Question: How Do I Submit W-2 Forms?
Business owners must prepare a W-2 Wage and Tax Statement for each employee for each calendar year, by the end of January the following year. The W-2 shows wages, federal and state income tax withheld, other deductions, and other information necessary to prepare the employee's personal tax return.
Answer:
Submitting W-2 Forms to the Social Security Administration
- Prepare W-2 forms and provide them to employees, but keep Copy A (the red copy).
- You must submit a Form W-3 summary transmittal form to the Social Security Administration (SSA) no later than February 28 of the year following the year the W-2 forms were prepared. For example, a W-3 form 2010 must be submitted by February 28, 2011. The W-3 form totals information for all of the W-2 forms you gave to employees.
- You must include copies of all W-2 forms along with the W-3 form.
- Send all forms to the Social Security Administration at:
Data Operations Center
Wilkes-Barre, PA 18769-0001 - You may also submit the W-3 and W-2 forms online, directly to the Social Security Administration, through their Business Services Online section.
Before You Submit the W-3 and W-2 forms
- Be sure all company information on the W-3 form is exactly the same as on the W-2 forms
- All totals on the W-3 form must exactly match the total of all W-2 forms
- Submit the original red Copy A of all employee W-2 forms; the SSA will not accept photocopies.
Review these other other common errors in submitting W-2 and W-3 forms..
If you find you need to correct a W-2 form (which means you may also need to submit a corrected W-3 form), you can also submit those corrected forms online.
