You’re thinking of a W-2. The W-9 is what some U.S. companies (like Apple) have to create for bookkeeping purposes, when the government suspects the payment me

You’re thinking of a W-2. The W-9 is what some U.S. companies (like Apple) have to create for bookkeeping purposes, when the government suspects the payment mechanism could be used to evade taxation. Since my company is a sole proprietorship without a payroll department, I wasn’t exempt from the W-9 deduction, so I needed to fill one out when I applied as a developer.