When should my W-2 form show up?
We’ve officially hit the Friday, Jan. 31 deadline for employers to mail W-2 forms that report an employee’s income and withholdings.
Typically, you’d have that W-2 in hand by the first week of February. But you might have found it earlier online through your employer or by importing it directly when using a tax prep company.
Nothing has changed this tax season when it comes to the timeline for receiving your W-2, but many people ask about it year after year anyway.
Your employer, according to the IRS, is required to provide or send Form W-2, known as a “Wage and Tax Statement” to you no later than Jan. 31. If it is mailed, though, the IRS says you should allow time to receive it before contacting your employer. If you still don’t get the form by early February, the IRS can help you by requesting the form from your employer.
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If you do not receive your W-2 by Feb. 15, it’s suggested that you can call the IRS at 800-829-1040. A former employer that is no longer in business is still obligated to supply you with a W-2.
Some employers also offer online access to W-2 forms.
In addition, some online tax programs can help find that data. TurboTax, for example, notes that it partners with hundreds of payroll providers and financial institutions to enable tax filers to automatically import W-2 and 1099 information directly into a return.
The new, free IRS system called Direct File — which is open to many but not all taxpayers in 25 states this tax season — includes new features this year to make it similar to commercial tax software. A data import tool will allow taxpayers to opt-in to automatically import data from their IRS account, including personal information, the taxpayer’s IP PIN and some information from the taxpayer’s W-2.
If you held more than one job in 2024, make sure that you gather up all of your W-2 information from each of your employers.
The IRS notes: “Every employer engaged in a trade or business who pays remuneration, including noncash payments of $600 or more for the year (all amounts if any income, Social Security, or Medicare tax was withheld) for services performed by an employee must file a Form W-2 for each employee (even if the employee is related to the employer) from whom:
- Income, Social Security or Medicare tax was withheld.
- Income tax would have been withheld if the employee had claimed no more than one withholding allowance or had not claimed exemption from withholding on Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate.
Contact personal finance columnist Susan Tompor: stompor@freepress.com. Follow her on X@tompor.