How to Find My Job's W-2s

You need your W-2s before you can file your taxes.

In order to file your taxes, you need W-2 forms from each employer, so if you haven't gotten your W-2s by mid-February or you lost them, you need to start thinking about plan B. The road to finding your job's W-2s starts with putting in a call to your employer, but it can end with filling out an alternate form from the IRS if you don't have any luck. In most cases, you will be able to get or reproduce your W-2s and file your taxes without many complications.

Instructions

1. Wait for your employer to send your W-2s. The IRS requires employers to send out their W-2s by the end of January, and many employers send an email or office memo that explains how the forms will be disbursed just after the new year. If it is after February and your employer sends forms through the mail, you may just need to wait a few days.

2. Call your office's payroll department. If your employer has not already told you, ask when the W-2s were/will be sent out and how they will be delivered. If the forms have not yet been sent, ask if you can pick yours up in person. If they were already placed in employee mailboxes, ask who you need to talk to about not receiving yours. If they were sent out recently, wait a few more days and then report the problem to your company's payroll if you still have not received yours.

3. Talk to your boss or supervisor. If you have already contacted your payroll department to report a missing W-2, and no one has offered to help you get a copy. Ask your boss if she can talk to payroll about getting your W-2, or if she knows why it was held up. The reason you have not gotten your W-2 could be a simple human or computer error that your boss knows about but forgot to tell you.

4. Contact the IRS if you still have not received your W-2 by February 14th. Be prepared to provide your name, address, city, state zip code, social security number and phone number; employer's name, address, city, state, zip code and phone number and an estimate of your earnings and federal withholding. Get this information by finding your last pay stub. The IRS will encourage your employer to give your your W-2 and send you a form 4852, which you can fill out and submit instead of a W-2 with your taxes.

5. Download the form 4852 from the IRS website, complete it and file it with your taxes. Follow the instructions on the form, and use your last pay stub to supply the information. Double-check the information with your own records of your earnings to avoid having to file an amended return.

Tips & Warnings

• If you need a W-2 from a company that has closed, you may want to contact the IRS as soon as you realize you cannot find an official contact from your former employer.

• If you realize you filed your taxes using incorrect information from your form 4852 or you left out a W-2, you must file an amended return by filling out form 1040X.

References

• BankRate.com; What to Do if You Don't Get Your W-2; Kay Bell; January 2008
• IRS.gov; Here's What to Do If You Are Missing a W-2; February 2011