Taxes

Why am I receiving this message from Shopkick? 

Under current Internal Revenue Service (‘IRS’) regulations, businesses such as Shopkick must report payments to a single individual where the total value exceeds $600. As a Shopkick user who earned more than $600 in kicks through rewards (‘Shopkick rewards’) during 2023 you may be subject to additional personal tax reporting requirements.  

What tax reporting is required?  

Shopkick is required to submit a ‘Form 1099’ to the IRS for any Shopkick user who earned $600 or more for certain types of Shopkick rewards. In order to submit the Form 1099, Shopkick needs to collect some additional information from you. 

You will receive a message from Shopkick via email and in the notification center under your personal settings in the Shopkick app. From here, you will be directed to complete our secure form to provide the necessary information.  

Please complete this secure form by January 28, 2024 so that we can submit the required information to the IRS by the required due date. 

Why are you asking me for this information now? 

We understand that tax related returns can be complicated. Rest assured that Shopkick has taken independent, expert legal advice in order to assess our reporting requirements under the current IRS regulations. Shopkick will only contact you if we are confident that the Shopkick rewards you have earned meet the $600 threshold and require us to submit a Form 1099 to the IRS. 

What are the $600 reporting thresholds and how does this apply to the kicks I have earned? 

The $600 threshold applies to payments received for goods and services transactions. It does not apply to kicks earned for purchases. It only applies to kicks earned for non-purchase redemptions such as ‘Kicks for Scans’, ‘Kicks for Walk-ins’ and kicks earned for activities such as viewing videos or ‘Instant Surprise Kicks’.   

If you have met the $600 threshold for the above or similar activities through using the Shopkick app or our related services, you will receive a message from Shopkick via email and in the notification center in the top right corner of the app. From here, you will be directed via a secure link to an online form to provide the additional information Shopkick needs to collect from you. If you do not receive a message from Shopkick asking you to provide this additional information, no further action is needed. 

What action do I need to take if I meet the $600 threshold? 

Check your email and the notification center in the top right corner of the app. 

If you need to provide additional information to Shopkick, you will receive a message or notification together with an individual link directing you to complete our secure online form. You must complete and submit this form by January 28, 2024.  Shopkick will then submit the required 1099 Form to the IRS by the required due date.  

You will receive a copy of your 1099 Form via our approved vendor, tax1099.com, once it has been approved by the IRS. This is likely to be early February 2024. Once you have received it, you should consider the amount shown on the 1099 Form with your tax advisor when calculating gross receipts and your personal income reporting requirements on your 2023 income tax return. Individual income tax reporting rules vary considerably, so your personal tax reporting obligations cannot be addressed here. For more information about what to do once you have received your 1099 Form, visit the IRS website here.   

How will Shopkick use my Individual Taxpayer Number (‘TIN’) or Social Security Number (‘SSN’)? 

Shopkick will only ever use and disclose your SSN or TIN when we have a specific legal requirement to do so for tax reporting or related statutory purposes. These details will be collected from you using a fully secure and encrypted site via a unique link provided to you by email or made available through the notification center under your personal settings in the Shopkick app.  

Shopkick may need to store records, including your name and TIN/SSN for a period of up to 7 years to meet our tax reporting and auditing requirements. These records will be encrypted and stored in a secure way that meets the strict data privacy and security requirements that Shopkick applies to our business and our vendors who process personal information on our behalf and for our business to remain compliant with government regulations. 

Where can I find out more information about these changes? 

You can find out more information about the 1099 Form, related tax reporting requirements, and your individual income tax reporting requirements here. 

For additional questions, please reach out to help@shopkick.com. 

Disclaimer 

The information in these FAQs is not intended to constitute or replace formal tax advice for your personal income tax reporting obligations. You should obtain advice from a qualified or licensed tax advisor in relation to your individual tax reporting requirements.