripe holds the form; Rekomi never sees your SSN, ITIN, or full tax document.
- U.S. residents provide a W-9 (your SSN or EIN).
- Non-U.S. residents provide a W-8BEN (individuals) or W-8BEN-E (businesses), which certify foreign status.
If you're paid via Stripe there is no upload option at all; Stripe already holds your form, and a brand that needs tax detail gets it through its own reporting.
If you are paid via PayPal
PayPal does not collect tax forms the way Stripe Express does, so foreign affiliates on PayPal upload their W-8 directly to Rekomi at /a/settings. Upload it before your first payout is due; PayPal payouts are held until a current signed W-8 is on file.
/a/settings has the "Tax forms" widget. Pick your form type from the list:
- W-8BEN: non-U.S. individuals
- W-8BEN-E: non-U.S. business entities
- W-9: U.S. persons (rarely needed here, since U.S. affiliates are routed to Stripe Express and provide their W-9 there)
The widget has three parts:
- PDF picker: upload the signed form. You fill out the IRS form on your end (or use a tax-form generator), download as PDF, and upload here.
- Signature: draw with your mouse, trackpad, or touchscreen, or type your name and pick a signature style. Either way it is saved securely alongside the form.
- Submit: stores the form privately and updates your status.
Private storage
The PDF is stored under a private path. The persisted URL is an opaque marker, not a directly-servable URL. When you or an authorized admin requests the form, the server mints a short-lived pre-signed URL (5-minute TTL) and returns that.
This means:
- Your SSN or ITIN never lands in a publicly accessible URL.
- The form is not in any CDN cache.
- If a URL is leaked, it expires in 5 minutes.
Expiry
A W-8 is valid through December 31 of the third year after you sign it. Your settings show the date your form is on file until, and we email you a reminder as it approaches expiry. Upload a freshly signed form before it expires to keep payouts flowing.
Retention
Prior uploads are retained for 7 years per IRS requirements, then deleted automatically by a scheduled retention job (it removes the stored file first, then the record).
The 1099-NEC
The brand that pays you is the payer of record (the entity responsible for U.S. tax reporting). If your earnings from a single brand cross the IRS reporting threshold in a calendar year, that brand issues your 1099-NEC; Rekomi gives brands the report they need to do it. Brands review anyone over $600 and issue a 1099-NEC where the IRS threshold is met. Stripe collects your W-9 during Express onboarding, so you rarely need to send anything extra.
If you're paid via PayPal, a current signed W-8 is required before any payout can be sent, so upload yours before your first payout is due.
Status
Your tax-form status on /a/settings (for the PayPal upload) is either empty (nothing uploaded), On file (your signed form is on file), or Expired (a lapsed form that needs a fresh upload). If a brand has a question about your form, they will contact you directly.
If you're paid via Stripe, your tax status is part of your Stripe Express account standing rather than a Rekomi upload status.
Updating your form
You can upload a new form at any time; the new upload supersedes the prior version, and brands always see the latest. Common reasons to re-upload: your tax classification changed (individual to LLC, sole prop to S-corp), your address changed, there was a typo on the first upload, or your W-8 is approaching its expiry date. If you're paid via Stripe, update your details in Stripe Express instead.
Non-U.S. residency and withholding
Filing the right W-8 certifies your foreign status, so no US withholding regime applies to your earnings. Rekomi never deducts tax withholding from a payout. Instead, if you do not have a valid W-8 on file and you're paid via PayPal, the payout is held until you provide one.