FOR TEAMS THAT WORK WITH CONTRACTORS & VENDORS
Contractor onboarding paperwork,
collected before the work starts.
Get the W-9, certificate of insurance, signed contract and payment details from every contractor and vendor through one link. They don’t need an account, and each file is saved to their own folder in your cloud drive.
15 days or 25 files · No credit card required
Contractors and vendors upload from a browser, with no account.
Contractor and vendor setup
Tell us about your business, then add your documents.
No account needed to upload.
Illustrative form · Sample data
The work can’t start until the paperwork is in.
A contractor sends the W-9 but forgets the COI. A vendor replies with the bank form in a thread nobody can find. Ask for every document in one request, and you’ll know what’s missing before the first invoice arrives.
What to collect from contractors and vendors
Give each document its own upload area with instructions. A question about where the contractor is based can show the W-8BEN to foreign contractors and the W-9 to everyone else.
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W-9Name, tax classification and TIN from US contractors and vendors, for 1099 reporting.
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W-8BENFrom foreign contractors who are individuals, in place of the W-9. Foreign companies use the W‑8BEN‑E.
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Signed contract, SOW or NDAUploaded as signed files. File Request Pro collects the documents; it doesn’t handle signatures.
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Certificate of insurance (COI)Proof of the liability or other coverage you require. When a policy renews, send a new request for the updated certificate.
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Business licenses and certificationsLicenses for regulated trades and any certifications the job calls for.
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Banking or payment details formYour vendor payment form, filled in and uploaded with the rest of the documents.
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Company detailsLegal name, address and main contact, asked as form fields so they can name the files and folders.
File Request Pro customers
Workflows
One request for each contractor.
Send a personal link with that contractor’s document list and a due date. One screen shows who has sent everything, who is still working on it and who has missed the deadline.
- Reminders that stop on their ownReminder emails go out on your schedule and stop once the request is complete. Workflows and reminders come with Lite and up.
- A folder for every contractorFiles are renamed from their answers and saved to a folder per contractor in Google Drive, OneDrive or Dropbox. SharePoint is on Pro and up.
- Renewed COIs on requestWhen a certificate or license renews, send a new request for the updated file. Your naming rules file it with their other documents.
Know whose paperwork is complete
Personal links · Deadlines · Reminders for outstanding requests
One setup link or a request per contractor?
Share a link when vendors come to you, and send a personal request when you bring someone on.
UPLOAD PAGES
A vendor setup form anyone can open
Share one Upload Page link or embed it on your site. Vendors fill in their company details and upload their documents, and these uploads don’t count toward your Workflow requests.
Explore Upload PagesWORKFLOWS
A tracked request per contractor
Each contractor gets a personal document list and a deadline, with reminders until it’s complete.
Explore WorkflowsBoth support simple or guided forms and automatic file naming and folders.
Email, a shared folder or File Request Pro?
| Method | Useful for | Consider |
|---|---|---|
| A one-off request to one contractor | Attachments end up across threads, and you track what’s missing by hand. | |
| Shared drive folder | Contractors who already work in your drive | Outsiders may need access to your drive, and files keep whatever names they had. |
| File Request Pro | Onboarding contractors and vendors again and again | A paid plan after the trial. Workflows and reminders need Lite or higher. |
W-9s and bank details, handled with care.
W-9s carry tax IDs and payment forms carry bank details. Files are encrypted with AES-256 at rest and encrypted in transit, a Data Processing Agreement is available, and you can put a password on your Upload Page.
Read our security commitmentsQuestions about contractor and vendor onboarding
Do contractors need an account?
No. They open your link and upload from a browser on their phone or computer, without creating a File Request Pro account.
Can I use it for vendor onboarding too?
Yes. Send suppliers the same kind of Workflow request, or share one vendor setup Upload Page with form fields for company details and upload areas for the W-9, COI and payment form.
Can contractors sign the contract in File Request Pro?
No. File Request Pro has no e-signature feature. Contractors upload a contract, SOW or NDA they have already signed, and it’s saved with their other documents.
Does it track COI expiration dates?
No. When a certificate renews, send the contractor a new request, and the updated COI is saved with the rest of their documents.
Can foreign contractors send a W-8BEN instead of a W-9?
Yes. Ask where the contractor is based and use a conditional question to show the W-8BEN upload only to people outside the US.
Where are the files stored?
In Google Drive, OneDrive or Dropbox on every plan, or SharePoint on Pro and up. Files pass through File Request Pro on the way. On Business and up, File Request Pro can delete its copy once a file reaches your drive.
How many contractors can I onboard each month?
Lite includes 30 Workflow requests a month, Pro 75 and Business 200. Each contractor uses one request, however many documents you ask for. Uploads through an Upload Page link don’t count.
Is this for employees too?
This page is about contractors and vendors. For new-hire paperwork such as the W-4 and I-9 documents, see our page on collecting candidate and new-hire documents.
Get every contractor’s paperwork in before the work starts.
Build your document list once, then send it to each new contractor or vendor.
Start your free trial15 days or 25 files · No credit card required
