Oh No! I Am Missing My W2

Employers have until the 1st of February every year to send you a W-2, wage and tax statement. When you start to prepare your tax return and you have all of your documents except for one W-2, there are some steps you can take to complete your tax filing for the year.

The first step to take is to contact the employer to find out if they mailed a copy to you. If they did, you should request a new copy of the W-2 be sent to your correct mailing address. Allow some time for the new copy to arrive.

After the middle of February, you can contact the IRS directly for information if you are unable to reach your employer for some reason. The IRS will need your address and social security in addition to your employers address and phone number. Some more detailed information will also be required including the dates you worked for the employer, your earnings, and the taxes that were withheld. The best place to find this detailed information is on a pay stub from the end of your time working for the employer.

You must still file your tax return by the deadline of April 15th. If you are unable to obtain the information needed you will have to estimate the W-2 information on an IRS Form 4582. An extension is also a possibility to allow for the extra time to obtain the documents you need.

If you file without knowing the W-2 information and complete IRS Form 4582, when you do receive the accurate version of your W-2 you will need to amend the tax return with the form 1040X.

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