Business-Services-2020-Form-W2-Employee-Instructions

Sep 19, 2026

Employee instructions explain how to report specific items from a W-2 wage statement on an individual federal tax return. Guidance covers amounts to enter on the wages line, federal income tax withheld, Medicare and Additional Medicare Tax reporting, and tip income treatment using Form 4137. It also addresses dependent care benefits reporting via Form 2441, special wage payment situations, and how to use box 12 codes for limits and elective deferrals.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryForms

FormatPDF

Pages2

Reading Time1 min

AccessFree to download

Box-by-box reporting guidance

Tip income and Form 4137

Dependent care benefits and Form 2441

Special wage payments and Form SSA-131

Box 12 codes and deferral limits

Employer notes, deadlines, and help resources

Instructions for Employee (See also Notice to Employee on the back of Copy B.) Box 1. Enter this amount on the wages line of your tax return. Box 2. Enter this amount on the federal income tax withheld line of your tax return. Box 5. You may be required to report this amount on Form 8959, Additional Medicare Tax. See the Instructions for Forms 1040 and 1040-SR to determine if you are required to complete Form 8959. Box 6. This amount includes the 1.45% Medicare Tax withheld on all Medicare wages and tips shown in box 5, as well as the 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax on any of those Medicare wages and tips above $200,000 . Box 8. This amount is not included in box 1, 3, 5, or 7. For information on how to report tips on your tax return, see the Instructions for Forms 1040 and 1040-SR. You must file Form 4137, Social Security and Medicare Tax on Unreported Tip Income, with your income tax return to report at least the allocated tip amount unless you can prove with adequate records that you received a smaller amount. If you have records that show the actual amount of tips you received, report that amount even if it is more or less than the allocated tips. Use Form 4137 to figure the social security and Medicare tax owed on tips you didn’t report to your employer. Enter this amount on the wages line of your tax return. By filing Form 4137, your social security tips will be credited to your social security record (used to figure your benefits) . Box 10. This amount includes the total dependent care benefits that your employer paid to you or incurred on your behalf (including amounts from a section 125 (cafeteria) plan) . Any amount over $5,000 is also included in box 1. Complete Form 2441, Child and Dependent Care Expenses, to compute any taxable and nontaxable amounts. Box 11. This amount is (a) reported in box 1 if it is a distribution made to you from a nonqualified deferred compensation or nongovernmental section 457(b) plan, or (b) included in box 3 and/or 5 if it is a prior year deferral under a nonqualified or section 457(b) plan that became taxable for social security and Medicare taxes this year because there is no longer a substantial risk of forfeiture of your right to the deferred amount. This box shouldn’t be used if you had a deferral and a distribution in the same calendar year. If you made a deferral and received a distribution in the same calendar year, and you are or will be age 62 by the end of the calendar year, your employer should file Form SSA-131, Employer Report of Special Wage Payments, with the Social Security Administration and give you a copy. Box 12. The following list explains the codes shown in box 12. You may need this information to complete your tax return. Elective deferrals (codes D, E, F, and S) and designated Roth contributions (codes AA, BB, and EE) under all plans are generally limited to a total of $19,500 ($13,500 if you only have SIMPLE plans; $22,500 for section 403(b) plans if you qualify for the 15-year rule explained in Pub. 571) . Deferrals under code G are limited to $19,500 . Deferrals under code H are limited to $7,000 . However, if you were at least age 50 in 2020, your employer may have allowed an additional deferral of up to $6,500 ($3,000 for section 401(k)(11) and 408(p) SIMPLE plans) . This additional deferral amount isnot subject to the overall limit on elective deferrals. For code G, the limit on elective deferrals may be higher for the last 3 years before you reach retirement age. Contact your plan administrator for more information. Amounts in excess of the overall elective deferral limit must be included in income. See the Instructions for Forms 1040 and 1040-SR. Note: If a year follows code D through H, S, Y, AA, BB, or EE, you madea make-up pension contribution for a prior year(s) when you were in military service. To figure whether you made excess deferrals, consider these amounts for the year shown, not the current year. If no year is shown, the

FAQs

What should an employee enter for Box 1 and Box 2 on a tax return?

Box 1 amount is entered on the wages line. Box 2 amount is entered on the federal income tax withheld line.

How should unreported tip income be handled?

File Form 4137 with the income tax return to report at least the allocated tip amount unless you can prove with adequate records a smaller amount. Use Form 4137 to compute Social Security and Medicare tax owed on tips not reported to the employer.

How do Box 10 and Box 11 affect the tax return?

Box 10 includes total dependent care benefits; amounts over $5,000 are also included in Box 1, and Form 2441 computes taxable and nontaxable amounts. Box 11 may be treated as a distribution or as a prior-year deferral that became taxable for Social Security and Medicare taxes this year, with special rules if deferral and distribution occur in the same calendar year.

Sep 19, 2026

Upload by Caleb Sterling