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2014
Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service
General Instructions for
Forms W-2 and W-3
(Including Forms W-2AS, W-2GU, W-2VI, W-3SS, W-2c, and W-3c)
Contents
Reminders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Need Help? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
How To Get Forms and Publications . . . . . . . . . . .
Common Errors on Forms W-2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 . . . . .
Special Reporting Situations for Form W-2 . . . . . . .
Penalties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Specific Instructions for Form W-2 . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Specific Instructions for Form W-3 . . . . . . . . . . . . .
General Instructions for Forms W-2c and W-3c . . . .
Special Situations for Forms W-2c and W-3c . . . . .
Specific Instructions for Form W-2c . . . . . . . . . . . .
Specific Instructions for Form W-3c . . . . . . . . . . . .
Form W-2 Reference Guide for Box 12 Codes . . . .
Form W-2 Box 13 Retirement Plan Checkbox
Decision Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Reporting
Example Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code
unless otherwise noted.
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27
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What's New
Forms W-3, W-3SS, and W-3c. The title of the
Telephone number, Email address, and Fax number
boxes on Forms W-3, W-3SS, and W-3c (Rev. 8-2013)
has been changed to the Employer's telephone number,
Employer's email address, and Employer's fax number.
Reminders
TIP
Business Services Online (BSO). The SSA has
enhanced its secure BSO website to make it easier to
register and navigate. Use BSO’s online fill-in forms to
create, save, and submit Forms W-2 and W-2c to the SSA
electronically. BSO lets you print copies of these forms to
file with state or local governments, distribute to your
employees, and keep for your records. BSO generates
Form W-3 automatically based on your Forms W-2. You
also can use BSO to upload wage files to the SSA, check
on the status of previously submitted wage reports, and
take advantage of other convenient services for
employers and businesses. Visit the SSA’s Employer W-2
Filing Instructions & Information website at
www.socialsecurity.gov/employer for more information
about using BSO to save time for your organization. Here
you also will find forms and publications used for wage
reporting, information about verifying employee social
security numbers online, how to reach an SSA employer
services representative for your region, and more.
TIP
Get it done faster...
E-file your Forms W-2 with the SSA.
See E-filing.
$X,XXX limit on health flexible spending arrangement
(FSA). For plan years beginning after December 31,
2012, a cafeteria plan may not allow an employee to
request salary reduction contributions for a health FSA in
excess of $X,XXX. For more information, see Health
flexible spending arrangement (FSA).
Additional Medicare Tax. Beginning January 1, 2013,
an employer is required to withhold a 0.9% Additional
Medicare Tax on any Federal Insurance Contributions Act
(FICA) wages or Railroad Retirement Act (RRTA)
compensation it pays to an employee in excess of
$200,000 in a calendar year. An employer is required to
begin withholding Additional Medicare Tax in the pay
Mar 20, 2013
period in which it pays wages or compensation in excess
of $200,000 to an employee and continue to withhold it
until the end of the calendar year. Additional Medicare
Tax is only imposed on the employee. There is no
employer share of Additional Medicare Tax. All wages
and compensation that are subject to Medicare tax are
subject to Additional Medicare Tax withholding if paid in
excess of the $200,000 withholding threshold.
For more information on Additional Medicare Tax, go to
IRS.gov and enter “Additional Medicare Tax” in the search
box.
Unless otherwise noted, references to Medicare tax
include Additional Medicare Tax.
Preview BSO by viewing a brief online tutorial. Go
to www.socialsecurity.gov/bso/bsowelcome.html
and click on “Tutorial.”
Correcting wage reports. You can use BSO to create,
save, print, and submit Forms W-2c, Corrected Wage and
Tax Statement, online for the current year as well as for
prior years. After logging in to BSO, navigate to the
Electronic Wage Reporting home page and click on the
“Forms W-2c/W-3c Online” tab. See E-filing and E-filing
Forms W-2c and W-3c.
Distributions from governmental section 457(b)
plans of state and local agencies. Generally, report
distributions from section 457(b) plans of state and local
agencies on Form 1099-R, Distributions From Pensions,
Annuities, Retirement or Profit-Sharing Plans, IRAs,
Insurance Contracts, etc. See Notice 2003-20 for details.
You can find Notice 2003-20 on page 894 of Internal
Revenue Bulletin 2003-19 at www.irs.gov/pub/irs-irbs/
irb03-19.pdf.
Cat. No. 25979S
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W-2 Filing Instructions & Information website at
www.socialsecurity.gov/employer.
Earned income credit (EIC) notice (not applicable to
Forms W-2AS, W-2GU, and W-2VI). You must notify
employees who have no income tax withheld that they
may be able to claim an income tax refund because of the
EIC. You can do this by using the official IRS Form W-2
with the EIC notice on the back of Copy B or a substitute
Form W-2 with the same statement. You must give your
employee Notice 797, Possible Federal Tax Refund Due
to the Earned Income Credit (EIC), or your own statement
that contains the same wording if (a) you use a substitute
Form W-2 that does not contain the EIC notice, (b) you
are not required to furnish Form W-2, or (c) you do not
furnish a timely Form W-2 to your employee. For more
information, see section 10 in Pub. 15 (Circular E),
Employer's Tax Guide.
In a few situations, reporting instructions vary
depending on the filing method you choose. For example,
you can include every type of box 12 amount in one
employee wage record if you upload an electronic file. If
you file on paper or create Forms W-2 online, you can
include only four box 12 amounts per Form W-2. See the
TIP for Copy A in Box 12—Codes.
Foreign agricultural workers. You must report on Form
W-2 compensation of $600 or more that you pay to H-2A
visa agricultural workers. See Foreign agricultural
workers.
Form 944. Use the “944” checkbox in box b of Form W-3
or Form W-3SS if you filed Form 944, Employer's
ANNUAL Federal Tax Return. Also use the “944”
checkbox if you filed Formulario 944(SP), the
Spanish-language version of Form 944.
Electronic statements for employees. Furnishing
Copies B, C, and 2 of Forms W-2 to your employees
electronically may save you time and effort. See Pub.
15-A, Employer's Supplemental Tax Guide, for additional
information.
Forms W-2 for U.S. possessions. In these instructions,
reference to Forms W-2 and W-3 includes Forms W-2AS,
W-2GU, W-2VI, and W-3SS, unless otherwise noted.
These instructions are not applicable to wage and tax
statements for Puerto Rico or the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands. Form W-2AS is used to report
American Samoa wages paid by American Samoa
employers, Form W-2CM is used to report the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI)
wages paid by CNMI employers, Form W-2GU is used to
report Guam wages paid by Guam employers, and Form
W-2VI is used to report U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) wages
paid by USVI employers. Do not use these forms to report
wages subject to U.S. income tax withholding. Instead,
use Form W-2 to show U.S. income tax withheld.
E-filing. The SSA encourages all employers to e-file.
E-filing can save you time and effort and helps ensure
accuracy. You must e-file if you are required to file 250 or
more Forms W-2 or W-2c. If you are required to e-file but
fail to do so, you may incur a penalty.
March 31 due date for e-filers. The due date for
e-filing 2014 Form W-2 with the SSA is March 31, 2015.
Waiver from e-filing. You can request a waiver from
this requirement by filing Form 8508, Request for Waiver
From Filing Information Returns Electronically. Submit
Form 8508 to the IRS at least 45 days before the due date
of Form W-2, or 45 days before you file your first Form
W-2c. See Form 8508 for information about filing this
form.
The SSA’s BSO website makes e-filing easy by
providing two ways to submit your Forms W-2 or W-2c
Copy A and Forms W-3 or W-3c information.
If you need to file 50 or fewer Forms W-2 or 5 or fewer
Forms W-2c at a time, you can use BSO to create them
online. BSO guides you through the process of creating
Forms W-2 or W-2c, saving and printing them, and
submitting them to the SSA when you are ready. You do
not have to wait until you have submitted Forms W-2 or
W-2c to the SSA before printing copies for your
employees. BSO generates Form W-3 or W-3c
automatically based on your Forms W-2 or W-2c.
If you need to file more than 50 Forms W-2 or more
than 5 Forms W-2c, BSO’s “file upload” feature might be
the best e-filing method for your business or organization.
To obtain file format specifications, visit the SSA’s
Employer W-2 Filing Instructions & Information website at
www.socialsecurity.gov/employer and click on “E-Filing
Format.” This information is also available by calling the
SSA’s Employer Reporting Service Center at
1-800-772-6270 (toll free).
!
Future developments. Information about any future
developments affecting Forms W-2 and W-3 and their
instructions (such as legislation enacted after we release
them) will be posted at www.irs.gov/w2.
Military differential pay. Employers paying their
employees while they are on active duty in the United
States uniformed services should treat these payments as
wages subject to income tax withholding. See Military
differential pay.
Military Spouses Residency Relief Act (MSRRA). You
may be required to report wages and taxes on a form
different from the form you generally use if an employee
claims residence or domicile under MSRRA in a different
jurisdiction in one of the 50 states, the District of
Columbia, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin
Islands.
Under MSRRA, the spouse of an active duty
servicemember (civilian spouse) may keep his or her prior
residence or domicile for tax purposes (tax residence)
when accompanying the servicemember spouse, who is
relocating under military orders, to a new military duty
station in one of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, or
a U.S. possession. Before relocating, both spouses must
have had the same tax residence.
For example, if a civilian spouse is working in Guam but
properly claims tax residence in one of the 50 states
If you e-file, do not file the same returns using
paper forms.
CAUTION
For more information about e-filing Forms W-2 or W-2c
and a link to the BSO website, visit the SSA’s Employer
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employers, contact the ESLO that services your region.
For a complete telephone listing, visit the SSA’s Employer
W-2 Filing Instructions & Information website at
www.socialsecurity.gov/employer.
under MSRRA, his or her income from services would not
be taxable income for Guam tax purposes. Federal
income taxes should be withheld and remitted to the IRS.
State and local income taxes may need to be withheld
and remitted to state and local tax authorities. You should
consult with state, local, or U.S. possession tax authorities
regarding your withholding obligations under MSRRA.
Information reporting customer service site. The IRS
operates a centralized customer service site to answer
questions about reporting on Forms W-2, W-3, 1099, and
other information returns. If you have questions about
reporting on these forms, call 1-866-455-7438 (toll free).
The hours of operation are Monday through Friday from
8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Eastern time.
Nonqualified deferred compensation plans. You are
not required to complete box 12 with code Y (deferrals
under a section 409A nonqualified deferred compensation
plan). Section 409A provides that all amounts deferred
under a nonqualified deferred compensation (NQDC) plan
for all tax years are includible in gross income unless
certain requirements are satisfied. See Nonqualified
deferred compensation plans and the Nonqualified
Deferred Compensation Plan Reporting Examples Chart.
TTY/TDD equipment. Telephone help is available using
TTY/TDD equipment for persons who are deaf, hard of
hearing, or have a speech disability. If you have questions
about reporting on information returns (Forms 1096, 1097,
1098, 1099, 3921, 3922, 5498, W-2, W-2G, and W-3), call
1-304-579-4827. For any other tax information, call
1-800-829-4059.
Reporting aide charts. To aide in reporting, a Form W-2
Box 13 Retirement Plan Checkbox Decision Chart and a
Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Reporting
Examples Chart have been added to these instructions.
See pages 27 and 28.
Employment tax information. Detailed employment tax
information is given in:
Pub. 15 (Circular E), Employer's Tax Guide,
Pub. 15-A, Employer's Supplemental Tax Guide,
Pub. 15-B, Employer's Tax Guide to Fringe Benefits,
Pub. 51 (Circular A), Agricultural Employer's Tax
Guide, and
Pub. 80 (Circular SS), Federal Tax Guide for
Employers in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American
Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern
Marianas.
You also can call the IRS with your employment tax
questions at 1-800-829-4933 or visit IRS.gov and type
“Employment Taxes” in the search box.
Reporting the cost of group health insurance coverage. You must report the cost of employer-sponsored
health coverage in box 12 using code DD. However,
transitional relief applies to certain employers and certain
types of plans. For more information, see Box 12—Codes
for Code DD—Cost of employer-sponsored health
coverage.
Substitute forms. You may use an acceptable substitute
form instead of an official IRS form.
Form W-2. If you are not using the official IRS form to
furnish Form W-2 to employees or to file with the SSA,
you may use an acceptable substitute form that complies
with the rules in Pub. 1141, General Rules and
Specifications for Substitute Forms W-2 and W-3. Pub.
1141 is a revenue procedure that explains the
requirements for format and content of substitute Forms
W-2 and W-3. Your substitute forms must comply with the
requirements in Pub. 1141.
Form W-2c. If you are not using the official IRS form to
furnish Form W-2c to employees or to file with the SSA,
you may use an acceptable substitute form that complies
with the rules in Pub. 1223, General Rules and
Specifications for Substitute Forms W-2c and W-3c. Pub.
1223 is a revenue procedure that explains the
requirements for format and content of substitute Forms
W-2c and W-3c. Your substitute forms must comply with
the requirements in Pub. 1223.
How To Get Forms and Publications
Internet. You can access IRS.gov 24 hours a day, 7 days
a week to:
Download, view, and order tax forms, instructions, and
publications.
Access commercial tax preparation and e-file services.
Research your tax questions online.
See answers to frequently asked tax questions.
Search publications online by topic or keyword.
View Internal Revenue Bulletins published in the last
few years.
Sign up to receive local and national tax news by email.
To order Forms W-2 and W-3 and these instructions,
call 1-800-TAX-FORM (1-800-829-3676) or visit
www.irs.gov/w2.
Need Help?
Do not download Copy A of Forms W-2, W-3,
W-2c, or W-3c from IRS.gov and then file them
CAUTION
with the SSA. The SSA accepts only e-filed
reports and the official red-ink versions (or approved
substitute versions) of these forms. For information about
e-filing, see E-filing.
!
Help with e-filing. If you have questions about how to
register or use BSO, call 1-800-772-6270 (toll free) to
speak with an employer reporting specialist at the SSA.
The hours of operation are Monday through Friday from
7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Eastern time. If you experience
problems using any of the services within BSO, call
1-888-772-2970 (toll free). To speak with the SSA's
Employer Services Liaison Officer (ESLO) for the U.S.
Virgin Islands, call 1-212-264-1117 (not a toll-free
number). For Guam or American Samoa, call
1-510-970-8247 (not a toll-free number). For all other
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
Free tax services. To find out what services are
available, get Pub. 910, IRS Guide to Free Tax Services. It
contains lists of free tax information sources, including
publications, services, and free tax education and
assistance programs. It also has an index of over 100
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or her surname in the second box, and his or her suffix
(such as “Jr.”) in the third box (optional).
TeleTax topics (recorded tax information) you can listen to
on your telephone. Accessible versions of IRS published
products are available on request in a variety of alternative
formats.
General Instructions for Forms
W-2 and W-3
DVD of tax products. You can order Publication
1796, IRS Tax Products DVD, and obtain:
Who must file Form W-2. 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.
Unless otherwise noted, references to Medicare tax
include Additional Medicare Tax.
If you are required to file 250 or more Forms W-2 or
want to take advantage of the benefits of e-filing, see
E-filing.
Current-year forms, instructions, and publications.
Prior-year forms, instructions, and publications.
IRS Tax Map: an electronic research tool and finding
aid.
Tax law frequently asked questions (FAQ).
Tax Topics from the IRS telephone response system.
Internal Revenue Code—Title 26.
Fill-in, print, and save features for most tax forms.
Internal Revenue Bulletins.
Toll free and email technical support.
Two releases during the year.
-The first release will ship the beginning of January 2014.
-The final release will ship the beginning of March 2014.
Purchase the DVD from National Technical Information
Service (NTIS) at www.irs.gov/cdorders for $30 (no
handling fee) or call 1-877-233-6767 toll free to purchase
the DVD for $30 (plus a $6 handling fee).
Who must file Form W-3. Anyone required to file Form
W-2 must file Form W-3 to transmit Copy A of Forms W-2.
Make a copy of Form W-3; keep it and Copy D (For
Employer) of Forms W-2 with your records for 4 years. Be
sure to use Form W-3 for the correct year. If you are filing
Forms W-2 electronically, see E-filing.
Household employers. Even employers with only one
household employee must file Form W-3 to transmit Copy
A of Form W-2. On Form W-3 check the “Hshld. emp.”
checkbox in box b. For more information, see Schedule H
(Form 1040), Household Employment Taxes, and its
separate instructions. You must have an employer
identification number (EIN). See Box b—Employer
identification number (EIN).
Mail. You can send your order for forms, instructions, and
publications to the following address. You should receive
a response within 10 days after your request is received.
Internal Revenue Service
1201 N. Mitsubishi Parkway
Bloomington, IL 61705-6613
Phone. Many services are available by phone.
Ordering forms, instructions, and publications. Call
1-800-829-3676 to order current-year forms, instructions,
and publications, and prior-year forms and instructions.
You should receive your order within 10 days.
TTY/TDD equipment. If you have access to TTY/TDD
equipment for persons who are deaf, hard of hearing, or
have a speech disability, call 1-800-829-4059 to order
forms and publications.
Who may sign Form W-3. A transmitter or sender
(including a service bureau, reporting agent, paying agent,
or disbursing agent) may sign Form W-3 (or use its PIN to
e-file) for the employer or payer only if the sender satisfies
both of the following.
It is authorized to sign by an agency agreement
(whether oral, written, or implied) that is valid under state
law; and
It writes “For (name of payer)” next to the signature
(paper Form W-3 only).
Common Errors on Forms W-2
Forms W-2 provide information to your employees, the
SSA, the IRS, and state and local governments. Avoid
making the following errors, which cause processing
delays.
Use of a reporting agent or other third-party
payroll service provider does not relieve an
CAUTION
employer of the responsibility to ensure that
Forms W-2 are furnished to employees and that Forms
W-2 and W-3 are filed with the SSA, correctly and on time.
!
Do not:
Omit the decimal point and cents from entries.
Make entries using ink that is too light. Use only black
ink.
Make entries that are too small or too large. Use
12-point Courier font, if possible.
Add dollar signs to the money-amount boxes. They
have been removed from Copy A and are not required.
Inappropriately check the “Retirement plan” checkbox
in box 13. See Retirement plan.
Misformat the employee's name in box e. Enter the
employee's first name and middle initial in the first box, his
Be sure that the payer's name and EIN on Forms W-2 and
W-3 are the same as those used on the Form 941,
Employer's QUARTERLY Federal Tax Return; Form 943,
Employer's Annual Federal Tax Return for Agricultural
Employees; Form 944; Form CT-1, Employer's Annual
Railroad Retirement Tax Return; or Schedule H (Form
1040) filed by or for the payer.
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United States Virgin Islands. File Copy 1 of Form
W-3SS and Forms W-2VI at the following address.
When to file. If you file using paper forms, you must file
Copy A of Form W-2 with Form W-3 by March 2, 2015.
However, if you e-file, the due date is March 31, 2015.
You may owe a penalty for each Form W-2 that you file
late. See Penalties. If you terminate your business, see
Terminating a business.
Extension to file. You may request an automatic
extension of time to file Form W-2 with the SSA by
sending Form 8809, Application for Extension of Time To
File Information Returns, to the address shown on Form
8809. You must request the extension before the due date
of Forms W-2. You will have an additional 30 days to file.
See Form 8809 for details.
Virgin Islands Bureau of Internal Revenue
6115 Estate Smith Bay
Suite 225
St. Thomas, VI 00802
For additional information about Form W-2VI, see
www.viirb.com.
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
File Form OS-3710 and Copy 1 of Forms W-2CM at the
following address.
Division of Revenue and Taxation
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
P.O. Box 5234 CHRB
Saipan, MP 96950
Even if you request an extension of time to file
Form W-2, you still must furnish Form W-2 to your
CAUTION
employees by February 2, 2015. But see
Extension of time to furnish Forms W-2 to employees.
!
Forms OS-3710 and W-2CM are not IRS forms. For
additional information about Form W-2CM, see
www.cnmidof.net.
Where to file paper Forms W-2 and W-3. File Copy A
of Form W-2 with Form W-3 at the following address.
Social Security Administration
Data Operations Center
Wilkes-Barre, PA 18769-0001
Shipping and mailing. If you file more than one type of
employment tax form, group Forms W-2 of the same type
with a separate Form W-3 for each type, and send them in
separate groups. See the specific instructions for Box
b—Kind of Payer and Box b—Kind of Employer in Specific
instructions for Form W-3.
Prepare and file Forms W-2 either alphabetically by
employees' last names or numerically by employees'
social security numbers. Do not staple or tape Form W-3
to the related Forms W-2 or Forms W-2 to each other.
These forms are machine read. Staple holes or tears
interfere with machine reading. Also, do not fold Forms
W-2 and W-3. Send the forms to the SSA in a flat mailing.
If you use “Certified Mail” to file, change the ZIP
code to “18769-0002.” If you use an
IRS-approved private delivery service, add “Attn:
W-2 Process, 1150 E. Mountain Dr.” to the address and
change the ZIP code to “18702-7997.” See Pub. 15
(Circular E) for a list of IRS-approved private delivery
services.
TIP
Do not send cash, checks, money orders, or
other forms of payment with the Forms W-2 and
CAUTION
W-3 that you submit to the SSA. Employment tax
forms (for example, Form 941 or Form 943), remittances,
and Forms 1099 must be sent to the IRS.
!
Furnishing Copies B, C, and 2 to employees.
Generally, you must furnish Copies B, C, and 2 of Form
W-2 to your employees by February 2, 2015. You will
meet the “furnish” requirement if the form is properly
addressed and mailed on or before the due date.
If employment ends before December 31, 2014, you
may furnish copies to the employee at any time after
employment ends, but no later than February 2, 2015. If
an employee asks for Form W-2, give him or her the
completed copies within 30 days of the request or within
30 days of the final wage payment, whichever is later.
However, if you terminate your business, see Terminating
a business.
You may furnish Forms W-2 to employees on IRS
official forms or on acceptable substitute forms. See
Substitute forms. Be sure the Forms W-2 you provide to
employees are clear and legible and comply with the
requirements in Pub. 1141.
Extension of time to furnish Forms W-2 to
employees. You may request an extension of time to
furnish Forms W-2 to employees by sending a letter to:
Copy 1. Send Copy 1 of Form W-2, if required, to your
state, city, or local tax department. For more information
concerning Copy 1 (including how to complete boxes 15
through 20), contact your state, city, or local tax
department.
American Samoa. File Copy 1 of Form W-3SS and
Forms W-2AS at the following address.
American Samoa Tax Office
Executive Office Building
First Floor
Pago Pago, AS 96799
For additional information about Form W-2AS, see
www.americansamoa.gov.
Guam. File Copy 1 of Form W-3SS and Forms W-2GU
at the following address.
Guam Department of Revenue and Taxation
P.O. Box 23607
GMF, GU 96921
Internal Revenue Service
Information Returns Branch
Attn: Extension of Time Coordinator
240 Murall Drive, Mail Stop 4360
Kearneysville, WV 25430
For additional information about Form W-2GU, see
www.guamtax.com.
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
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from a section 125 (cafeteria) plan, but not including
adoption benefits forfeited from a cafeteria plan) are
subject to social security, Medicare, and railroad
retirement taxes and must be reported in boxes 3 and 5.
(Use box 14 if railroad retirement taxes apply.) Also, the
total amount must be reported in box 12 with code T.
For more information on adoption benefits, see Notice
97-9, 1997-1 C.B. 365, which is on page 35 of Internal
Revenue Bulletin 1997-2 at www.irs.gov/pub/irs-irbs/
irb97-02.pdf. Advise your employees to see the
Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses.
Mail your letter on or before the due date for furnishing
Forms W-2 to employees. It must include:
Your name and address,
Your EIN,
A statement that you are requesting an extension to
furnish “Forms W-2” to employees,
The reason for delay, and
Your signature or that of your authorized agent.
Requests for an extension of time to furnish
recipient statements for more than 10 payers
CAUTION
must be submitted electronically. See Publication
1220, Part D, Sec. 4.
!
Agent reporting. Generally, an agent who has an
approved Form 2678, Employer/Payer Appointment of
Agent, should enter the agent's name as the employer in
box c of Form W-2 and file only one Form W-2 for each
employee. However, if the agent (a) is acting as an agent
for two or more employers or is an employer and is acting
as an agent for another employer, and (b) pays social
security wages to an individual on behalf of more than one
employer, and (c) the total of the individual's social
security wages from these employers is greater than the
social security wage base, the agent must file separate
Forms W-2 for the affected employee reflecting the wages
paid by each employer.
On the Form W-2 the agent should enter the following
in box c of Form W-2.
(Name of agent)
Agent for (name of employer)
Address of agent
Undeliverable Forms W-2. Keep for 4 years any
employee copies of Forms W-2 that you tried to but could
not deliver. However, if the undelivered Form W-2 can be
produced electronically through April 15th of the fourth
year after the year at issue, you do not need to keep
undeliverable employee copies. Do not send
undeliverable Forms W-2 to the SSA.
Taxpayer identification numbers (TINs). Employers
use an employer identification number (EIN)
(00-0000000). Employees use a social security number
(SSN) (000-00-0000). When you list a number, separate
the nine digits properly to show the kind of number. Do not
accept an IRS individual taxpayer identification number
(ITIN) in place of an SSN for employee identification or for
Form W-2 reporting. An ITIN is only available to resident
and nonresident aliens who are not eligible for U.S.
employment and need identification for other tax
purposes. You can identify an ITIN because it is a 9-digit
number beginning with the number “9” with either a “7” or
“8” as the fourth digit and is formatted like an SSN (for
example, 9NN-7N-NNNN). Do not auto populate an ITIN
into box a— Employee's social security number on Form
W-2. See section 4 of Pub. 15 (Circular E).
!
CAUTION
Each Form W-2 should reflect the EIN of the agent in
box b. An agent files one Form W-3 for all of the Forms
W-2 and enters its own information in boxes e, f, and g of
Form W-3 as it appears on the agent's related
employment tax returns (for example, Form 941). Enter
the client-employer's EIN in box h of Form W-3 if the
Forms W-2 relate to only one employer (other than the
agent); if not, leave box h blank. See Rev. Proc. 70-6,
1970-1 C.B. 420; Notice 2003-70, 2003-43 I.R.B. 916,
available at www.irs.gov/irb/2003-43_IRB/ar09.html; and
the Instructions for Form 2678 for procedures to be
followed in applying to be an agent. For state and local
health and welfare agencies wishing to act as agents
under section 3504, see Rev. Proc. 80-4, 1980-1 C.B.
581.
An individual with an ITIN who later becomes
eligible to work in the United States must obtain
an SSN from the Social Security Administration.
The IRS uses SSNs to check the payments that you
report against the amounts shown on employees' tax
returns. The SSA uses SSNs to record employees'
earnings for future social security and Medicare benefits.
When you prepare Form W-2, be sure to show the correct
SSN for each employee. For information about verifying
SSNs, see section 4 of Pub. 15 (Circular E) or visit the
SSA's Employer W-2 Filing Instructions & Information
website at www.socialsecurity.gov/employer.
!
CAUTION
Generally, an agent is not responsible for
TIP refunding excess social security or railroad
retirement (RRTA) tax withheld from employees.
If an employee worked for more than one employer during
2014 and had more than $X,XXX.XX in social security and
Tier I RRTA tax withheld, he or she should claim the
excess on the appropriate line of Form 1040, Form
1040A, or Form 1040NR. If an employee had more than
$X,XXX.XX in Tier II RRTA tax withheld from more than
one employer, the employee should claim a refund on
Form 843, Claim for Refund and Request for Abatement.
Form W-2 e-filed with the SSA must contain the
same TINs as shown on all copies of Form W-2
furnished to employees.
Special Reporting Situations for Form
W-2
Archer MSA. An employer's contribution to an
employee's Archer MSA is not subject to federal income
tax withholding or social security, Medicare, or railroad
retirement taxes if it is reasonable to believe at the time of
the payment that the contribution will be excludable from
Adoption benefits. Amounts paid or expenses incurred
by an employer for qualified adoption expenses under an
adoption assistance program are not subject to federal
income tax withholding and are not reportable in box 1.
However, these amounts (including adoption benefits paid
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Form 1099-MISC. However, if the payment is a
reissuance of wages that were constructively received by
the deceased individual while he or she was still alive, do
not report it on Form 1099-MISC.
the employee's income. However, if it is not reasonable to
believe at the time of payment that the contribution will be
excludable from the employee's income, employer
contributions are subject to income tax withholding and
social security and Medicare taxes (or railroad retirement
taxes, if applicable) and must be reported in boxes 1, 3,
and 5. (Use box 14 if railroad retirement taxes apply.)
You must report all employer contributions to an Archer
MSA in box 12 of Form W-2 with code R. Employer
contributions to an Archer MSA that are not excludable
from the income of the employee also must be reported in
box 1.
An employee's contributions to an Archer MSA are
includible in income as wages and are subject to federal
income tax withholding and social security and Medicare
taxes (or railroad retirement taxes, if applicable).
Employee contributions are deductible, within limits, on
the employee's Form 1040.
For more information, see Pub. 969, Health Savings
Accounts and Other Tax-Favored Health Plans, and
Notice 96-53, which is found on page 5 of Internal
Revenue Bulletin 1996-51 at www.irs.gov/pub/irs-irbs/
irb96-51.pdf.
Example. Before Employee A's death on June 15,
2014, A was employed by Employer X and received
$10,000 in wages on which federal income tax of $1,500
was withheld. When A died, X owed A $2,000 in wages
and $1,000 in accrued vacation pay. The total of $3,000
(less the social security and Medicare taxes withheld) was
paid to A's estate on July 5, 2014. Because X made the
payment during the year of death, X must withhold social
security and Medicare taxes on the $3,000 payment and
must complete Form W-2 as follows.
Box a – Employee A's SSN
Box e – Employee A's name
Box f – Employee A's address
Box 1 – 10000.00 (does not include the $3,000 accrued
wages and vacation pay)
Box 2 – 1500.00
Box 3 – 13000.00 (includes the $3,000 accrued wages
and vacation pay)
Box 4 – 806.00 (6.2% of the amount in box 3)
Box 5 – 13000.00 (includes the $3,000 accrued wages
and vacation pay)
Box 6 – 188.50 (1.45% of the amount in box 5)
Clergy and religious workers. For certain members of
the clergy and religious workers who are not subject to
social security and Medicare taxes as employees, boxes
3 and 5 of Form W-2 should be left blank. You may
include a minister's parsonage and/or utilities allowance in
box 14. For information on the rules that apply to ministers
and certain other religious workers, see Pub. 517, Social
Security and Other Information for Members of the Clergy
and Religious Workers, and Section 4–Religious
Exemptions and Special Rules for Ministers in Pub. 15-A.
!
CAUTION
Boxes for recipient's name, address, and TIN—the
estate's name, address, and TIN.
Box 3: 3000.00 (Even though amounts were withheld
for social security and Medicare taxes, the gross amount
is reported here.)
Deceased employee's wages. If an employee dies
during the year, you must report the accrued wages,
vacation pay, and other compensation paid after the date
of death. Also report wages that were available to the
employee while he or she was alive, regardless of
whether they actually were in the possession of the
employee, as well as any other regular wage payment,
even if you may have to reissue the payment in the name
of the estate or beneficiary.
If you made the payment after the employee's death
but in the same year the employee died, you must
withhold social security and Medicare taxes on the
payment and report the payment on the employee's Form
W-2 only as social security and Medicare wages to ensure
proper social security and Medicare credit is received. On
the employee's Form W-2, show the payment as social
security wages (box 3) and Medicare wages and tips
(box 5) and the social security and Medicare taxes
withheld in boxes 4 and 6. Do not show the payment in
box 1.
If you made the payment after the year of death, do not
report it on Form W-2, and do not withhold social security
and Medicare taxes.
Whether the payment is made in the year of death or
after the year of death, you also must report it in box 3 of
Form 1099-MISC, Miscellaneous Income, for the payment
to the estate or beneficiary. Use the name and taxpayer
identification number (TIN) of the payment recipient on
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
Employer X also must complete Form 1099-MISC
as follows.
If Employer X made the payment after the year of
death, the $3,000 would not be subject to social security
and Medicare taxes and would not be shown on Form
W-2. However, the employer would still file Form
1099-MISC.
Designated Roth contributions. Under section 402A, a
participant in a section 401(k) plan, under a 403(b) salary
reduction agreement, or in a governmental 457(b) plan
that includes a qualified Roth contribution program, may
elect to make designated Roth contributions to the plan or
program in lieu of elective deferrals. Designated Roth
contributions are subject to federal income tax withholding
and social security and Medicare taxes (and railroad
retirement taxes, if applicable) and must be reported in
boxes 1, 3, and 5. (Use box 14 if railroad retirement taxes
apply.)
Section 402A requires separate reporting of the yearly
designated Roth contributions. Designated Roth
contributions to 401(k) plans will be reported using code
AA in box 12; designated Roth contributions under 403(b)
salary reduction agreements will be reported using code
BB in box 12; and designated Roth contributions under a
governmental section 457(b) plan will be reported using
Code EE in box 12. For reporting instructions, see Box
12—Codes for Code AA, Code BB, and Code EE.
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Educational assistance programs. Employer-provided
educational assistance that qualifies as a working
condition benefit is excludable from an employee's
wages. For employer-provided educational assistance
that does not qualify as a working condition benefit, a
$5,250 exclusion may apply if the assistance is provided
under an educational assistance program under section
127. See Pub. 970, Tax Benefits for Education, and
section 2 of Pub. 15-B for more information. Also see Box
1—Wages, tips, other compensation.
This does not apply to household and agricultural
employers. If you pay a household or agricultural
CAUTION
employee's social security and Medicare taxes,
you must include these payments in the employee's
wages for income tax withholding purposes. However, the
wage increase due to the tax payments is not subject to
social security, Medicare, or FUTA taxes. For information
on completing Forms W-2 and W-3 in this situation, see
the Instructions for Schedule H (Form 1040) and section 4
of Pub. 51 (Circular A).
Election workers. Report on Form W-2 payments of
$600 or more to election workers for services performed
in state, county, and municipal elections. File Form W-2
for payments of less than $600 paid to election workers if
social security and Medicare taxes were withheld under a
section 218 (Social Security Act) agreement. Do not
report election worker payments on Form 1099-MISC.
If the election worker is employed in another capacity
with the same government entity, see Rev. Rul. 2000-6,
which is on page 512 of Internal Revenue Bulletin 2000-6
at www.irs.gov/pub/irs-irbs/irb00-06.pdf.
Foreign agricultural workers. You must report
compensation of $600 or more paid in a calendar year to
an H-2A visa agricultural worker for agricultural labor. If
the H-2A visa agricultural worker furnishes a valid
taxpayer identification number, report these payments in
box 1 of Form W-2. If the worker does not furnish a valid
taxpayer identification number, report the payments on
Form 1099-MISC. See Form 1099-MISC, below.
On Form W-2, no amount should be reported in boxes
3 or 5. In most cases, you do not need to withhold federal
income tax from compensation paid to H-2A visa
agricultural workers. Employers should withhold federal
income tax only if the H-2A visa agricultural worker and
the employer agree to withhold. The H-2A visa agricultural
worker must provide a completed Form W-4. If the
employer withholds income tax, the employer must report
the tax withheld in box 2 of Form W-2 and on line 6 of
Form 943. See Publication 51 (Circular A).
Form 1099-MISC. If the H-2A visa agricultural worker
fails to furnish a taxpayer identification number to the
employer, and the total annual payments made to the
H-2A visa agricultural worker are $600 or more, the
employer must begin backup withholding on the payments
made until the H-2A visa agricultural worker furnishes a
valid taxpayer identification number. Employers must
report the compensation paid and any backup withholding
on Forms 1099-MISC and Form 945. See the 2014
Instructions for Form 1099-MISC and the 2014
Instructions for Form 945.
For more information, visit the Foreign Agricultural
Workers page on IRS.gov.
!
Employee business expense reimbursements.
Reimbursements to employees for business expenses
must be reported as follows.
Generally, payments made under an accountable plan
are excluded from the employee's gross income and are
not reported on Form W-2. However, if you pay a per diem
or mileage allowance and the amount paid for
substantiated miles or days traveled exceeds the amount
treated as substantiated under IRS rules, you must report
as wages on Form W-2 the amount in excess of the
amount treated as substantiated. The excess amount is
subject to income tax withholding and social security and
Medicare taxes. Report the amount treated as
substantiated (that is, the nontaxable portion) in box 12
using code L. See Box 12—Codes for Code L—
Substantiated employee business expense
reimbursements.
Payments made under a nonaccountable plan are
reported as wages on Form W-2 and are subject to
federal income tax withholding and social security and
Medicare taxes.
For more information on accountable plans,
nonaccountable plans, amounts treated as substantiated
under a per diem or mileage allowance, the standard
mileage rate, the per diem substantiation method, and the
high-low substantiation method, see Pub. 463, Travel,
Entertainment, Gift, and Car Expenses; and section 5 of
Pub. 15 (Circular E).
Fringe benefits. Include all taxable fringe benefits in
box 1 of Form W-2 as wages, tips, and other
compensation and, if applicable, in boxes 3 and 5 as
social security and Medicare wages. Although not
required, you may include the total value of fringe benefits
in box 14 (or on a separate statement). However, if you
provided your employee a vehicle and included 100% of
its annual lease value in the employee's income, you must
separately report this value to the employee in box 14 (or
on a separate statement). The employee can then figure
the value of any business use of the vehicle and report it
on Form 2106, Employee Business Expenses. Also see
Pub. 15-B for more information.
Employee's social security and Medicare taxes paid
by employer. If you paid your employee's share of social
security and Medicare taxes rather than deducting them
from the employee's wages, you must include these
payments as wages subject to federal (or American
Samoa, Guam, or U.S. Virgin Islands) income tax
withholding and social security, Medicare, and federal
unemployment (FUTA) taxes. The amount to include as
wages is determined by using the formula contained in the
discussion of Employee's Portion of Taxes Paid by
Employer in section 7 of Pub. 15-A.
If you used the commuting rule or the vehicle
cents-per-mile rule to value the personal use of
CAUTION
the vehicle, you cannot include 100% of the value
of the use of the vehicle in the employee's income. See
Pub. 15-B.
!
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allowed to elect a salary reduction of more than $X,XXX
(as indexed for inflation) for a plan year, the cafeteria plan
will continue to be a section 125 cafeteria plan for that
plan year if:
The terms of the plan apply uniformly to all participants,
The error results from a reasonable mistake by the
employer (or the employer’s agent) and is not due to
willful neglect by the employer (or the employer’s agent),
and
Salary reduction contributions in excess of $X,XXX (as
indexed for inflation) are paid to the employee and
reported as wages for income tax withholding and
employment tax purposes on the employee’s Form W-2
(or Form W-2c) for the employee’s taxable year in which,
or with which, ends the cafeteria plan year in which the
correction is made.
For more information, see Notice 2012-40, 2012-26
I.R.B. 1046, available at www.irs.gov/irb/2012-26_IRB/
ar09.html.
Golden parachute payments (not applicable to
Forms W-2AS, W-2GU, or W-2VI). Include any golden
parachute payments in boxes 1, 3, and 5 of Form W-2.
Withhold federal income, social security, and Medicare
taxes as usual and report them in boxes 2, 4, and 6,
respectively. Excess parachute payments are also subject
to a 20% excise tax. If the excess payments are
considered wages, withhold the 20% excise tax and
include it in box 2 as income tax withheld. Also report the
excise tax in box 12 with code K. For definitions and
additional information, see Regulations section 1.280G-1
and Rev. Proc. 2003-68, 2003-34 I.R.B. 398, available at
www.irs.gov/irb/2003-34_IRB/ar16.html.
Government employers. Federal, state, and local
governmental agencies have two options for reporting
their employees' wages that are subject to only Medicare
tax for part of the year and both social security and
Medicare taxes for part of the year.
The first option (which the SSA prefers) is to file a
single set of Forms W-2 per employee for the entire year,
even if only part of the year's wages are subject to both
social security and Medicare taxes. Check “941” (or “944”)
or “941-SS” in box b of Form W-3. The wages in box 5 of
Form W-2 must be equal to or greater than the wages in
box 3 of Form W-2.
The second option is to file one set of Forms W-2 for
wages subject only to Medicare tax and another set for
wages subject to both social security and Medicare taxes.
Use a separate Form W-3 to transmit each set of Forms
W-2. For the Medicare-only Forms W-2, check “Medicare
govt. emp.” in box b of Form W-3. For the Forms W-2
showing wages subject to both social security and
Medicare taxes, check “941” (or “944”) or “941-SS” in box
b of Form W-3. The wages in box 5 of Form W-2 must be
equal to or greater than the wages in box 3 of Form W-2.
Health savings account (HSA). An employer's
contribution (including an employee's contributions
through a cafeteria plan) to an employee's HSA is not
subject to federal income tax withholding or social
security, Medicare, or railroad retirement taxes (or FUTA
tax) if it is reasonable to believe at the time of the payment
that the contribution will be excludable from the
employee's income. However, if it is not reasonable to
believe at the time of payment that the contribution will be
excludable from the employee's income, employer
contributions are subject to federal income tax
withholding, social security and Medicare taxes (or
railroad retirement taxes, if applicable), and FUTA tax and
must be reported in boxes 1, 3, and 5 (use box 14 if
railroad retirement taxes apply), and on Form 940,
Employer's Annual Federal Unemployment (FUTA) Tax
Return.
You must report all employer contributions (including
an employee's contributions through a cafeteria plan) to
an HSA in box 12 of Form W-2 with code W. Employer
contributions to an HSA that are not excludable from the
income of the employee also must be reported in boxes 1,
3, and 5. (Use box 14 if railroad retirement taxes apply.)
An employee's contributions to an HSA (unless made
through a cafeteria plan) are includible in income as
wages and are subject to federal income tax withholding
and social security and Medicare taxes (or railroad
retirement taxes, if applicable). Employee contributions
are deductible, within limits, on the employee's Form
1040. For more information about HSAs, see Notice
2004-2, Notice 2004-50, and Notice 2008-52. Notice
2004-2, 2004-2 I.R.B. 269, is available at www.irs.gov/irb/
2004-02_IRB/ar09.html. Notice 2004-50, 2004-33 I.R.B.
196, is available at www.irs.gov/irb/2004-33_IRB/
ar08.html. Notice 2008-52, 2008-25 I.R.B. 1166, is
available at www.irs.gov/irb/2008-25_IRB/ar10.html. Also
see Form 8889, Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), and
Pub. 969.
Group-term life insurance. You must include in boxes
1, 3, and 5 the cost of group-term life insurance that is
more than the cost of $50,000 of coverage, reduced by
the amount the employee paid toward the insurance. Use
the table in section 2 of Pub. 15-B to determine the cost of
the insurance. Also, show the amount in box 12 with code
C. For employees, you must withhold social security and
Medicare taxes, but not federal income tax. For coverage
provided to former employees, the former employees
must pay the employee part of social security and
Medicare taxes on the taxable cost of group-term life
insurance over $50,000 on Form 1040. You are not
required to collect those taxes. However, you must report
the uncollected social security tax with code M and the
uncollected Medicare tax with code N in box 12 of Form
W-2. However, any uncollected Additional Medicare Tax
(on the cost of group-term life insurance, which, in
combination with other wages, is in excess of $200,000) is
not reported with code N in box 12.
Health flexible spending arrangement (FSA). For plan
years beginning after December 31, 2012, a cafeteria plan
may not allow an employee to request salary reduction
contributions for a health FSA in excess of $X,XXX.
If a cafeteria plan timely complies with the written plan
requirement limiting health FSA salary reduction
contributions, but one or more employees are erroneously
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
Lost Form W-2—reissued statement. If an employee
loses a Form W-2, write “REISSUED STATEMENT” on
the new copy and furnish it to the employee. You do not
have to add “REISSUED STATEMENT” on Forms W-2
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provided to employees electronically. Do not send Copy A
of the reissued Form W-2 to the SSA. Employers are not
prohibited (by the Internal Revenue Code) from charging
a fee for the issuance of a duplicate Form W-2.
Military differential pay. Employers paying their
employees while they are on active duty in the United
States uniformed services should treat these payments as
wages. Differential wage payments made to an individual
while on active duty for periods scheduled to exceed 30
days are subject to income tax withholding, but are not
subject to social security, Medicare, and unemployment
taxes. Report differential wage payments in box 1 and any
federal income tax withholding in box 2. Differential wage
payments made to an individual while on active duty for
30 days or less are subject to income tax withholding,
social security, Medicare, and unemployment taxes, and
are reported in boxes 1, 3, and 5. See Rev. Rul. 2009-11,
2009-18 I.R.B. 896, available at www.irs.gov/irb/
2009-18_IRB/ar07.html.
Moving expenses. Report moving expenses as follows.
Qualified moving expenses that an employer paid to a
third party on behalf of the employee (for example, to a
moving company) and services that an employer
furnished in kind to an employee are not reported on Form
W-2.
Qualified moving expense reimbursements paid directly
to an employee by an employer are reported only in
box 12 of Form W-2 with code P.
Nonqualified moving expense reimbursements are
reported in boxes 1, 3, and 5 (use box 14 if railroad
retirement taxes apply) of Form W-2. These amounts are
subject to federal income tax withholding and social
security and Medicare taxes (or railroad retirement taxes,
if applicable).
For more information on qualified and nonqualified
moving expenses, see Pub. 521, Moving Expenses.
Nonqualified deferred compensation plans. Section
409A provides that all amounts deferred under a
nonqualified deferred compensation (NQDC) plan for all
tax years are currently includible in gross income unless
certain requirements are met. Generally, section 409A is
effective with respect to amounts deferred in tax years
beginning after December 31, 2004, but deferrals made
prior to that year may be subject to section 409A under
some circumstances.
It is not necessary to show amounts deferred during the
year under an NQDC plan subject to section 409A. If you
report section 409A deferrals, show the amount in box 12
using code Y. For more information, see Notice 2008-115,
2008-52 I.R.B. 1367, available at www.irs.gov/irb/
2008-52_IRB/ar10.html.
Income included under section 409A from an NQDC
plan will be reported in box 1 and in box 12 using code Z.
This income is also subject to an additional tax of 20%
that is reported on Form 1040. For more information on
amounts includible in gross income and reporting
requirements, see proposed Regulations section
1.409A-4, 2008-51 I.R.B 1325, and Notice 2008-115. For
information on correcting failures to comply with section
409A and related reporting, see Notice 2008-113,
2008-51 I.R.B. 1305, available at www.irs.gov/irb/
2008-51_IRB/ar12.html; Notice 2010-6, 2010-3 I.R.B 275,
available at www.irs.gov/irb/2010-3_IRB/ar08.html; and
Notice 2010-80, 2010-51 I.R.B. 853, available at
www.irs.gov/irb/2010-51_IRB/ar08.html.
See the Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan
Reporting Examples Chart.
Railroad employers (not applicable to Forms W-2AS,
W-2GU, or W-2VI). Railroad employers must file Form
W-2 to report their employees' wages and income tax
withholding in boxes 1 and 2. Electronic reporting may be
required; see E-filing. If you have employees covered
under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA)
(social security and Medicare) and the Railroad
Retirement Tax Act (RRTA), you must file a separate
Form W-3 to transmit the Forms W-2 for each group of
employees.
For employees covered by social security and
Medicare, complete boxes 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 of Form W-2 to
show the social security and Medicare wages and the
amounts withheld for social security and Medicare taxes.
On the Form W-3 used to transmit these Forms W-2,
check the “941” checkbox in box b.
For employees covered by RRTA tax, report the RRTA
compensation, Tier I, Tier II, Medicare, and any Additional
Medicare Tax withheld in box 14 of Form W-2. Label them
“RRTA compensation,”“Tier I tax,”“Tier II tax,”“Medicare
tax,” and “Additional Medicare Tax.” Use additional Forms
W-2 if needed. See Multiple Forms. Boxes 3, 4, 5, 6, and
7 apply only to covered social security and Medicare
wages and taxes and are not to be used to report railroad
retirement wages and taxes. On the Form W-3 used to
transmit these Forms W-2, check the “CT-1” checkbox in
box b.
Repayments. If an employee repays you for wages
received in error, do not offset the repayments against
current year wages unless the repayments are for
amounts received in error in the current year. Repayments
made in the current year, but related to a prior year or
years, must be repaid in gross, not net, and require
special tax treatment by employees in some cases. You
may advise the employee of the total repayments made
during the current year and the amount (if any) related to
prior years. This information will help the employee
account for such repayments on his or her federal income
tax return.
If the repayment was for a prior year, you must file
Form W-2c with the SSA to correct only social security
and Medicare wages and taxes. Do not correct "Wages,
tips, other compensation" in box 1, or "Federal income tax
withheld" in box 2, on Form W-2c. File the “X” return that is
appropriate for the return on which the wages were
originally reported (Forms 941-X, 943-X, 944-X, or
CT-1X). Correct the social security and Medicare wages
and taxes for the period during which the wages were
originally paid. For information on reporting adjustments to
Forms 941, 941-SS, 943, 944, or Form CT-1, see section
13 of Pub. 15 (Circular E) or section 9 of Pub. 51 (Circular
A).
TIP
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Tell your employee that the wages paid in error in
a prior year remain taxable to him or her for that
year. This is because the employee received and
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had use of those funds during that year. The employee is
not entitled to file an amended return (Form 1040X) to
recover the income tax on these wages. Instead, the
employee is entitled to a deduction (or a credit, in some
cases) for the repaid wages on his or her Form 1040 for
the year of repayment. Refer your employee to
Repayments in Pub. 525.
Scholarship and fellowship grants. Give a Form W-2
to each recipient of a scholarship or fellowship grant only
if you are reporting amounts includible in income under
section 117(c) (relating to payments for teaching,
research, or other services required as a condition for
receiving the qualified scholarship). Also see Pub. 15-A
and Pub. 970. These payments are subject to federal
income tax withholding. However, their taxability for social
security and Medicare taxes depends on the nature of the
employment and the status of the organization. See
Students, scholars, trainees, teachers, etc., in section 15
of Pub. 15 (Circular E).
Sick pay. If you had employees who received sick pay in
2014 from an insurance company or other third-party
payer and the third party notified you of the amount of sick
pay involved, you may be required to report the
information on the employees' Forms W-2. If the
insurance company or other third-party payer did not
notify you in a timely manner about the sick pay
payments, it must prepare Forms W-2 and W-3 for your
employees showing the sick pay. For specific reporting
instructions, see Sick Pay Reporting in section 6 of Pub.
15-A.
SIMPLE retirement account. An employee's salary
reduction contributions to a SIMPLE (savings incentive
match plan for employees) retirement account are not
subject to federal income tax withholding but are subject
to social security, Medicare, and railroad retirement taxes.
Do not include an employee's contribution in box 1, but do
include it in boxes 3 and 5. (Use box 14 if railroad
retirement taxes apply.) An employee's total contribution
also must be included in box 12 with code D or S.
An employer's matching or nonelective contribution to
an employee's SIMPLE retirement account is not subject
to federal income tax withholding or social security,
Medicare, or railroad retirement taxes, and is not to be
shown on Form W-2.
For more information on SIMPLE retirement accounts,
see Notice 98-4, 1998-1 C.B. 269. You can find Notice
98-4 on page 25 of Internal Revenue Bulletin 1998-2 at
www.irs.gov/pub/irs-irbs/irb98-02.pdf.
Successor/predecessor employers. If you buy or sell a
business during the year, see Rev. Proc. 2004-53 for
information on who must file Forms W-2 and employment
tax returns. Rev. Proc. 2004-53, 2004-34 I.R.B 320, is
available at www.irs.gov/irb/2004-34_IRB/ar13.html.
Terminating a business. If you terminate your business,
you must provide Forms W-2 to your employees for the
calendar year of termination by the due date of your final
Forms 941, 944, or 941-SS. You also must file Forms W-2
with the SSA by the last day of the month that follows the
due date of your final Forms 941, 944, or 941-SS. If filing
on paper, make sure you obtain Forms W-2 and W-3
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
preprinted with the correct year. If e-filing, make sure your
software has been updated for the current tax year.
However, if any of your employees are immediately
employed by a successor employer, see Successor/
predecessor employers, earlier. Also, for information on
automatic extensions for furnishing Forms W-2 to
employees and filing Forms W-2, see Rev. Proc. 96-57,
which is on page 14 of Internal Revenue Bulletin 1996-53
at www.irs.gov/pub/irs-irbs/irb96-53.pdf.
Get Schedule D (Form 941), Report of
Discrepancies Caused by Acquisitions, Statutory
Mergers, or Consolidations, for information on
reconciling wages and taxes reported on Forms W-2 with
amounts reported on Forms 941, 941-SS, 943, or 944.
TIP
Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment
Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) makeup amounts to a
pension plan. If an employee returned to your
employment after military service and certain makeup
amounts were contributed to a pension plan for a prior
year(s) under the USERRA, report the prior year
contributions separately in box 12. See the TIP above
Code D in Box 12—Codes. You also may report certain
makeup amounts in box 14. See Box 14—Other in
Specific instructions for Form W-2.
Instead of reporting in box 12 (or box 14), you may
choose to provide a separate statement to your employee
showing USERRA makeup contributions. The statement
must identify the type of plan, the year(s) to which the
contributions relate, and the amount contributed for each
year.
Penalties
The following penalties apply to the person or employer
required to file Form W-2. The penalties apply to both
paper filers and e-filers.
Use of a reporting agent or other third-party
payroll service provider does not relieve an
CAUTION
employer of the responsibility to ensure that
Forms W-2 are furnished to employees and that Forms
W-2 and W-3 are filed with the SSA, correctly and on time.
!
Failure to file correct information returns by the due
date. If you fail to file a correct Form W-2 by the due date
and cannot show reasonable cause, you may be subject
to a penalty as provided under section 6721. The penalty
applies if you:
Fail to file timely,
Fail to include all information required to be shown on
Form W-2,
Include incorrect information on Form W-2,
File on paper forms when you are required to e-file,
Report an incorrect TIN,
Fail to report a TIN, or
Fail to file paper Forms W-2 that are machine readable.
The amount of the penalty is based on when you file
the correct Form W-2. The penalty is:
$30 per Form W-2 if you correctly file within 30 days of
the due date (for example, by March 30 if the due date is
February 28); the maximum penalty is $250,000 per year
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($75,000 for small businesses, defined in Small
businesses.)
$60 per Form W-2 if you correctly file more than 30
days after the due date but by August 1; the maximum
penalty is $500,000 per year ($200,000 for small
businesses).
$100 per Form W-2 if you file after August 1, or you do
not file required Forms W-2; the maximum penalty is
$1,500,000 per year ($500,000 for small businesses).
If you do not file corrections and you do not meet
any of the exceptions to the penalty, the penalty
CAUTION
is $100 per information return. The maximum
penalty is $1,500,000 per year.
!
Exceptions to the penalty. The following are
exceptions to the failure to file correct information returns
penalty.
1. The penalty will not apply to any failure that you can
show was due to reasonable cause and not to willful
neglect. In general, you must be able to show that your
failure was due to an event beyond your control or due to
significant mitigating factors. You also must be able to
show that you acted in a responsible manner and took
steps to avoid the failure.
2. An inconsequential error or omission is not
considered a failure to include correct information. An
inconsequential error or omission does not prevent or
hinder the SSA/IRS from processing the Form W-2, from
correlating the information required to be shown on the
form with the information shown on the payee's tax return,
or from otherwise putting the form to its intended use.
Errors and omissions that are never inconsequential are
those relating to:
A TIN,
A payee's surname, and
Any money amounts.
3. De minimis rule for corrections. Even though you
cannot show reasonable cause, the penalty for failure to
file correct Forms W-2 will not apply to a certain number of
returns if you:
Filed those Forms W-2 on or before the required filing
date,
Either failed to include all of the information required on
the form or included incorrect information, and
Filed corrections of these forms by August 1.
If you meet all of the de minimis rule conditions, the
penalty for filing incorrect information returns (including
Form W-2) will not apply to the greater of 10 information
returns (including Form W-2) or one-half of 1% of the total
number of information returns (including Form W-2) that
you are required to file for the calendar year.
Small businesses. For purposes of the lower
maximum penalties shown in Failure to file correct
information returns by the due date, you are a small
business if your average annual gross receipts for the 3
most recent tax years (or for the period that you were in
existence, if shorter) ending before the calendar year in
which the Forms W-2 were due are $5 million or less.
Intentional disregard of filing requirements. If any
failure to file a correct Form W-2 is due to intentional
disregard of the filing or correct information requirements,
the penalty is at least $250 per Form W-2 with no
maximum penalty.
Failure to furnish correct payee statements. If you fail
to provide correct payee statements (Forms W-2) to your
employees and cannot show reasonable cause, you may
be subject to a penalty as provided under section 6722.
The penalty applies if you fail to provide the statement by
February 2, 2015, if you fail to include all information
required to be shown on the statement, or if you include
incorrect information on the statement.
The amount of the penalty is based on when you
furnish the correct payee statement. This penalty is an
additional penalty and is applied in the same manner, and
with the same amounts, as in Failure to file correct
information returns by the due date.
Exceptions to the penalty. An inconsequential error
or omission is not considered a failure to include correct
information. An inconsequential error or omission cannot
reasonably be expected to prevent or hinder the payee
from timely receiving correct information and reporting it
on his or her income tax return or from otherwise putting
the statement to its intended use. Errors and omissions
that are never inconsequential are those relating to:
A dollar amount,
A significant item in a payee's address, and
The appropriate form for the information provided, such
as whether the form is an acceptable substitute for the
official IRS form.
See Exceptions to the penalty in Failure to file correct
information returns by the due date, for additional
exceptions to the penalty for failure to file correct payee
statements.
Intentional disregard of payee statement
requirements. If any failure to provide a correct payee
statement (Form W-2) to an employee is due to intentional
disregard of the requirements to furnish a correct payee
statement, the penalty is $250 per Form W-2 with no
maximum penalty.
If you willfully file a fraudulent Form W-2 for payments
that you claim you made to another person, that person
may be able to sue you for damages. You may have to
pay $5,000 or more.
Specific Instructions for Form W-2
How to complete Form W-2. Form W-2 is a multi-part
form. Ensure all copies are legible. Send Copy A to the
SSA; Copy 1, if required, to your state, city, or local tax
department; and Copies B, C, and 2 to your employee.
Keep Copy D, and a copy of Form W-3, with your records
for 4 years.
Enter the information on Form W-2 using black ink in
12-point Courier font. Copy A is read by machine and
must be typed clearly with no corrections made to the
entries and with no entries exceeding the size of the
boxes. Entries completed by hand, in script or italic fonts,
or in colors other than black cannot be read by the
machines. Make all dollar entries on Copy A without the
dollar sign and comma but with the decimal point
(00000.00). Show the cents portion of the money
amounts. If a box does not apply, leave it blank.
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Send the whole Copy A page of Form W-2 with Form
W-3 to the SSA even if one of the Forms W-2 on the page
is blank or void. Do not staple Forms W-2 together or to
Form W-3. File Forms W-2 either alphabetically by
employees' last names or numerically by employees'
SSNs.
Calendar year basis. The entries on Form W-2 must be
based on wages paid during the calendar year. Use Form
W-2 for the correct tax year. For example, if the employee
worked from December 22, 2014, through January 9,
2015, and the wages for that period were paid on January
10, 2015, include those wages on the 2015 Form W-2.
Multiple forms. If necessary, you can issue more than
one Form W-2 to an employee. For example, you may
need to report more than four coded items in box 12 or
you may want to report other compensation on a second
form. If you issue a second Form W-2, complete boxes a,
b, c, d, e, and f with the same information as on the first
Form W-2. Show any items that were not included on the
first Form W-2 in the appropriate boxes. Also, see the TIP
for Copy A in How to get forms and publications.
Do not report the same federal, American Samoa,
Guam, or U.S. Virgin Islands tax data to the SSA on more
than one Copy A.
TIP
For each Form W-2 showing an amount in box 3
or box 7, make certain that box 5 equals or
exceeds the sum of boxes 3 and 7.
Void. Check this box when an error is made on Form W-2
and you are voiding it because you are going to complete
a new Form W-2. Do not include any amounts shown on
“Void” forms in the totals you enter on Form W-3. See
Corrections.
Box a—Employee's social security number. Enter the
number shown on the employee's social security card.
If the employee does not have a card, he or she should
apply for one by completing Form SS-5, Application for a
Social Security Card. The SSA lets you verify employee
names and SSNs online or by telephone. For information
about these free services, visit the Employer W-2 Filing
Instructions & Information website at
www.socialsecurity.gov/employer. If you have questions
about using these services, call 1-800-772-6270 (toll free)
to speak with an employer reporting specialist at the SSA.
If the employee has applied for a card but the number
is not received in time for filing, enter “Applied For” in box
a on paper Forms W-2 filed with the SSA. If e-filing, enter
zeros (000-00-0000 if creating forms online or 000000000
if uploading a file).
Ask the employee to inform you of the number and
name as they are shown on the social security card when
it is received. Then correct your previous report by filing
Form W-2c showing the employee's SSN. If the employee
needs to change his or her name from that shown on the
card, the employee should call the SSA at
1-800-772-1213.
If you do not provide the correct employee name and
SSN on Form W-2, you may owe a penalty unless you
have reasonable cause. For more information, see
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
Publication 1586, Reasonable Cause Regulations &
Requirements for Missing and Incorrect Name/TINs.
ITINs for aliens. Do not accept an ITIN in place of an
SSN for employee identification or for work. An ITIN is
only available to resident and nonresident aliens who are
not eligible for U.S. employment and need identification
for other tax purposes. You can identify an ITIN because it
is a 9-digit number, beginning with the number “9” with
either a “7” or “8” as the fourth digit, and is formatted like
an SSN (for example, 9NN-7N-NNNN). An individual with
an ITIN who later becomes eligible to work in the United
States must obtain an SSN.
!
Do not auto-populate an ITIN into box a.
CAUTION
Box b—Employer identification number (EIN). Show
the EIN assigned to you by the IRS (00-0000000). This
should be the same number that you used on your federal
employment tax returns (Forms 941, 941-SS, 943, 944,
CT-1, or Schedule H (Form 1040)). Do not use a prior
owner's EIN. If you do not have an EIN when filing Forms
W-2, enter “Applied For” in box b; do not use your SSN.
You can get an EIN by applying online at IRS.gov, by
calling the toll-free number, 1-800-829-4933, or by filing
Form SS-4, Application for Employer Identification
Number. Also see Agent reporting.
Box c—Employer's name, address, and ZIP code.
This entry should be the same as shown on your Forms
941, 941-SS, 943, 944, CT-1, or Schedule H (Form 1040).
The U.S. Postal Service recommends that no commas or
periods be used in return addresses. Also see Agent
reporting.
Box d—Control number. You may use this box to
identify individual Forms W-2. You do not have to use this
box.
Boxes e and f—Employee's name and address. Enter
the name as shown on your employee's social security
card (first name, middle initial, last name). If the name
does not fit in the space allowed on the form, you may
show the first and middle name initials and the full last
name. It is especially important to report the exact last
name of the employee. If you are unable to determine the
correct last name, use of the SSA's Social Security
Number Verification System may be helpful. Separate
parts of a compound name with either a hyphen or a
blank. Do not join them into a single word. Include all parts
of a compound name in the appropriate name field. For
example, for the name “John R Smith-Jones,” enter
“Smith-Jones” or “Smith Jones” in the last name field. If
the name has changed, the employee must get a
corrected social security card from any SSA office. Use
the name on the original card until you see the corrected
card. Do not show titles or academic degrees, such as
“Dr.,”“RN,” or “Esq.,” at the beginning or end of the
employee's name. Generally, do not enter “Jr.,”“Sr.,” or
other suffix in the “Suff.” box on Copy A unless the suffix
appears on the card. However, the SSA still prefers that
you do not enter the suffix on Copy A.
Include in the address the number, street, and
apartment or suite number (or P.O. box number if mail is
not delivered to a street address). The U.S. Postal Service
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recommends that no commas or periods be used in
delivery addresses. For a foreign address, give the
information in the following order: city, province or state,
and country. Follow the country's practice for entering the
postal code. Do not abbreviate the country name.
Third-party payers of sick pay filing third-party sick pay
recap Forms W-2 and W-3 must enter “Third-Party Sick
Pay Recap” in place of the employee's name in box e. Do
not file the recap Forms W-2 and W-3 electronically. Also,
do not enter the employee's SSN in box a. See Sick Pay
Reporting in section 6 of Pub. 15-A.
Box 1—Wages, tips, other compensation. Show the
total taxable wages, tips, and other compensation (before
any payroll deductions) that you paid to your employee
during the year. However, do not include elective deferrals
(such as employee contributions to a section 401(k) or
403(b) plan) except section 501(c)(18) contributions.
Include the following.
1. Total wages, bonuses (including signing bonuses),
prizes, and awards paid to employees during the year.
See Calendar year basis.
2. Total noncash payments, including certain fringe
benefits. See Fringe benefits.
3. Total tips reported by the employee to the employer
(not allocated tips).
4. Certain employee business expense
reimbursements. See Employee business expense
reimbursements.
5. The cost of accident and health insurance
premiums for 2%-or-more shareholder-employees paid by
an S corporation.
6. Taxable benefits from a section 125 (cafeteria) plan
if the employee chooses cash.
7. Employee contributions to an Archer MSA.
8. Employer contributions to an Archer MSA if
includible in the income of the employee. See Archer
MSA.
9. Employer contributions for qualified long-term care
services to the extent that such coverage is provided
through a flexible spending or similar arrangement.
10. Taxable cost of group-term life insurance in excess
of $50,000. See Group-term life insurance.
11. Unless excludable under Educational assistance
programs, payments for non-job-related education
expenses or for payments under a nonaccountable plan.
See Pub. 970.
12. The amount includible as wages because you paid
your employee's share of social security and Medicare
taxes. See Employee's social security and Medicare taxes
paid by employer. If you also paid your employee's
income tax withholding, treat the grossed-up amount of
that withholding as supplemental wages and report those
wages in boxes 1, 3, 5, and 7. No exceptions to this
treatment apply to household or agricultural wages.
13. Designated Roth contributions made under a
section 401(k) plan, a section 403(b) salary reduction
agreement, or a governmental section 457(b) plan. See
Designated Roth contributions.
14. Distributions to an employee or former employee
from an NQDC plan (including a rabbi trust) or a
nongovernmental section 457(b) plan.
15. Amounts includible in income under section 457(f)
because the amounts are no longer subject to a
substantial risk of forfeiture.
16. Payments to statutory employees who are subject
to social security and Medicare taxes but not subject to
federal income tax withholding must be shown in box 1 as
other compensation. See Statutory employee.
17. Cost of current insurance protection under a
compensatory split-dollar life insurance arrangement.
18. Employee contributions to a health savings account
(HSA).
19. Employer contributions to an HSA if includible in the
income of the employee. See Health savings account
(HSA).
20. Amounts includible in income under an NQDC plan
because of section 409A. See Nonqualified deferred
compensation plans.
21. Payments made to former employees while they are
on active duty in the Armed Forces or other uniformed
services.
22. All other compensation, including certain
scholarship and fellowship grants. See Scholarship and
fellowship grants. Other compensation includes taxable
amounts that you paid to your employee from which
federal income tax was not withheld. You may show other
compensation on a separate Form W-2. See Multiple
forms.
Box 2—Federal income tax withheld. Show the total
federal income tax withheld from the employee's wages
for the year. Include the 20% excise tax withheld on
excess parachute payments. See Golden parachute
payments.
For Forms W-2AS, W-2GU, or W-2VI, show the total
American Samoa, Guam, or U.S. Virgin Islands income
tax withheld.
Box 3—Social security wages. Show the total wages
paid (before payroll deductions) subject to employee
social security tax but not including social security tips and
allocated tips. If reporting these amounts in a subsequent
year (due to lapse of risk of forfeiture), the amount must
be adjusted by any gain or loss. See Box 7—Social
security tips and Box 8—Allocated tips. Generally,
noncash payments are considered to be wages. Include
employee business expense reimbursements reported in
box 1. If you paid the employee's share of social security
and Medicare taxes rather than deducting them from
wages, see Employee's social security and Medicare
taxes paid by employer. The total of boxes 3 and 7 cannot
exceed $XXX,XXX (2014 maximum social security wage
base).
Report in box 3 elective deferrals to certain qualified
cash or deferred compensation arrangements and to
retirement plans described in box 12 (codes D, E, F, G,
and S) even though the deferrals are not includible in
box 1. Also report in box 3 designated Roth contributions
made under a section 401(k) plan, under a section 403(b)
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salary reduction agreement, or under a governmental
section 457(b) plan described in box 12 (codes AA, BB,
and EE).
Amounts deferred (plus earnings or less losses) under
a section 457(f) or nonqualified plan or nongovernmental
section 457(b) plan must be included in boxes 3 and/or 5
as social security and/or Medicare wages as of the later of
when the services giving rise to the deferral are performed
or when there is no substantial forfeiture risk of the rights
to the deferred amount. Include both elective and
nonelective deferrals for purposes of nongovernmental
section 457(b) plans.
Wages reported in box 3 include:
TIP
Signing bonuses an employer pays for signing or
ratifying an employment contract. See Rev. Rul.
2004-109, 2004-50 I.R.B 958, available at www.irs.gov/
irb/2004-50_IRB/ar07.html.
Taxable cost of group-term life insurance over $50,000
included in box 1. See Group-term life insurance.
Cost of accident and health insurance premiums for
2%-or-more shareholder-employees paid by an S
corporation, but only if not excludable under section
3121(a)(2)(B).
Employee and nonexcludable employer contributions to
an MSA or HSA. However, do not include employee
contributions to an HSA that were made through a
cafeteria plan. See Archer MSA and Health savings
account (HSA).
Employee contributions to a SIMPLE retirement
account. See SIMPLE retirement account.
Adoption benefits. See Adoption benefits.
Box 4—Social security tax withheld. Show the total
employee social security tax (not your share) withheld,
including social security tax on tips. For 2014, the amount
should not exceed $X,XXX.XX ($XXX,XXX × 6.2%).
Include only taxes withheld (or paid by you for the
employee) for 2014 wages and tips. If you paid your
employee's share, see Employee's social security and
Medicare taxes paid by employer.
Box 5—Medicare wages and tips. The wages and tips
subject to Medicare tax are the same as those subject to
social security tax (boxes 3 and 7) except that there is no
wage base limit for Medicare tax. Enter the total Medicare
wages and tips in box 5. Be sure to enter tips that the
employee reported even if you did not have enough
employee funds to collect the Medicare tax for those tips.
See Box 3—Social security wages, for payments to report
in this box. If you paid your employee's share of taxes, see
Employee's social security and Medicare taxes paid by
employer.
If you are a federal, state, or local governmental agency
with employees paying only the 1.45% Medicare tax,
enter the Medicare wages in this box. See Government
employers.
Example of how to report social security and
Medicare wages. You paid your employee $140,000 in
wages. Enter in box 3 (social security wages) XXXXXX
but enter in box 5 (Medicare wages and tips) 140000.00.
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
There is no limit on the amount reported in box 5. If the
amount of wages paid was $XXX,XXX or less, the
amounts entered in boxes 3 and 5 would be the same.
Box 6—Medicare tax withheld. Enter the total
employee Medicare tax (including any Additional
Medicare Tax) withheld. Do not include your share.
Include only tax withheld for 2014 wages and tips. If you
paid your employee's share of the taxes, see Employee's
social security and Medicare taxes paid by employer.
For more information on Additional Medicare Tax, go to
IRS.gov and enter “Additional Medicare Tax” in the search
box.
Box 7—Social security tips. Show the tips that the
employee reported to you even if you did not have enough
employee funds to collect the social security tax for the
tips. The total of boxes 3 and 7 should not be more than
$XXX,XXX (the maximum social security wage base for
2014). Report all tips in box 1 along with wages and other
compensation. Include any tips reported in box 7 in box 5
also.
Box 8—Allocated tips (not applicable to Forms
W-2AS, W-2GU, or W-2VI). If you are a food or beverage
establishment, show the tips allocated to the employee.
See the Instructions for Form 8027, Employer's Annual
Information Return of Tip Income and Allocated Tips. Do
not include this amount in boxes 1, 3, 5, or 7.
Box 9. Do not enter an amount in box 9.
Box 10—Dependent care benefits (not applicable to
Forms W-2AS, W-2GU, or W-2VI). Show the total
dependent care benefits under a dependent care
assistance program (section 129) paid or incurred by you
for your employee. Include the fair market value (FMV) of
care in a daycare facility provided or sponsored by you for
your employee and amounts paid or incurred for
dependent care assistance in a section 125 (cafeteria)
plan. Report all amounts paid or incurred (regardless of
any employee forfeitures), including those in excess of the
$5,000 exclusion. This may include (a) the FMV of
benefits provided in kind by the employer, (b) an amount
paid directly to a daycare facility by the employer or
reimbursed to the employee to subsidize the benefit, or (c)
benefits from the pre-tax contributions made by the
employee under a section 125 dependent care flexible
spending account. Include any amounts over $5,000 in
boxes 1, 3, and 5. For more information, see Pub. 15-B.
An employer that amends its cafeteria plan to
provide a grace period for dependent care
assistance may continue to rely on Notice 89-111
by reporting in box 10 of Form W-2 the salary reduction
amount elected by the employee for the year for
dependent care assistance (plus any employer matching
contributions attributable to dependent care). Also see
Notice 2005-42, 2005-23 I.R.B. 1204, available at
www.irs.gov/irb/2005-23_IRB/ar11.html.
TIP
Box 11—Nonqualified plans. The purpose of box 11 is
for the SSA to determine if any part of the amount
reported in box 1 or boxes 3 and/or 5 was earned in a
prior year. The SSA uses this information to verify that
they have properly applied the social security earnings
test and paid the correct amount of benefits.
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Show distributions to an employee from a nonqualified
plan or a nongovernmental section 457(b) plan. Also
report these distributions in box 1. Make only one entry in
this box. Distributions from governmental section 457(b)
plans must be reported on Form 1099-R, not in box 1 of
Form W-2.
If you did not make distributions this year, show
deferrals (plus earnings or less losses) under a
nonqualified or any section 457(b) plan that became
taxable for social security and Medicare taxes during the
year (but were for prior year services) because the
deferred amounts were no longer subject to a substantial
risk of forfeiture. Also report these amounts in boxes 3 (up
to the social security wage base) and 5. Do not report in
box 11 deferrals included in boxes 3 and/or 5 and
deferrals for current year services (such as those with no
risk of forfeiture).
If you made distributions and also are reporting
any deferrals in box 3 and/or 5, do not complete
CAUTION
box 11. See Pub. 957, Reporting Back Pay and
Special Wage Payments to the Social Security
Administration, and Form SSA-131, Employer Report of
Special Wage Payments, for instructions on reporting
these and other kinds of compensation earned in prior
years. However, do not file Form SSA-131 if this
situation applies but the employee will not be age 62
or older by the end of that year.
!
Unlike qualified plans, NQDC plans do not meet the
qualification requirements for tax-favored status for this
purpose. NQDC plans include those arrangements
traditionally viewed as deferring the receipt of current
compensation. Accordingly, welfare benefit plans, stock
option plans, and plans providing dismissal pay,
termination pay, or early retirement pay are not NQDC
plans.
Report distributions from NQDC or section 457 plans to
beneficiaries of deceased employees on Form
1099-MISC, not on Form W-2.
Military employers must report military retirement
payments on Form 1099-R.
Do not report special wage payments, such as
accumulated sick pay or vacation pay, in box 11.
For more information on reporting special wage
payments, see Pub. 957.
TIP
Box 12—Codes. Complete and code this box for all
items described below. Note that the codes do not relate
to where they should be entered in boxes 12a through 12d
on Form W-2. For example, if you are only required to
report code D in box 12, you can enter code D and the
amount in box 12a of Form W-2. Report in box 12 any
items that are listed as codes A through EE. Do not report
in box 12 section 414(h)(2) contributions (relating to
certain state or local government plans). Instead, use
box 14 for these items and any other information that you
wish to give to your employee. For example, union dues
and uniform payments may be reported in box 14.
On Copy A (Form W-2), do not enter more
than four items in box 12. If more than four
items need to be reported in box 12, use a
separate Form W-2 to report the additional items (but
enter no more than four items on each Copy A (Form
W-2)). On all other copies of Form W-2 (Copies B, C,
etc.), you may enter more than four items in box 12 when
using an approved substitute Form W-2. See Multiple
forms.
Use the IRS code designated below for the item you
are entering, followed by the dollar amount for that item.
Even if only one item is entered, you must use the IRS
code designated for that item. Enter the code using a
capital letter(s). Use decimal points but not dollar signs or
commas. For example, if you are reporting $5,300.00 in
elective deferrals under a section 401(k) plan, the entry
would be D 5300.00 (not A 5300.00 even though it is the
first or only entry in this box). Report the IRS code to the
left of the vertical line in boxes 12a through 12d and the
money amount to the right of the vertical line.
See the Form W-2 Reference Guide for Box 12 Codes.
See also the detailed instructions next for each code.
Code A—Uncollected social security or RRTA tax
on tips. Show the employee social security or Railroad
Retirement Tax Act (RRTA) tax on all of the employee's
tips that you could not collect because the employee did
not have enough funds from which to deduct it. Do not
include this amount in box 4.
Code B—Uncollected Medicare tax on tips. Show
the employee Medicare tax or RRTA Medicare tax on tips
that you could not collect because the employee did not
have enough funds from which to deduct it. Do not show
any uncollected Additional Medicare Tax. Do not include
this amount in box 6.
Code C—Taxable cost of group-term life insurance
over $50,000. Show the taxable cost of group-term life
insurance coverage over $50,000 provided to your
employee (including a former employee). See Group-term
life insurance. Also include this amount in boxes 1, 3 (up
to the social security wage base), and 5.
Codes D through H, S, Y, AA, BB, and EE. Use
these codes to show elective deferrals and designated
Roth contributions made to the plans listed. Do not report
amounts for other types of plans. See the example for
reporting elective deferrals under a section 401(k) plan,
later.
The amount reported as elective deferrals and
designated Roth contributions is only the part of the
employee's salary (or other compensation) that he or she
did not receive because of the deferrals or designated
Roth contributions. Only elective deferrals and designated
Roth contributions should be reported in box 12 for all
coded plans; except, when using code G for section
457(b) plans, include both elective and nonelective
deferrals.
For employees who were 50 years of age or older at
any time during the year and made elective deferral
and/or designated Roth “catch-up” contributions, report
the elective deferrals and the elective deferral “catch-up”
contributions as a single sum in box 12 using the
appropriate code, and the designated Roth contributions
and designated Roth “catch-up” contributions as a single
sum in box 12 using the appropriate code.
TIP
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If any elective deferrals, salary reduction
amounts, or nonelective contributions under a
section 457(b) plan during the year are makeup
amounts under the Uniformed Services Employment and
Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) for a prior
year, you must enter the prior year contributions
separately. Beginning with the earliest year, enter the
code, the year, and the amount. For example, elective
deferrals of $2,250 for 2012 and $1,250 for 2013 under
USERRA under a section 401(k) plan are reported in
box 12 as follows:
TIP
D 12 2250.00, D 13 1250.00. A 2014 contribution of
$7,000 does not require a year designation; enter it as D
7000.00. Report the code (and year for prior year
USERRA contributions) to the left of the vertical line in
boxes 12a through 12d.
The following are not elective deferrals and may be
reported in box 14, but not in box 12.
Nonelective employer contributions made on behalf of
an employee.
After-tax contributions that are not designated Roth
contributions, such as voluntary contributions to a pension
plan that are deducted from an employee's pay. See Box
12—Codes for Code AA, Code BB, and Code EE for
reporting designated Roth contributions.
Required employee contributions.
Employer matching contributions.
Code D—Elective deferrals under section 401(k)
cash or deferred arrangement (plan). Also show
deferrals under a SIMPLE retirement account that is part
of a section 401(k) arrangement.
Example of reporting excess elective deferrals
and designated Roth contributions under a section
401(k) plan. For 2014, Employee A (age 45) elected to
defer $18,300 under a section 401(k) plan. The employee
also made a designated Roth contribution to the plan of
$1,000, and made a voluntary (non-Roth) after-tax
contribution of $600. In addition, the employer, on A's
behalf, made a qualified nonelective contribution of
$2,000 to the plan and a nonelective profit-sharing
employer contribution of $3,000.
Even though the 2014 limit for elective deferrals and
designated Roth contributions is $XX,XXX, the
employee's total elective deferral amount of $18,300 is
reported in box 12 with code D (D 18300.00). The
designated Roth contribution is reported in box 12 with
code AA (AA 1000.00). The employer must separately
report the actual amounts of $18,300 and $1,000 in
box 12 with the appropriate codes. The amount deferred
in excess of the limit is not reported in box 1. The return of
excess salary deferrals and excess designated
contributions, including earnings on both, is reported on
Form 1099-R.
The $600 voluntary after-tax contribution may be
reported in box 14 (this is optional) but not in box 12. The
$2,000 nonelective contribution and the $3,000
nonelective profit-sharing employer contribution are not
required to be reported on Form W-2, but may be reported
in box 14.
Check the “Retirement plan” box in box 13.
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
Code E—Elective deferrals under a section 403(b)
salary reduction agreement.
Code F—Elective deferrals under a section 408(k)
(6) salary reduction SEP.
Code G—Elective deferrals and employer
contributions (including nonelective deferrals) to
any governmental or nongovernmental section
457(b) deferred compensation plan. Do not report
either section 457(b) or section 457(f) amounts that are
subject to a substantial risk of forfeiture.
Code H—Elective deferrals under section 501(c)
(18)(D) tax-exempt organization plan. Be sure to
include this amount in box 1 as wages. The employee will
deduct the amount on his or her Form 1040.
Code J—Nontaxable sick pay. Show any sick pay
that was paid by a third-party and was not includible in
income (and not shown in boxes 1, 3, and 5) because the
employee contributed to the sick pay plan. Do not include
nontaxable disability payments made directly by a state.
Code K—20% excise tax on excess golden
parachute payments (not applicable to Forms
W-2AS, W-2GU, or W-2VI). If you made excess “golden
parachute” payments to certain key corporate employees,
report the 20% excise tax on these payments. If the
excess payments are considered to be wages, report the
20% excise tax withheld as income tax withheld in box 2.
Code L—Substantiated employee business
expense reimbursements. Use this code only if you
reimbursed your employee for employee business
expenses using a per diem or mileage allowance and the
amount that you reimbursed exceeds the amount treated
as substantiated under IRS rules. See Employee business
expense reimbursements.
Report in box 12 only the amount treated as
substantiated (such as the nontaxable part). Include in
boxes 1, 3 (up to the social security wage base), and 5 the
part of the reimbursement that is more than the amount
treated as substantiated.
Code M—Uncollected social security or RRTA tax
on taxable cost of group-term life insurance over
$50,000 (for former employees). If you provided your
former employees (including retirees) more than $50,000
of group-term life insurance coverage for periods during
which an employment relationship no longer exists, enter
the amount of uncollected social security or RRTA tax on
the coverage in box 12. Also see Group-term life
insurance.
Code N—Uncollected Medicare tax on taxable cost
of group-term life insurance over $50,000 (for former
employees). If you provided your former employees
(including retirees) more than $50,000 of group-term life
insurance coverage for periods during which an
employment relationship no longer exists, enter the
amount of uncollected Medicare tax or RRTA Medicare
tax on the coverage in box 12. Do not show any
uncollected Additional Medicare Tax. Also see
Group-term life insurance.
Code P—Excludable moving expense
reimbursements paid directly to employee. Show the
total moving expense reimbursements that you paid
directly to your employee for qualified (deductible) moving
expenses. See Moving expenses.
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Code Q—Nontaxable combat pay. If you are a
military employer, report any nontaxable combat pay in
box 12.
Code R—Employer contributions to an Archer
MSA. Show any employer contributions to an Archer
MSA. See Archer MSA.
Code S—Employee salary reduction contributions
under a section 408(p) SIMPLE plan. Show deferrals
under a section 408(p) salary reduction SIMPLE
retirement account. However, if the SIMPLE plan is part of
a section 401(k) arrangement, use code D. If you are
reporting prior year contributions under USERRA, see the
TIP above Code D in Box 12—Codes.
Code T—Adoption benefits. Show the total that you
paid or reimbursed for qualified adoption expenses
furnished to your employee under an adoption assistance
program. Also include adoption benefits paid or
reimbursed from the pre-tax contributions made by the
employee under a section 125 (cafeteria) plan. However,
do not include adoption benefits forfeited from a section
125 (cafeteria) plan. Report all amounts including those in
excess of the $XX,XXX exclusion. For more information,
see Adoption benefits.
Code V—Income from the exercise of nonstatutory
stock option(s). Show the spread (that is, the fair market
value of stock over the exercise price of option(s) granted
to your employee with respect to that stock) from your
employee's (or former employee's) exercise of
nonstatutory stock option(s). Include this amount in boxes
1, 3 (up to the social security wage base), and 5.
This reporting requirement does not apply to the
exercise of a statutory stock option, or the sale or
disposition of stock acquired pursuant to the exercise of a
statutory stock option. For more information about the
taxability of employee stock options, see Pub. 15-B.
Code W—Employer contributions to a health
savings account (HSA). Show any employer
contributions (including amounts the employee elected to
contribute using a section 125 (cafeteria) plan) to an HSA.
See Health savings account (HSA).
Code Y—Deferrals under a section 409A
nonqualified deferred compensation plan. It is not
necessary to show deferrals in box 12 with code Y. For
more information, see Notice 2008-115. However, if you
report these deferrals, show current year deferrals,
including earnings during the year on current year and
prior year deferrals. See Nonqualified deferred
compensation plans.
Code Z—Income under section 409A on a
nonqualified deferred compensation plan. Enter all
amounts deferred (including earnings on amounts
deferred) that are includible in income under section 409A
because the NQDC plan fails to satisfy the requirements
of section 409A. Do not include amounts properly
reported on a Form 1099-MISC, corrected Form
1099-MISC, Form W-2, or Form W-2c for a prior year.
Also, do not include amounts that are considered to be
subject to a substantial risk of forfeiture for purposes of
section 409A. For more information, see Regulations
sections 1.409A-1 through 1.409A-6 and Notice
2008-115.
The amount reported in box 12 using code Z is also
reported in box 1 and is subject to an additional tax
reported on the employee's Form 1040. See Nonqualified
deferred compensation plans.
For information regarding correcting section 409A
errors and related reporting, see Notice 2008-113, Notice
2010-6, and Notice 2010-80.
Code AA—Designated Roth contributions under a
section 401(k) plan. Use this code to report designated
Roth contributions under a section 401(k) plan. Do not
use this code to report elective deferrals under code D.
See Designated Roth contributions.
Code BB—Designated Roth contributions under a
section 403(b) plan. Use this code to report designated
Roth contributions under a section 403(b) plan. Do not
use this code to report elective deferrals under code E.
See Designated Roth contributions.
Code DD—Cost of employer-sponsored health
coverage. Use this code to report the cost of
employer-sponsored health coverage. The amount
reported with code DD is not taxable. Additional
reporting guidance, including information about the
transitional reporting rules that apply, is available on the
Affordable Care Act Tax Provisions page of IRS.gov.
Code EE—Designated Roth contributions under a
governmental section 457(b) plan. Use this code to
report designated Roth contributions under a
governmental section 457(b) plan. Do not use this code to
report elective deferrals under code G. See Designated
Roth contributions.
Box 13—Checkboxes. Check all boxes that apply.
Statutory employee. Check this box for statutory
employees whose earnings are subject to social security
and Medicare taxes but not subject to federal income tax
withholding. Do not check this box for common-law
employees. There are workers who are independent
contractors under the common-law rules but are treated
by statute as employees. They are called statutory
employees.
1. A driver who distributes beverages (other than
milk), or meat, vegetable, fruit, or bakery products; or who
picks up and delivers laundry or dry cleaning if the driver
is your agent or is paid on commission.
2. A full-time life insurance sales agent whose
principal business activity is selling life insurance or
annuity contracts, or both, primarily for one life insurance
company.
3. An individual who works at home on materials or
goods that you supply and that must be returned to you or
to a person you name if you also furnish specifications for
the work to be done.
4. A full-time traveling or city salesperson who works
on your behalf and turns in orders to you from
wholesalers, retailers, contractors, or operators of hotels,
restaurants, or other similar establishments. The goods
sold must be merchandise for resale or supplies for use in
the buyer's business operation. The work performed for
you must be the salesperson's principal business activity.
For details on statutory employees and common-law
employees, see section 1 in Pub. 15-A.
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Retirement plan. Check this box if the employee was
an “active participant” (for any part of the year) in any of
the following.
1. A qualified pension, profit-sharing, or stock-bonus
plan described in section 401(a) (including a 401(k) plan).
2. An annuity plan described in section 403(a).
3. An annuity contract or custodial account described
in section 403(b).
4. A simplified employee pension (SEP) plan
described in section 408(k).
5. A SIMPLE retirement account described in section
408(p).
6. A trust described in section 501(c)(18).
7. A plan for federal, state, or local government
employees or by an agency or instrumentality thereof
(other than a section 457(b) plan).
Generally, an employee is an active participant if
covered by (a) a defined benefit plan for any tax year that
he or she is eligible to participate in or (b) a defined
contribution plan (for example, a section 401(k) plan) for
any tax year that employer or employee contributions (or
forfeitures) are added to his or her account. For additional
information on employees who are eligible to participate in
a plan, contact your plan administrator. For details on the
active participant rules, see Notice 87-16, 1987-1 C.B.
446; Notice 98-49, 1998-2 C.B. 365; section 219(g)(5);
and Pub. 590, Individual Retirement Arrangements
(IRAs). You can find Notice 98-49 on page 5 of Internal
Revenue Bulletin 1998-38 at www.irs.gov/pub/irs-irbs/
irb98-38.pdf. Also see Notice 2000-30, which is on
page 1266 of Internal Revenue Bulletin 2000-25 at
www.irs.gov/pub/irs-irbs/irb00-25.pdf.
TIP
Do not check this box for contributions made to a
nonqualified or section 457(b) plan.
See the Form W-2 Box 13 Retirement Plan Checkbox
Decision Chart.
Third-party sick pay. Check this box only if you are a
third-party sick pay payer filing a Form W-2 for an
insured's employee or are an employer reporting sick pay
payments made by a third party. See Sick Pay Reporting
in section 6 of Pub. 15-A.
Box 14—Other. If you included 100% of a vehicle's
annual lease value in the employee's income, it also must
be reported here or on a separate statement to your
employee. You also may use this box for any other
information that you want to give to your employee. Label
each item. Examples include state disability insurance
taxes withheld, union dues, uniform payments, health
insurance premiums deducted, nontaxable income,
educational assistance payments, or a member of the
clergy's parsonage allowance and utilities. In addition, you
may enter the following contributions to a pension plan:
(a) nonelective employer contributions made on behalf of
an employee, (b) voluntary after-tax contributions (but not
designated Roth contributions) that are deducted from an
employee's pay, (c) required employee contributions, and
(d) employer matching contributions.
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
If you are reporting prior year contributions under
USERRA (see the TIP above Code D in Box 12—Codes
and Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment
Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) makeup amounts to a
pension plan), you may report in box 14 makeup amounts
for nonelective employer contributions, voluntary after-tax
contributions, required employee contributions, and
employer matching contributions. Report such amounts
separately for each year. Railroad employers, see
Railroad employers.
Boxes 15 through 20—State and local income tax information (not applicable to Forms W-2AS, W-2GU,
or W-2VI). Use these boxes to report state and local
income tax information. Enter the two-letter abbreviation
for the name of the state. The employer's state ID
numbers are assigned by the individual states. The state
and local information boxes can be used to report wages
and taxes for two states and two localities. Keep each
state's and locality's information separated by the broken
line. If you need to report information for more than two
states or localities, prepare a second Form W-2. See
Multiple forms. Contact your state or locality for specific
reporting information.
Specific Instructions for Form W-3
How to complete Form W-3. The instructions under
How to complete Form W-2 generally apply to Form W-3.
Use black ink for all entries. Scanners cannot read entries
if the type is too light. Be sure to send the entire page of
the Form W-3.
Amounts reported on related employment tax
forms (for example, Forms W-2, 941, 941-SS,
943, or 944) should agree with the amounts
reported on Form W-3. If there are differences, you may
be contacted by the IRS and SSA. Retain your
reconciliation information for future reference. See
Reconciling Forms W-2, W-3, 941, 941-SS, 943, 944,
CT-1, and Schedule H (Form 1040).
TIP
Box a—Control number. This is an optional box that
you may use for numbering the whole transmittal.
Box b—Kind of Payer. Check the box that applies to
you. Check only one box. If you have more than one type
of Form W-2, send each type with a separate Form W-3.
Note. The “Third-party sick pay” indicator box does not
designate a separate kind of payer.
941 or 941-SS. Check this box if you file Forms 941 or
941-SS and no other category applies. A church or church
organization should check this box even if it is not
required to file Forms 941, 941-SS, or 944.
Military. Check this box if you are a military employer
sending Forms W-2 for members of the uniformed
services.
943. Check this box if you are an agricultural employer
and file Form 943 and you are sending Forms W-2 for
agricultural employees. For nonagricultural employees,
send their Forms W-2 with a separate Form W-3,
checking the appropriate box.
944. Check this box if you file Form 944 (or Formulario
944(SP), its Spanish-language version), and no other
category applies.
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CT-1. Check this box if you are a railroad employer
sending Forms W-2 for employees covered under the
Railroad Retirement Tax Act (RRTA). Do not show
employee RRTA tax in boxes 3 through 7. These boxes
are only for social security and Medicare information. If
you also have employees who are subject to social
security and Medicare taxes, send that group's Forms
W-2 with a separate Form W-3 and check the “941”
checkbox on that Form W-3.
Hshld. emp. Check this box if you are a household
employer sending Forms W-2 for household employees
and you did not include the household employee's taxes
on Forms 941, 941-SS, 943, or 944.
Medicare govt. emp. Check this box if you are a U.S.,
state, or local agency filing Forms W-2 for employees
subject only to the 1.45% Medicare tax. See Government
employers.
Box b—Kind of Employer. Check the box that applies
to you. Check only one box unless the second checked
box is “Third-party sick pay.” See Pub. 557, Tax-Exempt
Status for Your Organization, for information about 501(c)
(3) tax-exempt organizations.
None apply. Check this box if none of the checkboxes
discussed next apply to you.
501c non-govt. Check this box if you are a
non-governmental tax-exempt section 501(c)
organization. Types of 501(c) non-governmental
organizations include private foundations, public charities,
social and recreation clubs, and veterans organizations.
For additional examples of 501(c) non-governmental
organizations, see chapters 3 and 4 of Pub. 557,
Tax-Exempt Status for Your Organization.
State/local non-501c. Check this box if you are a state
or local government or instrumentality. This includes
cities, townships, counties, special-purpose districts,
public schools districts, or other publicly-owned entities
with governmental authority.
State/local 501c. Check this box if you are a state or
local government or instrumentality, and you have
received a determination letter from the IRS indicating that
you are also a tax-exempt organization under section
501(c)(3).
Federal govt. Check this box if you are a Federal
government entity or instrumentality.
Box b—Third-party sick pay. Check this box if you are
a third-party sick pay payer (or are reporting sick pay
payments made by a third party) filing Forms W-2 with the
“Third-party sick pay” checkbox in box 13 checked. File a
single Form W-3 for the regular and “Third-party sick pay”
Forms W-2. See 941 or 941-SS.
Box c—Total number of Forms W-2. Show the number
of completed individual Forms W-2 that you are
transmitting with this Form W-3. Do not count “Void”
Forms W-2.
Box d—Establishment number. You may use this box
to identify separate establishments in your business. You
may file a separate Form W-3, with Forms W-2, for each
establishment even if they all have the same EIN; or you
may use a single Form W-3 for all Forms W-2 of the same
type.
Box e—Employer identification number (EIN). Enter
the nine-digit EIN assigned to you by the IRS. The number
should be the same as shown on your Forms 941,
941-SS, 943, 944, CT-1, or Schedule H (Form 1040) and
in the following format: 00-0000000. Do not use a prior
owner's EIN. See Box h—Other EIN used this year.
If you do not have an EIN when filing your Form W-3,
enter “Applied For” in box e, not your social security
number (SSN), and see Box b—Employer identification
number (EIN).
Box f—Employer's name. Enter the same name as
shown on your Forms 941, 941-SS, 943, 944, or CT-1.
Box g—Employer's address and ZIP code. Enter your
address.
Box h—Other EIN used this year. If you have used an
EIN (including a prior owner's EIN) on Forms 941,
941-SS, 943, 944, or CT-1 submitted for 2014 that is
different from the EIN reported on Form W-3 in box e,
enter the other EIN used. Agents generally report the
employer's EIN in box h. See Agent reporting.
Contact person, Employer's telephone number, Employer's fax number, and Employer's email address.
Include this information for use by the SSA if any
questions arise during processing.
The amounts to enter in boxes 1 through 19,
described next, are totals from only the Forms
W-2 (excluding any Forms W-2 marked “VOID”)
that you are sending with this Form W-3.
TIP
Boxes 1 through 8. Enter the totals reported in boxes 1
through 8 on the Forms W-2.
Box 9. Do not enter an amount in box 9.
Box 10—Dependent care benefits (not applicable to
Forms W-2AS, W-2GU, and W-2VI). Enter the total
reported in box 10 on Forms W-2.
Box 11—Nonqualified plans. Enter the total reported in
box 11 on Forms W-2.
Box 12a—Deferred compensation. Enter the total of all
amounts reported with codes D through H, S, Y, AA, BB,
and EE in box 12 on Forms W-2. Do not enter a code.
!
CAUTION
The total of Form W-2 box 12 amounts reported
with Codes A through C, J through R, T through
W, Z, and DD is not reported on Form W-3.
Box 13—For third-party sick pay use only. Third-party
payers of sick pay (or employers using the optional rule
for Form W-2 described in section 6 of Pub. 15-A) filing
third-party sick pay recap Forms W-2 and W-3 must enter
“Third-Party Sick Pay Recap” in this box.
Box 14—Income tax withheld by payer of third-party
sick pay. Complete this box only if you are the employer
and have employees who had federal income tax withheld
on third-party payments of sick pay. Show the total
income tax withheld by third-party payers on payments to
all of your employees. Although this tax is included in the
box 2 total, it must be separately shown here.
Box 15—State/Employer's state ID number (territorial
ID number for Forms W-2AS, W-2GU, and W-2VI).
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Enter the two-letter abbreviation for the name of the state
or territory being reported on Form(s) W-2. Also enter your
state- or territory-assigned ID number. If the Forms W-2
being submitted with this Form W-3 contain wage and
income tax information from more than one state or
territory, enter an “X” under “State” and do not enter any
state or territory ID number.
Boxes 16 through 19 (not applicable to Forms
W-2AS, W-2GU, and W-2VI). Enter the total of state/
local wages and income tax shown in their corresponding
boxes on the Forms W-2 included with this Form W-3. If
the Forms W-2 show amounts from more than one state
or locality, report them as one sum in the appropriate box
on Form W-3. Verify that the amount reported in each box
is an accurate total of the Forms W-2.
Reconciling Forms W-2, W-3, 941, 941-SS, 943,
944, CT-1, and Schedule H (Form 1040)
Reconcile the amounts shown in boxes 2, 3, 5, and 7 from
all 2014 Forms W-3 with their respective amounts from
the 2014 yearly totals from the quarterly Forms 941 or
941-SS or annual Forms 943, 944, CT-1 (box 2 only), and
Schedule H (Form 1040). When there are discrepancies
between amounts reported on Forms W-2 and W-3 filed
with the SSA and on Forms 941, 941-SS, 943, 944, CT-1,
or Schedule H (Form 1040) filed with the IRS, you will be
contacted to resolve the discrepancies.
To help reduce discrepancies on Forms W-2:
Report bonuses as wages and as social security and
Medicare wages on Form W-2, and on Forms 941,
941-SS, 943, 944, and Schedule H (Form 1040).
Report both social security and Medicare wages and
taxes separately on Forms W-2 and W-3, and on Forms
941, 941-SS, 943, 944, and Schedule H (Form 1040).
Report social security taxes withheld on Form W-2 in
box 4, not in box 3.
Report Medicare taxes withheld on Form W-2 in box 6,
not in box 5.
Do not report a nonzero amount in box 4 if boxes 3 and
7 are both zero.
Do not report a nonzero amount in box 6 if box 5 is
zero.
Do not report an amount in box 5 that is less than the
sum of boxes 3 and 7.
Make sure that the social security wage amount for
each employee does not exceed the annual social
security wage base limit ($XXX,XXX for 2014).
Do not report noncash wages that are not subject to
social security or Medicare taxes as social security or
Medicare wages.
If you use an EIN on any quarterly Forms 941 or
941-SS for the year (or annual Forms 943, 944, CT-1, or
Schedule H (Form 1040)) that is different from the EIN
reported in box e on Form W-3, enter the other EIN in box
h on Form W-3.
To reduce the discrepancies between amounts
reported on Forms W-2 and W-3, and Forms 941,
941-SS, 943, 944, CT-1, and Schedule H (Form 1040):
Be sure that the amounts on Form W-3 are the total
amounts from Forms W-2.
Reconcile Form W-3 with your four quarterly Forms 941
or 941-SS (or annual Forms 943, 944, CT-1, or
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
Schedule H (Form 1040)) by comparing amounts reported
for:
1. Income tax withholding (box 2).
2. Social security wages, Medicare wages and tips,
and social security tips (boxes 3, 5, and 7). Form W-3
should include Forms 941 or 941-SS or Forms 943, 944,
or Schedule H (Form 1040) adjustments only for the
current year. If the Forms 941, 941-SS, 943, or 944
adjustments include amounts for a prior year, do not
report those prior year adjustments on the current year
Forms W-2 and W-3.
3. Social security and Medicare taxes (boxes 4 and 6).
The amounts shown on the four quarterly Forms 941 or
941-SS (or annual Forms 943, 944, or Schedule H (Form
1040)), including current year adjustments, should be
approximately twice the amounts shown on Form W-3.
Amounts reported on Forms W-2 and W-3, and Forms
941, 941-SS, 943, 944, CT-1, or Schedule H (Form 1040)
may not match for valid reasons. If they do not match, you
should determine that the reasons are valid. Retain your
reconciliation information in case you receive inquiries
from the IRS or the SSA.
General Instructions for Forms W-2c
and W-3c
Applicable forms. Use with the February 2009 revision
of Form W-2c and the August 2013 revision of Form
W-3c.
Purpose of forms. Use Form W-2c to correct errors on
Forms W-2, W-2AS, W-2CM, W-2GU, W-2VI, or W-2c
filed with the SSA. Also use Form W-2c to provide a
corrected Forms W-2, W-2AS, W-2CM, W-2GU, W-2VI,
or W-2c to employees.
Corrections reported on Form W-2c may require you to
make corrections to your previously filed employment tax
returns using the corresponding “X” form, such as Form
941-X, Adjusted Employer's QUARTERLY Federal Tax
Return or Claim for Refund; Form 943-X, Adjusted
Employer's Annual Federal Tax Return for Agricultural
Employees or Claim for Refund; Form 944-X, Adjusted
Employer's ANNUAL Federal Tax Return or Claim for
Refund; or Form CT-1X, Adjusted Employer's Annual
Railroad Retirement Tax Return or Claim for Refund. See
section 13 of Pub. 15 (Circular E) for more information. If
you are making corrections to a previously filed
Schedule H (Form 1040), see Pub. 926, Household
Employer's Tax Guide. If an employee repaid you for
wages received in a prior year, also see Repayments.
Do not use Form W-2c to report corrections to back
pay. Instead, see Pub. 957, Reporting Back Pay and
Special Wage Payments to the Social Security
Administration, and Form SSA-131, Employer Report of
Special Wage Payments.
Do not use Form W-2c to correct Form W-2G, Certain
Gambling Winnings. Instead, see the General Instructions
for Certain Information Returns for the current reporting
year.
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Use Form W-3c to send Copy A of Form W-2c to the
SSA. Always file Form W-3c when submitting one or more
Forms W-2c.
E-filing Forms W-2c and W-3c. The SSA encourages
all employers to e-file using its secure BSO website.
E-filing can save you effort and helps ensure accuracy.
See E-filing.
Where to file paper Forms W-2c and W-3c. If you use
the U.S. Postal Service, send Forms W-2c and W-3c to:
Social Security Administration
Data Operations Center
P.O. Box 3333
Wilkes-Barre, PA 18767-3333
If you use a carrier other than the U.S. Postal
Service, send Forms W-2c and W-3c to:
Social Security Administration
Data Operations Center
Attn: W-2c Process
1150 E. Mountain Drive
Wilkes-Barre, PA 18702-7997
See Pub. 15 (Circular E) for a list of IRS-designated
private delivery services.
TIP
Do not send Forms W-2, W-2AS, W-2GU, or
W-2VI to either of these addresses. Instead,
see Where to file paper Forms W-2 and W-3.
When to file. File Forms W-2c and W-3c as soon as
possible after you discover an error. Also provide Form
W-2c to employees as soon as possible.
How to complete. If you file Forms W-2c and W-3c on
paper, make all entries using dark or black ink in 12-point
Courier font, if possible, and make sure all copies are
legible. See How to complete Form W-2.
If any item shows a change in the dollar amount and
one of the amounts is zero, enter “-0-.” Do not leave the
box blank.
Who may sign Form W-3c. Generally, employers must
sign Form W-3c. See Who may sign Form W-3.
Special Situations for Forms W-2c
and W-3c
HIRE wages and tips paid to qualified employees.
Employers who hired a qualified employee under the
HIRE Act must report the amount of social security wages
and tips paid after March 18, 2010, and before January 1,
2011, for which the employer claimed the payroll tax
exemption. A qualified employee is one who:
Was hired after February 3, 2010, and before January
1, 2011;
Was not hired to replace another employee unless the
other employee separated from employment voluntarily or
for cause (including downsizing);
Was not a family member or other related individual of
the employer; and
Signed Form W-11, Hiring Incentives to Restore
Employment (HIRE) Act Employee Affidavit, or other
similar statement under penalties of perjury, certifying
under penalties of perjury that he or she had not worked
more than 40 hours during the 60 days prior to beginning
employment.
Report any corrections to the amount of wages and tips
paid to the qualified employee for which you claimed the
payroll tax exemption in box 12 using code CC. This will
include wages and tips paid to the qualified employee
from April 1, 2010, through December 31, 2010, for which
you claimed the payroll tax exemption, plus wages and
tips paid to the qualified employee from March 19, 2010,
through March 31, 2010, for which you claimed a payroll
tax credit. The amount may not exceed $106,800 (2010
maximum social security wage base). For more
information, visit IRS.gov and enter “Payroll Tax
Exemption for Hiring Unemployed Workers” in the search
box.
Undeliverable Forms W-2c. See Undeliverable Forms
W-2.
Correcting Forms W-2 and W-3
Corrections. Use the current version of Form W-2c to
correct errors (such as incorrect name, SSN, or amount)
on a previously filed Form W-2 or Form W-2c. File Copy A
of Form W-2c with the SSA. To e-file your corrections, see
Correcting wage reports.
If the SSA issues your employee a replacement card
after a name change, or a new card with a different social
security number after a change in alien work status, file a
Form W-2c to correct the name/SSN reported on the most
recently filed Form W-2. It is not necessary to correct the
prior years if the previous name and number were used
for the years prior to the most recently filed Form W-2.
File Form W-3c whenever you file a Form W-2c with the
SSA, even if you are only filing a Form W-2c to correct an
employee's name or SSN. However, see Employee's
incorrect address on Form W-2, later, for information on
correcting an employee's address. See Correcting an
incorrect tax year and/or EIN incorrectly reported on Form
W-2 or Form W-3, later, if an error was made on a
previously filed Form W-3.
If you discover an error on Form W-2 after you issue it
to your employee but before you send it to the SSA, check
the “Void” box at the top of the incorrect Form W-2 on
Copy A. Prepare a new Form W-2 with the correct
information, and send Copy A to the SSA. Write
“CORRECTED” on the employee's new copies (B, C, and
2), and furnish them to the employee. If the “Void” Form
W-2 is on a page with a correct Form W-2, send the entire
page to the SSA. The “Void” form will not be processed.
Do not write “CORRECTED” on Copy A of Form W-2.
If you are making a correction for previously filed Forms
941, 941-SS, 943, 944, 944-SS, or CT-1, use the
corresponding “X” forms, such as Forms 941-X, 943-X,
944-X, or CT-1X for the return period in which you found
the error. See section 13 of Pub. 15 (Circular E) for more
details. If you are making corrections to a previously filed
Schedule H (Form 1040), see Pub. 926. Issue the
employee a Form W-2c if the error discovered was for the
prior year.
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Correcting an employee's name and/or SSN only. If
you are correcting only an employee's name and/or SSN,
complete Form W-2c boxes d through i. Do not complete
boxes 1 through 20. Advise your employee to correct the
SSN and/or name on his or her original Form W-2.
If your employee is given a new social security card
following an adjustment to his or her resident status that
shows a different name or SSN, file a Form W-2c for the
most current year only.
Correcting an employee's name and SSN if the SSN
was reported as blanks or zeros and the employee
name was reported as blanks. If you need to correct an
employee's name and SSN, and the SSN was reported as
blanks or zeros and the employee's name was reported
as blanks, do not use Form W-2c to report the corrections.
You must contact the SSA at 1-800-772-6270 for
instructions.
Correcting an incorrect tax year and/or EIN incorrectly reported on Form W-2 or Form W-3. To correct an
incorrect tax year and/or EIN on a previously submitted
Form W-2 or Form W-3, file one Form W-3c along with a
Form W-2c for each affected employee. Enter the tax year
and EIN originally reported, and enter in the “Previously
reported” boxes the money amounts that were on the
original Form W-2. In the “Correct information” boxes,
enter zeros. Prepare a second Form W-3c along with a
second Form W-2c for each affected employee. Enter
zeros in the “Previously reported” boxes, and enter the
correct money amounts in the “Correct information”
boxes. Enter the correct tax year and/or correct EIN.
Correcting more than one Form W-2 for an employee.
There are two ways to prepare a correction for an
employee for whom more than one Form W-2 was filed
under the same EIN for the tax year. You can (1) consider
all the Forms W-2 when determining the amounts to enter
on Form W-2c or (2) file a single Form W-2c to correct
only the incorrect Form W-2.
However, state, local, and federal government
employers who are preparing corrections for Medicare
Qualified Government Employment (MQGE) employees
also must follow the instructions in the CAUTION for state,
local, and federal government employers in the Specific
instructions for Form W-2c.
Correcting more than one kind of form. You must use
a separate Form W-3c for each type of Form W-2 (Forms
W-2, W-2AS, W-2CM, W-2GU, W-2VI, or W-2c) being
corrected. You also must use a separate Form W-3c for
each kind of payer/employer combination in box c. If you
are correcting more than one kind of form, please group
forms of the same kind of payer/employer combination,
and send them in separate groups.
Employee's incorrect address on Form W-2. If you
filed a Form W-2 with the SSA that reported an incorrect
address for the employee, but all other information on the
Form W-2 was correct, do not file Form W-2c with the
SSA merely to correct the address.
However, if the address was incorrect on the Form W-2
furnished to the employee, you must do one of the
following.
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
Issue a new, corrected Form W-2 to the employee that
includes the new address. Indicate “REISSUED
STATEMENT” on the new copies. Do not send Copy A of
Form W-2 to the SSA.
Issue a Form W-2c to the employee that shows the
correct address in box i and all other correct information.
Do not send Copy A of Form W-2c to the SSA.
Reissue the Form W-2 with the incorrect address to the
employee in an envelope showing the correct address or
otherwise deliver it to the employee.
Two Forms W-2 were filed under the same EIN, but
only one should have been filed.
Example. Two Forms W-2 were submitted for Mary
Smith under the same EIN for the same tax year. One
Form W-2 correctly reported social security wages of
$20,000. The other Form W-2 incorrectly reported social
security wages of $30,000. There are two ways to correct
this situation.
File a Form W-3c along with one Form W-2c, entering
$50,000 in box 3 under “Previously reported” and $20,000
in box 3 under “Correct information,” or
File a Form W-3c along with one Form W-2c, entering
$30,000 in box 3 under “Previously reported” and $0.00 in
box 3 under “Correct information.”
Two Forms W-2 were filed under the same EIN, but
wages on one were incorrect.
Example. Two Forms W-2 were submitted for Mary
Smith under the same EIN for the same tax year. One
Form W-2 correctly reported social security wages of
$20,000. The other Form W-2 incorrectly reported social
security wages of $30,000, whereas $25,000 should have
been reported. There are two ways to correct this
situation.
File a Form W-3c along with one Form W-2c, entering
$50,000 in box 3 under “Previously reported” and $45,000
in box 3 under “Correct information,” or
File a Form W-3c along with one Form W-2c, entering
$30,000 in box 3 under “Previously reported” and $25,000
in box 3 under “Correct information.”
Specific Instructions for Form W-2c
Box a—Employer's name, address, and ZIP code.
This entry should be the same as shown on your Forms
941, 941-SS, 943, 944, 944-SS, CT-1, or Schedule H
(Form 1040).
Box b—Employer's Federal EIN. Show the correct nine
digit EIN assigned to you by the IRS in the format
00-0000000.
Box c—Tax year/Form corrected. If you are correcting
Form W-2, enter all four digits of the year of the form you
are correcting. If you are correcting Form W-2AS, W-2CM,
W-2GU, W-2VI, or W-2c, enter all four digits of the year
you are correcting, and also enter “AS,”“CM,”“GU,”“VI,” or
“c” to designate the form you are correcting. For example,
“2012” and “GU” shows that you are correcting a 2012
Form W-2GU.
Box d—Employee's correct SSN. You must enter the
employee's correct SSN even if it was correct on the
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A state, local, or federal government employer
correcting only social security wages and/or
CAUTION
social security tips (boxes 3 and/or 7) for an
MQGE employee also must complete Medicare wages
and tips in box 5. Enter the total Medicare wages and tips,
including MQGE-only wages, even if there is no change to
the total Medicare wages and tips previously reported.
original Form W-2. If you are correcting an employee's
SSN, you also must complete boxes e through i.
!
Box e—Corrected SSN and/or name. Check this box
only if you are correcting the employee’s SSN, name, or
both SSN and name. You also must complete boxes d
and f through i.
Box f—Employee's previously reported SSN.
Complete this box if you are correcting an employee’s
previously reported incorrect SSN and/or name. If the
previous SSN was reported as blanks or not available,
then box f should be all zeroes.
Boxes 8 through 11. Use these boxes to correct
allocated tips, an advance EIC payment (before 2011),
dependent care benefits, or deferrals and distributions
relating to nonqualified plans.
Box 12—Codes. Complete these boxes to correct any of
the coded items shown on Forms W-2. Examples include
uncollected social security and/or Medicare taxes on tips,
taxable cost of group-term life insurance coverage over
$50,000, elective deferrals (codes D through H, S, Y, AA,
BB, and EE), sick pay not includible as income, and
employee business expenses. See Box 12—Codes in
Specific instructions for Form W-2 for the proper format to
use in reporting coded items from box 12 of Forms W-2.
Employers should enter both the code and dollar
amount for both fields on Form W-2c.
If a single Form W-2c does not provide enough blank
spaces for corrections, use additional Forms W-2c.
Box g—Employee's previously reported name.
Complete this box if you are correcting an employee’s
previously reported incorrect SSN and/or name. You must
enter the employee’s previously reported full name in box
g exactly as it was previously reported. If the previous
reported name was reported as blanks or not available,
then box g should be all blanks.
For boxes f and g, If both the previous SSN and
the previous name were reported as blanks, do
CAUTION
not use Form W-2c. Contact the SSA at
1-800-772-6270.
!
Box h—Employee's first name and initial, Last name,
Suff. Always enter the employee's correct name. See
Boxes e and f—Employee's name and address for name
formatting information.
Box 13. Check the boxes in box 13, under “Previously
reported,” as they were checked on the original Form
W-2. Under “Correct information,” check them as they
should have been checked. For example, if you checked
the “Retirement plan” box on the original Form W-2 by
mistake, check the “Retirement plan” checkbox in box 13
under “Previously reported,” but do not check the
“Retirement plan” checkbox in box 13 under “Correct
information.”
Box i—Employee's address and ZIP code. Always
enter the employee’s correct address. See Boxes e and
f—Employee’s name and address for address formatting
information.
!
You must enter the employee's full name in boxes
g and h.
Box 14. Use this box to correct items reported in box 14
of the original Form W-2 or on a prior Form W-2c. If
possible, complete box 14 on Copies B, C, 1, and 2 of
Form W-2c only, not on Copy A.
CAUTION
Boxes 1 through 20. For the items you are changing,
enter under “Previously reported” the amount reported on
the original Form W-2 or on a prior Form W-2c. Enter
under “Correct information” the correct amount.
Do not make an entry in any of these boxes on Copy A
unless you are making a change. However, see the
CAUTION for state, local, or federal government
employers below.
Boxes 15 through 20—State/local taxes. If your only
changes to the original Form W-2 are to state or local
data, do not send Copy A of Form W-2c to the SSA.
Instead, send Form W-2c to the appropriate state or local
agency and furnish copies to your employees.
Box 2—Federal income tax withheld. Use this box only
to make corrections because of an administrative error.
(An administrative error occurs only if the amount you
entered in box 2 of the incorrect Form W-2 was not the
amount you actually withheld.) If you are correcting Forms
W-2AS, W-2CM, W-2GU, or W-2VI, box 2 is for income
tax withheld for the applicable U.S. possession.
Boxes 5 and 6. Complete these boxes to correct
Medicare wages and tips and Medicare tax withheld.
(Exception – do not correct Additional Medicare Tax
withheld unless you need to correct an administrative
error. An administrative error occurs only if the amount
you entered in box 6 of the incorrect Form W-2 is not the
amount you actually withheld.) State, local, or federal
government employers also should use these boxes to
correct MQGE wages. Box 5 must equal or exceed the
sum of boxes 3 and 7.
Correcting state information. Contact your state or
locality for specific reporting information.
Specific Instructions for Form W-3c
Do not staple or tape the Forms W-2c to Form W-3c or to
each other. File a separate Form W-3c for each tax year,
for each type of form, and for each kind of payer/employer
combination. (The “Third-party sick pay” indicator box
does not designate a separate kind of payer or employer.)
Make a copy of Form W-3c for your records.
In the money boxes of Form W-3c, total the amounts
from each box and column on the Forms W-2c you are
sending.
Box a—Tax year/Form corrected. Enter all four digits
of the year of the form you are correcting and the type of
form you are correcting. For the type of form, enter “2,”
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“2AS,”“2CM,”“2GU,”“2VI,”“2c,”“3,”“3SS,” or “3c.” For
example, entering “2012” and “2” indicates that all the
forms being corrected are 2012 Forms W-2.
Box b—Employer's name, address, and ZIP code.
This should be the same as shown on your Forms 941,
941-SS, 943, 944, 944-SS, CT-1, or Schedule H (Form
1040). Include the suite, room, or other unit number after
the street address. If the Post Office does not deliver mail
to the street address and you use a P.O. box, show the
P.O. box number instead of the street address.
TIP
The IRS will not use Form W-3c to update your
address of record. If you wish to change your
address, file Form 8822 or Form 8822-B.
Box c—Kind of Payer. Check the box that applies to
you. Check only one box. If your previous Form W-3 or
Form W-3SS was checked incorrectly, report your prior
incorrect payer type in the “Explain decreases here” area
below boxes 18 and 19.
941/941-SS. Check this box if you file Form 941 or
Form 941-SS.
Military. Check this box if you are a military employer
correcting Forms W-2 for members of the uniformed
services.
943. Check this box if you file Form 943 and you are
correcting Forms W-2 for agricultural employees. For
nonagricultural employees, send Forms W-2c with a
separate Form W-3c, generally with the 941/941-SS box
checked.
944/944-SS. Check this box if you file Form 944 (or
Form 944-SS for years before 2012).
CT-1. Check this box if you are a railroad employer
correcting Forms W-2 for employees covered under the
Railroad Retirement Tax Act (RRTA). If you also have to
correct forms of employees who are subject to social
security and Medicare taxes, complete a separate
Form W-3c with the “941/941-SS” box or “944/944-SS”
box checked instead.
Hshld. emp. Check this box if you are a household
employer correcting Forms W-2 for household employees
and you file Schedule H (Form 1040). If you also have to
correct forms of employees who are not household
employees, complete a separate Form W-3c.
Medicare govt. emp. Check this box if you are a U.S.,
state, or local agency filing corrections for employees
subject only to Medicare taxes.
Box c—Kind of Employer. Check the box that applies
to you. Check only one box. If your previous Form W-3 or
W-3SS was checked incorrectly, report your prior
incorrect employer type in the “Explain decreases here”
area below boxes 18 and 19.
None apply. Check this box if none of the checkboxes
described next apply to you.
501c non-govt. Check this box if you are a
non-governmental tax-exempt 501(c) organization. Types
of 501(c) non-governmental organizations include private
foundations, public charities, social and recreation clubs,
and veterans organizations. For additional examples of
501(c) non-governmental organizations, see chapters 3
and 4 of Pub. 557, Tax-Exempt Status for Your
Organization.
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
State/local non 501c. Check this box if you are a state
or local government or instrumentality. This includes
cities, townships, counties, special-purpose districts,
public schools districts, or other publicly-owned entities
with governmental authority.
State/local 501c. Check this box if you are a state or
local government or instrumentality, and you have
received a determination letter from the IRS indicating that
you are also a tax-exempt organization under section
501(c)(3).
Federal govt. Check this box if you are a Federal
government entity or instrumentality.
Box c—Third-party sick pay. Check this box if you are
a third-party sick pay payer (or are reporting sick pay
payments made by a third party) correcting Forms W-2
with the “Third-party sick pay” checkbox in box 13 of Form
W-2c under “Correct information” checked. File a
separate Form W-3c for each payer/employer
combination reporting “Third-party sick pay” on Form
W-2c.
Box d—Number of Forms W-2c. Show the number of
individual Forms W-2c filed with this Form W-3c or enter
“-0-” if you are correcting only a previously filed Form W-3
or Form W-3SS.
Box e—Employer's Federal EIN. Enter the correct
number assigned to you by the IRS in the following format:
00-0000000. If you are correcting your EIN, enter the
incorrect EIN you used in box h.
Box f—Establishment number. You may use this box
to identify separate establishments in your business. You
may file a separate Form W-3c, with Forms W-2c, for
each establishment or you may use a single Form W-3c
for all Forms W-2c. You do not have to complete this item;
it is optional.
Box g—Employer's state ID number. You are not
required to complete this box. This number is assigned by
the individual state where your business is located.
However, you may want to complete this item if you use
copies of this form for your state returns.
Box h—Employer's incorrect Federal EIN. Your
correct number must appear in box e. Make an entry here
only if the number on the original form was incorrect.
Box i—Incorrect establishment number. You may use
this box to correct an establishment number.
Box j—Employer's incorrect state ID number. Use
this box to make any corrections to your previously
reported state ID number.
Boxes 1 through 11. Enter the total of amounts reported
in boxes 1 through 11 as “Previously reported” and
“Correct information” from Forms W-2c.
Box 9—Advance EIC payment. Enter an amount in
box 9 only if you are making a correction for years before
2011.
Box 12a—Deferred compensation. Enter the total of
amounts reported with codes D through H, S, Y, AA, BB,
and EE as “Previously reported” and “Correct information”
from Forms W-2c.
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!
CAUTION
The total of Form W-2c box 12 amounts reported
with Codes A through C, J through R, T through
W, Z, and DD is not reported on Form W-3c.
Box 12b—HIRE exempt wages and tips. Enter the
total of amounts reported with code CC as “Previously
reported” and “Correct information” from Forms W-2c.
See HIRE wages and tips paid to qualified employees.
Box 14—Inc. tax w/h by third-party sick pay payer.
Enter the amount previously reported and the corrected
amount of income tax withheld on third-party payments of
sick pay. Although this tax is included in the box 2
amounts, it must be shown separately here.
Boxes 16 through 19. If your only changes to the Forms
W-2c and W-3c are to the state and local data, do not
send either Copy A of Form W-2c or Form W-3c to the
SSA. Instead, send the forms to the appropriate state or
local agency and furnish copies of Form W-2c to your
employees.
Explain decreases here. Explain any decrease to
amounts “Previously reported.” Also report here any
previous incorrect entry in box c, “Kind of Payer” or “Kind
of Employer.” Enclose (but do not attach) additional
sheets explaining your decreases, if necessary.
Signature. Sign and date the form. Also enter your title,
phone number, and the name of a person to contact. If
you have a fax number and/or email address, enter them.
If you are not the employer, see Who may sign Form
W-3c.
Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act Notice.
We ask for the information on Forms W-2 and W-3 to
carry out the Internal Revenue laws of the United States.
We need it to figure and collect the right amount of tax.
Section 6051 and its regulations require you to furnish
wage and tax statements to employees, the Social
Security Administration, and the Internal Revenue
Service. Section 6109 requires you to provide your
employer identification number (EIN). Failure to provide
this information in a timely manner or providing false or
fraudulent information may subject you to penalties.
You are not required to provide the information
requested on a form that is subject to the Paperwork
Reduction Act unless the form displays a valid OMB
control number. Books or records relating to a form or its
instructions must be retained as long as their contents
may become material in the administration of any Internal
Revenue law.
Generally, tax returns and return information are
confidential, as required by section 6103. However,
section 6103 allows or requires the Internal Revenue
Service to disclose or give the information shown on your
return to others as described in the Code. For example,
we may disclose your tax information to the Department of
Justice for civil and/or criminal litigation, and to cities,
states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. commonwealths
and possessions for use in administering their tax laws.
We may also disclose this information to other countries
under a tax treaty, to federal and state agencies to
enforce federal nontax criminal laws, or to federal law
enforcement and intelligence agencies to combat
terrorism.
The time needed to complete and file these forms will
vary depending on individual circumstances. The
estimated average times are: Form W-2—30 minutes;
Form W-3—28 minutes; Form W-2c—40 minutes; Form
W-3c—51 minutes. If you have comments concerning the
accuracy of these time estimates or suggestions for
making these forms simpler, we would be happy to hear
from you. You can write to the Internal Revenue Service,
Tax Products Coordinating Committee,
SE:W:CAR:MP:T:M:S, 1111 Constitution Ave. NW,
IR-6526, Washington, DC 20224. Do not send Forms W-2
and W-3 to this address. Instead, see Where to file paper
Forms W-2 and W-3.
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Form W-2 Reference Guide for Box 12 Codes
A
Uncollected social security or RRTA tax on tips
K
20% excise tax on excess golden parachute
payments
V
Income from exercise of nonstatutory stock
option(s)
B
Uncollected Medicare tax on tips (but not
Additional Medicare Tax)
L
Substantiated employee business expense
reimbursements
W
Employer contributions (including employee
contributions through a cafeteria plan) to an
employee's health savings account (HSA)
C
Taxable cost of group-term life insurance over
$50,000
M
Uncollected social security or RRTA tax on
taxable cost of group-term life insurance over
$50,000 (former employees only)
Y
Deferrals under a section 409A nonqualified
deferred compensation plan
D
Elective deferrals to a section 401(k) cash or
deferred arrangement plan (including a
SIMPLE 401(k) arrangement)
N
Uncollected Medicare tax on taxable cost of
group-term life insurance over $50,000 (but not
additional Medicare Tax)(former employees
only)
Z
Income under section 409A on a
nonqualified deferred compensation plan
E
Elective deferrals under a section 403(b) salary
reduction agreement
P
Excludable moving expense reimbursements
paid directly to employee
AA
Designated Roth contributions under a
section 401(k) plan
F
Elective deferrals under a section 408(k)(6)
salary reduction SEP
Q
Nontaxable combat pay
BB
Designated Roth contributions under a
section 403(b) plan
G
Elective deferrals and employer contributions
(including nonelective deferrals) to a section
457(b) deferred compensation plan
R
Employer contributions to an Archer MSA
CC
HIRE exempt wages and tips (2010 only)
H
Elective deferrals to a section 501(c)(18)(D)
tax-exempt organization plan
S
Employee salary reduction contributions under
a section 408(p) SIMPLE plan
DD
Cost of employer-sponsored health
coverage
J
Nontaxable sick pay
T
Adoption benefits
EE
Designated Roth contributions under a
governmental section 457(b) plan
See Box 12—Codes.
Form W-2 Box 13 Retirement Plan Checkbox Decision Chart
Type of Plan
Conditions
Check Retirement Plan Box?
Defined benefit plan (for example, a traditional pension
plan)
Employee qualifies for employer funding into the plan,
due to age/years of service – even though the
employee may not be vested or ever collect benefits
Yes
Defined contribution plan (for example, a 401(k) or
403(b) plan; but not a 457 plan)
Employee is eligible to contribute but does not elect to
contribute any money in this tax year
No
Defined contribution plan (for example, a 401(k) or
403(b) plan; a Roth 401(k) or 403(b) account; but not a
457 plan)
Employee is eligible to contribute and elects to
contribute money in this tax year
Yes
Defined contribution plan (for example, a 401(k) or
403(b) plan; a Roth 401(k) or 403(b) account; but not a
457 plan)
Employee is eligible to contribute but does not elect to No
contribute any money in this tax year, but the employer
does contribute funds
Defined contribution plan (for example, a 401(k) or
403(b) plan; a Roth 401(k) or 403(b) account; but not a
457 plan)
Employee contributed in past years but not during the
current tax year under report
No (even if the account value grows due to gains in the
investments)
Profit sharing plan
Plan includes a grace period after the close of the plan
year when profit sharing can be added to the
participant’s account
Yes
See Box 13—Checkboxes.
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
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Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Reporting Example Chart
Example
How to report on Form W-2
Example 1—Deferral, immediately vested (no risk of forfeiture).
Regular wages: $200
Defer, vested: $20
Employer match, vested: $10
Box 1 = $180 ($200 – $20)
Boxes 3 and 5 = $210 ($200 + $10)
Box 11 = $0
Example 2—Deferral, delayed vesting (risk of forfeiture) of employee and employer
portions.
Regular wages: $200
Defer, not vested: $20
Employer match, not vested: $10
Box 1 = $180 ($200 – $20)
Boxes 3 and 5 = $180 ($200 – $20)
Box 11 = $0
Example 3—Deferral, immediately vested. Prior year deferrals and employer
matches are now vesting.
Regular wages: $200
Defer, vested: $20
Vesting of prior-year deferrals and employer matches: $100 + $15 (earnings on
$100)
Box 1 = $180 ($200 – $20)
Boxes 3 and 5 = $315 ($200 + $100 + $15)
Box 11 = $115 ($100 + $15)
Example 4—No deferrals, but there are distributions. No vesting of prior year
deferrals. Regular wages: $100
Distribution: $50
Box 1 = $150 ($100 + $50)
Boxes 3 and 5 = $100
Box 11 = $50
Special Rule for W-2 Box 11: Distributions and Deferrals in the Same Year – Form
SSA-131
If, in the same year, there are NQDC distributions and deferrals that are reportable
in boxes 3 and/or 5 (current or prior year deferrals), do not complete box 11.
Instead, report on Form SSA-131 the total amount the employee earned during the
year. Generally, Box 1 will report distributions and current year deferrals that are
vested (employee and employer portions). Do not consider prior-year deferrals that
are vesting in the current year. If there was a plan failure, the box 1 amount in this
calculation should be as if there was no plan failure. Submit the SSA-131 to the
nearest SSA office or give it to the employee.
Example 5—Deferral, immediately vested, and distributions. No vesting of prior
year deferrals.
Regular wages: $200
Defer, vested: $20
Employer match, vested: $10
Distribution: $50
Box 1 = $230 ($200 – $20 + $50)
Boxes 3 and 5 = $210 ($200 + $10)
Box 11 = $0
Example 6—Deferral, delayed vesting, and distributions. No vesting of prior year
deferrals.
Regular wages: $200
Defer, not vested: $20
Distribution: $50
Box 1 = $230 ($200 – $20 + $50)
Boxes 3 and 5 = $180 ($200 – $20)
Box 11 = $50
Example 7—Deferral, immediately vested, and distributions. Prior-year deferrals
and employer matches are now vesting.
Regular wages: $200
Defer, vested: $20
Distribution: $50 Vesting of prior-year deferrals and employer matches: $100 + $15
earnings on the $100
Box 1 = $230 ($200 – $20 + $50)
Boxes 3 and 5 = $315 ($200 + $100 + $15)
Box 11 = $0
Example 8—Deferral, delayed vesting, and distributions. Prior-year deferrals and
employer matches are now vesting.
Regular wages: $200
Defer, not vested: $20
Distribution: $50
Vesting of prior-year deferrals and employer matches: $100 + $15 earnings
Box 1 = $230 ($200 – $20 + $50)
Boxes 3 and 5 = $295 ($200 – $20 + $100 + $15)
Box 11 = $0
Form SSA-131 = $210 ($230 (Box 1) – $50 (distribution) + $30 (vested employee
and employer deferrals))
Form SSA-131 = $200 ($230 (Box 1) – $50 (distribution) + $20 (vested deferral))
Form SSA-131 = $180 ($230 (Box 1 ) – $50 (distribution))
See Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plans.
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Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Reporting Example Chart—(Continued)
Example
How to report on Form W-2
Special Rule for Payment of Social Security, Medicare, and Unemployment taxes
Estimated Method
Under the estimated method, an employer may treat a reasonably estimated
amount as wages paid on the last day of the calendar year (the “first year”). If the
employer underestimates the amount deferred and, thereby, underdeposits social
security, Medicare, or FUTA taxes, it can choose to treat the shortfall as wages
either in the first year or the first quarter of the next year. The shortfall does not
include income credited to the amount deferred after the first year. Conversely, if
the amount deferred is overestimated, the employer can claim a refund or credit. If
the employer chooses to treat the shortfall as wages in the first year, the employer
must issue a Form W-2c. Also, the employer must correct the information on the
Form 941 for the last quarter of the first year. In such a case, the shortfall will not be
treated as a late deposit subject to penalty if it is deposited by the employer’s first
regular deposit date following the first quarter of the next year.
If the amount cannot be reasonably ascertained (the employer is unable to
calculate an amount for a year by December 31), the employer has two methods it
can use. For example, immediately-vested employer contributions to NQDC made
late in the year would have no effect on W-2 box 1, but they would affect FICA and
FUTA taxes.
Lag Method
Under the lag method, an employer may calculate the end-of-the-year amount on
any date in the first quarter of the next calendar year. The amount deferred will be
treated as wages on that date, and the amount deferred that would otherwise have
been taken into account on the last day of the first year must be increased by
income earned on that amount through the date on which the amount is taken into
account.
NQDC Plan Failure
Example 9— Deferral, immediately vested. No distributions. Plan failure.
Plan balance on January 1, 2010: $325, vested.
Regular wages: $100
Defer, vested: $50
Employer match, vested: $25
Plan failure in 2010.
Box 12, Code Z = $400
Amount in the plan account on December 31, 2010, not subject to risk of
forfeiture and not included in prior-year income: $400 ($325 + $50 + $25)
Current-year distributions: $0
$400 ($0 + $400)
Box 1 = $450 ($100 - $50 + $400)
Boxes 3 and 5 = $125 ($100 + $25)
Box 11 = $0
SSA-131 = not required
NQDC Plan Failure
Example 10— Deferral, some delayed vesting, and distributions. Plan failure.
Plan balance on January 1, 2010: $250 vested; $75 not vested
Regular wages: $100
Defer, vested: $50
Employer match; not vested: $25
Distribution: $200
Plan failure in 2010.
Box 12, Code Z = $300
Amount in the plan account on December 31, 2010, not subject to risk of
forfeiture and not included in prior-year income: $100 ($250 + $50 - $200)
Current-year distributions: $200
$100 + $200 = $300
Box 1 = $350 ($100 – $50 + $300 (code Z amount, which already includes the
distribution))
Boxes 3 and 5 = $100
Box 11 = $0
SSA-131 = $100 ($250 (what box 1 would have been without plan failure) – $200
(distributions) + $50 (vested deferral))
See Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plans.
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2014)
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Index
To help us develop a more useful index, please let us know if you have ideas for index entries.
See “Comments and Suggestions” in the “Introduction” for the ways you can reach us.
501(c) non-governmental
organizations ........................ 20, 25
A
Additional Medicare tax
withheld ............ .......... 1, 9, 10, 15–17
Adoption benefits ..................... 6, 15, 18
Advance EIC payment ...................... 25
Agent reporting ................ .............. 6
Agricultural employers ................ 8, 19, 25
Allocated tips .............................. 15
American Samoa ............................ 5
Archer MSA ........................... 6, 14, 18
B
Box 14—Other .............................. 19
Business Services Online (BSO) ........ ...... 1
C
Calendar year basis ........................ 13
Clergy and religious workers ................ 7
Codes for box 12, Form W-2 ...... .... 16, 24, 26
Code AA—Designated Roth contributions under
a section 401(k) plan .................. 18
Code A—Uncollected social security or RRTA tax
on tips ............................... 16
Code BB—Designated Roth contributions under
a section 403(b) plan .................. 18
Code B—Uncollected Medicare tax on
tips .................................. 16
Code C—Taxable cost of group-term life
insurance over $50,000 ................ 16
Code DD—Cost of employer-sponsored health
coverage ............................ 18
Code D—Elective deferrals under a section
403(b) salary reduction agreement ...... 17
Code D—Elective deferrals under section 401(k)
cash or deferred arrangement (plan) .... 17
Code EE—Designated Roth contributions under
a governmental section 457(b) plan ..... 18
Code E—Elective deferrals under a section
408(k)(6) salary reduction SEP ...... .... 17
Code G—Elective deferrals and employer
contributions (including nonelective deferrals)
to any governmental or nongovernmental
section 457(b) deferred compensation
plan ................................. 17
Code H—Elective deferrals under section 501(c)
(18)(D) tax-exempt organization plan .... 17
Code J—Nontaxable sick pay .............. 17
Code K—20% excise tax on excess golden
parachute payments .................. 17
Code L—Substantiated employee business
expense reimbursements .............. 17
Code M—Uncollected social security or RRTA
tax on taxable cost of group-term life
insurance over $50,000 (for former
employees). .......................... 17
Code N—Uncollected Medicare tax on taxable
cost of group-term life insurance over
$50,000 (for former employees) ........ 17
Code P—Excludable moving expense
reimbursements paid directly to
employee ............................ 17
Code Q—Nontaxable combat pay .......... 18
Code R—Employer contributions to an Archer
MSA ................................ 18
Code S—Employee salary reduction
contributions under a section 408(p) SIMPLE
plan ................................. 18
Code T—Adoption benefits ................ 18
Code V—Income from the exercise of
nonstatutory stock option(s) ............ 18
Code W—Employer contributions to a health
savings account (HSA) ................ 18
Code Y—Deferrals under a section 409A
nonqualified deferred compensation
plan ................................. 18
Code Z—Income under section 409A on a
nonqualified deferred compensation
plan ................................. 18
Common errors ................ .............. 4
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana
Islands .................................. 5
Control number ......................... 13, 19
Corrections ............................. 21, 22
Corrections and void Forms W-2 .......... 1, 13
Cost of employer-sponsored health
coverage ............................. 3, 18
How to complete a form .................... 22
How to complete Form W-2 .......... ........ 12
How to complete Form W-3 .......... ........ 19
How to get forms and publications ...... .... 3, 4
D
Deceased employee's wages ................ 7
Deferred compensation .................. 20, 25
Dependent care benefits .......... ........ 15, 20
Designated Roth contributions ...... .... 7, 14, 18
Due date(s) ............................... 2, 5
DVD of tax products ......................... 4
K
Kind of Employer ........................ 20, 25
Kind of Payer ............................ 19, 25
E
Earned income credit (EIC) notice ............ 2
Educational assistance programs ...... .... 8, 14
E-filing ................................. 2, 3, 22
Election workers ............................ 8
Elective deferrals ........................... 17
Electronic employee statements ........ ...... 2
Employee's name and address ....... ..... 13, 24
Employee's taxes paid by employer ..... ... 8, 14
Employee business expense
reimbursements ................... 8, 14, 17
Employer's name and address .... 13, 20, 23, 25
Employer identification number
(EIN) ......................... 13, 20, 23, 25
Employment tax information ................. 3
Establishment number ................... 20, 25
Extensions .................................. 5
F
Federal income tax withheld ................ 14
Foreign agricultural workers ......... ....... 2, 8
Form 941 or 941-SS ..................... 19, 25
Form 944 or 944-SS ................... 2, 19, 25
Forms W-2 for U.S. possessions ........ ...... 2
Form W-2 Copy 1 ............................ 5
Free tax services ............................ 3
Fringe benefits ............... ............. 8, 14
Furnishing Forms W-2 to employees ...... .... 5
Future developments ........................ 2
G
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and
W-3 ...................................... 4
General instructions for Forms W-2c and
W-3c ................................... 21
Golden parachute payments .............. 9, 17
Governmental section 457(b) plans .......... 1
Government employers ................ 9, 20, 25
Group-term life insurance .............. 9, 15, 16
Guam ....................................... 5
H
Health flexible spending arrangement
(FSA) .................................. 1, 9
Health savings account (HSA) ............ 9, 18
Help ........................................ 3
HIRE wages and tips ..................... 22, 26
Household employers .............. 4, 8, 20, 25
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I
Income tax withheld ........................ 24
Individual taxpayer identification number
(ITIN) .................. ................ 6, 13
Information reporting customer service
site ...................................... 3
IRS.gov .................... .................. 3
L
Lost Form W-2—reissued statement
.........
9
M
Medicare tax withheld .................... 1, 15
Medicare wages and tips ................... 15
Military differential pay ................... 2, 10
Military employers ................... 16, 19, 25
Military Spouses Residency Relief Act
(MSRRA) ................................ 2
Moving expenses ........................ 10, 17
Multiple Forms W-2 issued to employee .... .. 13
N
Nonqualified compensation plans ........... 18
Nonqualified deferred compensation
plans .................. ................ 3, 10
Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Reporting
Example Chart ..................... 3, 28, 29
Nonqualified plans ...................... 15, 20
Nonstatutory stock option(s) ............... 18
Nontaxable combat pay ..................... 18
O
Other EIN
..................................
20
P
Penalties ................................... 11
Civil damages for fraudulent filing of Forms
W-2 .................. ................ 12
Exceptions to the penalty .................. 12
Failure to file correct information returns by the
due date ............................. 11
Failure to furnish correct payee
statements ........................... 12
Intentional disregard of filing
requirements ......................... 12
Intentional disregard of payee statement
requirements ......................... 12
Small businesses ........................ 12
Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act
Notice .................................. 26
R
Railroad employers .................. 10, 20, 25
Reconciling Forms W-2, W-3, 941, 941-SS, 943,
944, CT-1, and Schedule H (Form
1040) ................................... 21
Reference Guide for Form W-2 Box 12
Codes .................................. 26
Repayments, wages received in error ..... ... 10
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The type and rule above prints on all proofs including departmental reproduction proofs. MUST be removed before printing.
Retirement Plan Checkbox Decision
Chart .................. ................ 3, 27
Retirement plans ........................ 19, 27
S
Scholarship and fellowship grants .......... 11
Shipping and mailing Form W-2 .............. 5
Sick pay .......................... 11, 17, 25, 26
Signing bonuses ............... ............. 15
SIMPLE retirement account .......... 11, 15, 18
Social security number (SSN) .......... 6, 13, 23
Social security tax withheld ................. 15
Social security tips .............. ............ 15
Social security wages ...................... 14
Special reporting situations for Form W-2 .... 6
Special situations for Forms W-2c and
W-3c ................................... 22
Specific instructions for Form W-2 .......... 12
Specific instructions for Form W-2c ...... .... 23
Specific instructions for Form W-3 .......... 19
Specific instructions for Form W-3c ...... .... 24
State and local tax information .............. 19
State or local 501(c) organizations ....... 20, 25
State or local non-501(c)
organizations ........................ 20, 25
State or territorial ID number ........ ...... 20, 25
Statutory employee ...................... 14, 18
Substitute forms ............................ 3
Successor/predecessor employers ......... 11
T
Taxpayer identification numbers (TINs) ... 6, 13
Terminating a business ..................... 11
Third-party sick pay .............. 19, 20, 25, 26
Tips .................... .................. 14–16
Total number of Forms W-2 .......... ........ 20
TTY/TDD equipment ......................... 3
U
U.S. possessions
..........................
-31-
2, 5
Uncollected taxes on group-term life
insurance ............................... 17
Uncollected taxes on tips ................... 16
Undeliverable Forms W-2 .......... ........ 6, 22
United States Virgin Islands .................. 5
USERRA contributions ............... 11, 17, 19
V
Void Forms W-2
.........................
13, 22
W
Wages .................... .................. 14
Waiver from e-filing .......................... 2
When to file .............................. 5, 22
When to furnish Forms W-2 to employees .... 5
Where to file ............................. 5, 22
Who may sign ......................... 4, 22, 26
Who must file ................. ............... 4
| File Type | application/pdf |
| File Title | Summary of Changes |
| Author | 94vdb |
| File Modified | 2013-09-04 |
| File Created | 2013-09-04 |