Relay's W-9 report lets you download every W-9 you've collected from your payees as a single zip file, ready for 1099 prep in QuickBooks Online, Xero, or your tax platform.
What you need before you start
A Relay Account on the Starter Plan, Grow Plan, or Scale Plan
Desktop access to Relay (the report is not available in the mobile app)
Administrator permissions on the account, either as the business owner or an advisor
At least one payee with a completed W-9 already on file
How do I run a W-9 report as a business owner?
Follow these five steps to generate the report from your own Relay Account.
Sign in to your Relay Account on desktop at relayfi.com.
Open the Payments section from the left navigation.
Click Payees to see the list of payees on the account.
Select Run W-9 Report from the top-right menu.
Confirm the download to save a zip file with all collected W-9 data.
The zip file includes a CSV of extracted fields plus the original PDF of each W-9.
How do I run a W-9 report as an accountant or advisor?
Advisors can pull W-9 reports across all their Relay clients at once, or for one client at a time.
To run a report across every client account:
Sign in to your advisor dashboard on desktop.
Select Run W-9 Report from the top-level menu.
Confirm the download to receive a combined report.
To run a report for a single client:
Locate the client in your client list.
Open that client's account.
Select Run W-9 Report from the payee menu.
Confirm the download.
What data is included in a W-9 report?
Each row in the CSV includes the fields Relay collects from a completed W-9:
Payee name
Federal ID type (EIN, SSN, ITIN, or ATIN)
Federal ID number
Address
Email
Entity type
Exempt payee code
FATCA exemption status
The zip file also contains the source PDF for every payee, so you can attach the original W-9 to your vendor records.
How does the CSV work with 1099, QuickBooks Online, and Xero?
The CSV export is formatted for direct upload into 1099 filing platforms, QuickBooks Online, and Xero. Column headers line up with the vendor-import fields those systems expect, so you can map fields on import without reformatting the file.
When does Relay collect W-9s from payees?
Relay collects W-9s during payee setup, but only when the W-9 requirement is turned on for that payee.
When you add a new payee, check the W-9 form required box in the setup flow.
Relay sends the payee a secure link to upload their signed W-9.
Once the payee submits the form, it is stored on their record and included in every future W-9 report.
Can I upload a W-9 for a payee I already created?
No. Once a payee has been created, there is no option for you or the payee to upload a W-9 manually.
To collect a W-9 from an existing payee, use this workaround:
Archive the existing payee.
Recreate the payee with the W-9 form required box checked at setup.
Wait for the payee to submit the form using the new secure link.
The completed W-9 will appear in your next report.
Who has permission to run a W-9 report?
Only Administrators can run W-9 reports. That includes:
The business owner on their own Relay Account
Advisors with Administrator access on a client account
Team members at lower permission levels will not see the Run W-9 Report option in the menu.
Common issues
The Run W-9 Report option is missing. You are likely signed in on the mobile app or your role is below Administrator. Switch to desktop and confirm your permission level in Team & Advisors.
A payee is missing from the report. The W-9 form required box was not checked when the payee was created, or the payee has not submitted their form yet. Archive and recreate the payee to re-trigger the collection flow.
The zip file is empty. No completed W-9s have been submitted yet. Confirm at least one payee has a W-9 on file before running the report.
CSV import fails in QuickBooks Online or Xero. Compare the CSV column headers against your accounting software's vendor import template. Some platforms require adjusting the entity type field before import.
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