W-2s

Employers must complete, file with the Social Security Administration (SSA) and furnish to their employees Form W-2 (PDF), Wage and Tax Statement, showing the wages paid and taxes withheld for the year for each employee. Because Form W-2 is the only document used to transmit information regarding employees’ social security and Medicare wages for the year, it is very important to prepare Form W-2 correctly and timely.

The official Form W-2 is available as a multi-copy form packet. The form packet provides all six copies that the user may need for each Form W-2 (Copy A, Copy 1, Copy B, Copy C, Copy 2, and Copy D). Copy A of Form(s) W-2 must be sent to the SSA with the transmittal Form W-3 (PDF) by the last day of February. Special due dates apply if you have terminated your business or you are filing electronically. The Form W-3 and Copy A of each Form W-2 that is sent to SSA must be a scannable-form version and can be ordered online at Online Ordering for Information Returns and Employer Returns available on IRS.gov, or by calling 800-829-3676. Refer to the Form W-2 and W-3 General Instructions for additional information. Send Copy 1, if applicable, to your state, city or local tax department. Contact that state, city or local tax department for requirements and transmittal information. The employer copy, Copy D, should be retained for 4 years.

You must give Copies B, C and 2 of Form W-2 to the employee by January 31. If an employee stops working for you before the end of the year, you may give your former employee Form W-2 anytime prior to January 31, but no later than January 31. If the employee asks for the Form W-2, you must give Copies B, C, and 2 to the employee within 30 days of the request, or within 30 days of the final wage payment, whichever is later.

Anyone required to file Form W-2 must also file Form W-3 (PDF), Transmittal of Wage and Tax Statements, to transmit Copy A of Form W-2 to the SSA. The totals for amounts reported on related employment tax forms ( Form 941 (PDF), Form 943 (PDF), Form 944 (PDF) or Form 1040, Schedule H (PDF), for the year) should agree with the amounts reported on Form W-3. If you have questions about a particular box on Forms W-2 or W-3, refer to the instructions, which give a detailed explanation of each box. The address for mailing Copy A of the Form W-2 and Form W-3 is listed in the Form W-2 and W-3 General Instructions. Be sure to order Form W-3 when you order Forms W-2.

Prior Year(s) Form W-2 (How to Get a Copy)

You can now obtain prior year Forms W-2 (PDF) by using Get Transcript, an online tool that provides access for individual taxpayers with an SSN.  The IRS does not retain actual copies of Form W-2 except as an attachment to your tax return, for prior years. However, the IRS maintains (and will provide free of charge) Form W-2 information for any purpose for the past ten processing years. Use Form 4506-T (PDF), Request for Transcript of Tax Return, to request Form W-2 information. The only way to get an actual copy of your Form W-2 from the IRS is to order a copy of the entire return on Form 4506 (PDF), Request for Copy of Tax Return, and pay a fee of $50.00 for each return requested.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) will provide the Number Holder (NH) or legal representative(s) at no charge with a microprint copy of the Form W-2 requested for purposes of resolving an SSA program related matter; e.g., resolving an earnings discrepancy in connection with the processing of a Title II and/or Title XVI claim or an SSA or NH initiated earnings investigation.