# What trouble might arise from switching a W-2 employee to 1099 contractor status and then back to W-2? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 14, 2024, 6:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-trouble-might-arise-from-switching-a-w-2-employee-to-1099-contractor-status-and-then-back-to-w-2/1000258 "2024-04-14T06:55:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2024, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-trouble-might-arise-from-switching-a-w-2-employee-to-1099-contractor-status-and-then-back-to-w-2/1000258/21 "2024-04-14T20:24:19Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > What kind of legal trouble might the company or myself get in trouble with the IRS or government with for switching back and forth like this? We don’t allow these kinds of shenanigans at my company for fear of running into trouble with both the Department of Labor and the IRS for missclassification of an employee as an independent contractor. There might be some other complications if you’re working from outside the country especially if your “employer” isn’t used to dealing with Taiwan labor laws. There may be some problems with _you_ working while in Taiwan. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2024, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-trouble-might-arise-from-switching-a-w-2-employee-to-1099-contractor-status-and-then-back-to-w-2/1000258/22 "2024-04-14T20:26:53Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > One question that the OP didn’t explicitly answer is this: is the work being done in America and in Taiwan the same job? If it’s essentially the same duties, then the company should treat the OP as an employee, regardless of where the OP is located. Yes, it’s the same job with the same duties, although I’d be on a different schedule (due to time zone night and day difference.) That’s why I suspected the company might get in trouble if they classify me as 1099 despite my work being the same as when I was on W-2. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2024, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-trouble-might-arise-from-switching-a-w-2-employee-to-1099-contractor-status-and-then-back-to-w-2/1000258/23 "2024-04-14T20:27:15Z")
> [@racer72](#): > > I chose option C, take my $5000 bonus for staying the full 3 months and go back into retirement. I took the union’s advice and paid my income taxes for each part of each quarter I worked. Never had any issues with the IRS and still received a refund when I filed taxes for that year. I wouldn’t expect you to have issues with the IRS but someone might come knocking on Boeing’s door one of these days. It used to be one of my many functions at work to tell managers they could not bring a recent retiree back to the office as a contractor to essentially do the same job they were doing for us when they retired. You and your fellow laid off/retiree contractors might have a case against Boeing for misclassifying you as an employee as you might be entitled to benefits. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2024, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-trouble-might-arise-from-switching-a-w-2-employee-to-1099-contractor-status-and-then-back-to-w-2/1000258/24 "2024-04-14T20:33:35Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > If an employer pays salary only and offers no benefits, can they classify anyone they like as 1099, or do certain restrictions still apply (such as the employee cannot be issued a company laptop, cannot be working on a required time schedule as everyone else, etc.)? The [Department of Labor](https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fact-sheets/13-flsa-employment-relationship) looks at several factors to determine whether someone is an employee or a contractor: 1. Opportunity for profit or loss depending on managerial skill, 2. Investments by the worker and the employer, 3. Permanence of the work relationship, 4. Nature and degree of control, 5. Whether the work performed is integral to the employer’s business, and 6. Skill and initiative. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2024, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-trouble-might-arise-from-switching-a-w-2-employee-to-1099-contractor-status-and-then-back-to-w-2/1000258/25 "2024-04-14T21:10:36Z")
[Moderating] > [@TriPolar](#): > > And the IRS will lie also. Irrelevant to the question. Let’s not make this political in FQ. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-trouble-might-arise-from-switching-a-w-2-employee-to-1099-contractor-status-and-then-back-to-w-2/1000258.md?page=1)