It’s vital you provide up-to-date tax info

That famous quote by founding father, Benjamin Franklin, “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes,” is by now an old saw.

Leaving the anti-aging efforts of modern science aside, however, old Ben’s observation still rings true. And it applies equally to Yahoo! and everyone in the Yahoo! Publisher Network beta. While Uncle Sam can be a generous old fellow at times, he’s also a pretty strict guy when it comes to the rules, especially the ones about taxes.

We’ve all got to play by Uncle Sam’s rules. In fact, if we don’t have your correct tax information, we can’t pay you, even if you have accrued more than $100 or more in your available account balance.

When you signed up for the beta, you were asked to provide your Tax Identification (Tax ID) number. If you are an individual U.S. resident (i.e., you signed up as a sole proprietor or other unregistered form of business), then, in most cases, this will be the same as your social security number. Corporations and other formal business entities should use their Employer Identification Number, which serves as their Tax ID. If you’re not sure which you should use, consult Form W-9*.

Long story short: it’s vital that the information you provide is correct and up-to-date, or your dream of attaining wealth and prestige via Yahoo! Publisher Network will likely be a non-starter.

You can always go back and double check—and update—your tax information by going to the Tax Information page under the Account Information tab. Be advised, however, that changing your tax information multiple times may invalidate it. You should only change your tax information if you are sure that it is in error.

While you’re there, it would be a good idea to double-check your account information, such as your contact information and payment options, just in case.

—Margaret Holland, Senior Account Manager

* Yahoo! does not provide tax advice. For more information, please contact your tax professional, or visit the IRS web site at: http://www.irs.gov/.