When Medical Survey Companies Send You a 1099 Form, & Taxes on Earnings (including Gift Cards)
- Nisha Mehta, MD
- 6 days ago
- 8 min read
Paid medical surveys are often one of the first side gigs that physicians embark upon, as they are flexible and allow you to use your medical expertise to contribute to the field, while also providing an additional income stream. While doing a few short paid surveys throughout the year likely won’t amount to much revenue, some physicians, especially those in specialties that tend to get the most opportunities, report making over $10,000 a year (of even multiple 5 figures!) when doing surveys regularly. It’s important to know that income made by doing medical surveys is taxable income, regardless of the way it’s paid out (gift cards, check, etc.). As such, you should report the income and pay taxes on it regardless, but depending on how much you make, you may also receive a 1099 form from the market research company reporting your side gig income to the IRS. In most cases, this creates very little hassle and you’ll just file it alongside your W2 and/or other 1099s. One thing to know though, is that having 1099 income can offer potential tax savings advantages to physicians that you wouldn’t otherwise have access to without 1099 income. Below, we cover when medical survey companies report your earnings as 1099 income, what that means, and potential upsides.
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How to find medical survey opportunities
Several research companies recruit physicians to be on their medical survey panels for opportunities related to their expertise. We have partnered with a few that are always looking for physicians as member resources for doctors interested in this side gig opportunity.
Our partners occasionally run special registration bonuses or offer specific additional opportunities to PSG members. Make sure you’ve signed up for the PSG weekly newsletter for alerts about these.
Once you’ve signed up with these companies, they will send out emails with information on surveys, and you will be paid accordingly for each survey you complete. Of note, many companies do not provide an incentive if you’re screened out of a survey, so often you will only get paid for completed surveys after you’ve qualified for the study.
Learn more about completing paid medical surveys for additional income.
Do I need an LLC for my medical survey side gig?
Income made with this side gig is taxable income, which medical survey companies will ask you for your federal tax ID when you register with them. This may be an employer identification number (EIN) that you’ve registered with the IRS or your social security number (SSN).
If you haven’t already, it can be worth getting an EIN so that you don’t have to report your SSN to multiple companies. The less your SSN is floating around, even with established, credible companies, the better. You do not need to set up a separate business entity in order to register for an EIN. You can establish an EIN even if you’re doing work under your own name as a sole proprietor.
If you’re regularly doing medical survey or other side gig work and pulling in a substantial income, it may be worth setting up an LLC instead of just an EIN. Limited liability companies (LLCs) can provide extra benefits, such as asset protection and potential tax advantages for physicians who make substantial earnings through their side gig work.
The vast majority of physicians aren’t going to make enough doing medical surveys alone to see the potential tax advantages you can get with an LLC, but can benefit from the increased privacy and asset protection.
LLCs require fees to form and to maintain annually, so they aren’t a good fit if you only plan on doing a few surveys.
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What is a 1099 and why does it matter for side gig income?
Regardless of whether you have an LLC or not, you may receive a 1099 from the survey companies you work with, depending on how much income you earn through your side gig.
A 1099-NEC is a tax form for nonemployee compensation that is used to report income earned outside of a traditional W2 employee/employer working arrangement.
When you’re a W2 employee, your employer tracks, withholds, submits, and reports payroll taxes on your behalf to the IRS. Companies don’t do this for independent contractors they work with under 1099 arrangements. As a 1099 contractor, you are required to track and submit your tax withholdings, but the company you work with is typically required to report annually what they paid you in the form of a 1099-NEC and to provide you a copy of this summary. They also send this reporting to the IRS when they file their annual 1096 tax form that summarizes the 1099 income they paid every contractor they worked with.
If the IRS receives reported 1099 income in your name greater than what you file with your annual tax return, this can be a major flag for a potential tax audit.
When will you get a 1099 from a medical survey company?
We say companies are typically required to send 1099s above because there is an income limit threshold for companies having to issue a form 1099 to an independent contractor. As of this writing in 2025, that amount is $600 annually, and has been for many years.
As 1099s are issued by companies to their contractors, this income limit is for each company you work with. For example, if you make $540 from Survey Company A and $445 from Survey Company B, you made $985 for the year with your side gig, but you likely won’t receive a 1099 from either company. If, however, you make $1,250 from Survey Company A and $3,205 from Survey Company B, you’ll receive 1099s either in the mail or electronically from both companies in the January of the following year.
The other thing to know is that some companies will set a threshold after which they will ask you to fill out a W9 for them, which allows them to send you the 1099, when you start approaching the $600 limit, just to make sure that you won’t go over it without them having the ability to send you a 1099. In these cases, they’ll typically hold off on sending you more surveys until you respond to the request for the W9.
What if I’m paid with gift cards or rewards points?
Some survey companies offer payment incentives through gift cards versus rewards points for completed surveys or additional bonuses.
When it comes to income for work performed or services rendered, the IRS doesn’t care if you are paid cash via ACH, by a gift card, or through other means. In their eyes, it all counts as taxable income.
If gift card values exceed the $600 annual threshold, you will likely still receive a 1099.
The IRS expects you to report the fair market value of all related compensation, even if the company doesn’t issue a 1099.
Do I have to report my medical survey income or compensation if I’m not sent a 1099?
It’s important to note that your income is taxable regardless of whether you receive a 1099 or not. Even if you don’t meet the threshold for reporting, you are still legally required to report this income on your tax return. While your chances of getting flagged and caught may be reduced, we don’t like messing around with the government when it comes to taxes. Plus, any 1099 income you don’t report can’t provide you any related tax benefits.
Keeping track of your medical survey income
Keeping track of your paid survey side gig income, especially when working with multiple companies with several payouts over the year, can become a little messy. It’s easy to keep track of this income on a spreadsheet. If things get more complicated because you’re working with lots of companies and claiming lots of deductions, software like Quicken might be able to help you track your income throughout the year to save you time and stress come tax season.
Related PSG Resources:
Quicken offers a range of different personal and business finance tools, from personal finance managers to more complex features including Schedule C and P&L reports, as well as cash flow tracking. It can help you manage your side gig finances seamlessly with your personal finances. PSG members receive 50% off Quicken's entire suite of products through our affiliate link.
A note on estimated taxes
The IRS requires many Americans to file estimated quarterly tax payments on 1099 income or other income when income taxes aren’t automatically withheld. While doctors doing a few medical surveys here and there don’t need to worry about estimated taxes, physicians making thousands of dollars a year should double check to make sure they don’t need to be tracking their tax obligation and submitting estimated tax payments. Estimated taxes generally apply when you expect to owe $1,000+ in taxes for the year.
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Benefits of having 1099 side gig income as a physician
While 1099 income is subject to income taxes, there are benefits to having 1099 income, especially if your clinical job is W2 income. Along with providing an additional income stream, 1099 income can provide the opportunity to:
Deduct related business expenses
Open a self-employed retirement plan, such as a solo 401k
While there may not be a whole lot of deductible expenses related to a medical survey side gig, it’s worth exploring tax deductions for 1099 physicians and checking with your accountant.
A self-employed retirement plan such as a solo 401k can allow you to save money for retirement while potentially reducing the amount of self-employed taxes you owe. Solo 401ks allow you to make tax-deferred employER contributions to retirement, which can lower your tax burden on your return. While employEE contributions are capped across all 401k plans you have, limiting your ability to contribute if you already max out a 401k you have at work, the limit on the employER side (which is still you for 1099 income) is separate, allowing you to still take advantage of these types of plans.
Learn more about retirement plans for self-employed and side gig income.
These plans will typically have some sort of administrative fee annually, so again, it’s probably not worth it if you’re only making a few hundred dollars a year with this side gig. But if you’re making thousands, it’s worth considering.
Conclusion
Getting a 1099 from a medical survey company for your side gig isn’t a bad thing. It signifies you’ve earned a notable amount of money throughout the year and the IRS wants to keep tabs on it. Regardless of whether you receive a 1099 or not, the income you generate doing paid surveys is taxable, and you should report it as such with your tax return. This type of income is important to track and keep records of, which can add a higher opportunity cost with the time involved, but that’s the case with any 1099 income. If you’re making a steady side income with medical surveys, consider looking into ways to take advantage of (legal!) tax advantages available to you.
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