Copies of W-2 Forms

If you were an employee somewhere, you will receive copies of W-2 forms from your employers. The IRS requires that all income be reported whether it is from a business entity or an individual. An employees should receive a copy of W-2 form from each employer he or she worked for during the tax year. One taxpayer can receive any number of copies of W-2 forms depending on how many employers he or she had during the tax year. Wages and other entries in the W-2 forms are added for tax filing purposes.

When should I receive my W-2 form? 

Employers are required to send out W-2 forms by January 31st. If you have not received your W-2 form by Jan.31st, you should contact the employer about not receiving a W-2 by Jan.31st and find out when they can resend your W-2 form.

What if my employer does not send me my W-2 form?

If after a reasonable amount of time, the W-2 form is still not received, the taxpayer should contact the IRS. The IRS can then investigate what happens to the W-2 form. You should not contact the IRS about your missing W-2 form before February 15th. After contacting the IRS, the taxpayer can wait for the IRS to respond but do not wait until April 15th which is the tax filing deadline.

What should I do if I have not received copies of W-2 forms by April 15th, tax filing deadline?

You cannot miss filing taxes just because you did not receive copies of W-2 forms even after contacting the IRS. If a taxpayer has not received copies of W-2 forms by the time he or she needs to file his or her taxes before it is too late, he or she can file:

• the IRS tax form 4852 called Substitute for Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement or
• the IRS tax Form 1099-R, Distributions from Pensions, Annuities, Retirement or Profit Sharing Plans, IRAs, Insurance Contracts, etc.