An independent contractor agreement—also known as a 1099 agreement or freelance contract—is a contract between a client willing to pay for the performance of services by a contractor (person, sole-proprietor, or single-member LLC) who is willing to perform the services. Under the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. §3509), an independent contractor is not an employee, and the client hiring an independent contractor is not responsible for tax withholdings and payment of FICA taxes. An independent contractor agreement should be in writing, and will usually address issues such as the (1) scope of the work (description of the services); (2) terms and length of the project or service; (3) payment details, including fee deposits and billing procedure; and (4) confidentiality, non-solicitation, and dispute resolution clauses.
