Freelancer money news
Short briefs on the money news that actually touches freelancers: tax changes, platform fees, banking moves. Every item links its primary sources and shows when we checked them.
- Upwork starts charging $2.99 on Direct to U.S. Bank payouts abroad From September 1, 2026 each Direct to U.S. Bank withdrawal costs $2.99 if your tax address is outside the US. Local-bank payouts stay at $0.99.
- IRS postpones Washington wildfire tax deadlines to February 1, 2027 Freelancers in six Washington counties and three tribal nations have until February 1, 2027 to file and pay; the September 15 estimate is included.
- France's e-invoicing mandate starts: what freelancers billing France need From September 1, 2026 every VAT-registered business in France must receive e-invoices through an approved platform; issuing follows in stages.
- Spain's flexible retirement now covers the self-employed, in force since August 28 Real Decreto 416/2026 took effect August 28: autonomos can keep working and collect 25% of their pension, if not RETA-registered the prior 3 years.
- Euribor breaks 3% for the first time in two years, and variable mortgages feel it The 12-month Euribor briefly topped 3% in August 2026, its highest since September 2024. Variable-rate mortgages in Spain reset higher this month.
- HMRC starts signing sole traders up to Making Tax Digital itself in September From September 2026 HMRC signs people up to Making Tax Digital without waiting, starting with qualifying income over £50,000 in 2024 to 2025.
- The IRS retires FIRE on November 19 and 1099 filing moves to IRIS The IRS stops accepting information returns through FIRE at 3 p.m. ET on November 19, 2026. Filing moves to IRIS, whose taxpayer portal is free.
- The IRS now hands you a signed tax compliance report on demand A digitally authenticated Tax Compliance Report is downloadable from the IRS Individual Online Account, with a certificate lenders can verify themselves.
- IRS holds its interest rate at 7% for the quarter starting October 1 Interest on underpaid and overpaid tax stays at 7% a year, compounded daily, for the quarter starting October 1, with the Q3 estimate due September 15.
- Spain's self-employed have until August 31 to reset their contribution base for September 1 Spain's bimonthly window closes August 31: base-change requests filed in July-August take effect September 1, the last reset before November.
- Fewer 1099s in the mail: the $2,000 threshold now applies to 2026 payments The 1099-NEC/MISC reporting floor rises from $600 to $2,000 for payments made in 2026, and the 1099-K stays at $20,000 and 200 transactions.
