Still no W2?

[lyncecelia]

I know these were suppose to be mailed out January 31st. When I didn't get one by mid-February, I called corporate (since I don't work there anymore). They emailed the franchise owner, who then called me (in a rather rude manner) telling me to come pick it up...I didn't call him first because I just assumed corporate sent them out.

Thing is, I don't have a car currently, my DBF takes it during the week now, and the owner is never there during the weekend. I want to file taxes, but I simply can't get ahold of my W2!

Are they required by law to mail it, or are they allowed to make me pick it up? I'm at a loss, and just want to file already...

 

[girli565]

Can you ask him to mail it to you, I mean if he's worried about the cost mail him a self addressed stamped envelope, it'll only cost you two stamps.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

1. They are required, by Federal law, to distribute them. They cannot require you to pick it up. They have to mail it. Or, they can make a .pdf and e-mail it to you.

2. If you cannot get it directly, and you have your last detailed pay stub for the year, go to http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f4852.pdf and fill in and submit the "Substitute W-2" with your tax return.

 

[Arielle22]

Cheshire Figment, the form you linked to states the taxpayer should try to get their form from the employer. It does not say the employer must mail the form.

On the 2011 W-2 form, it uses the word "furnish" but again does not state how the form must be sent.

I agree that the OP should request it be mailed but I am unsure what force of law requires it.

 

[Dismom55]

The best way to get the correct answer is to call the 800 IRS number. I was always under the assumption the employer has to get it to you, but these day with electronic this and that. Just call the IRS and find out what your rights are and go from there. Back in the day, they would have been violating your rights and could have been penalized.

 

[lyncecelia]

I just called the 800 IRS number and my employer. He was giving me the "we aren't even required to give you one" spiel...but now says he is going to mail it . Is he really not required to give me one?

 

[jgreco]

Did he use a Payroll company like ADP? If so, maybe they can furnish it to you.

 

[Arielle22]

If you were an employee, no matter how much you made, the employer is required to provide you with a W-2.

A payroll company will not provide you with a W-2. You will be referred back to your former employer.

 

[My3kiddos]

It is law that he has to give you one and he has to mail it to you! He can not require you to come pick it up. If you no longer work there he was supposed to mail it to the last address he had on file postmarked BY January 31st. What a jerk I would be glad I didn't work for him anymore.

 

[lyncecelia]

Yeah....I figured he had to also. But apparently he felt there wasn't a "need" to?

He says he's mailing it now, I'm just annoyed....I have to file taxes soon, and I don't want to get in trouble because he didn't do his job correctly...

He was also trying to guilt me saying it costs him $10 to do so....I doubt that's true, but still...he kept insisting me to pick up, and even said he didn't have to be the one to give it to me! Does that mean my ex-coworkers have access to my tax documents?!

 

[Arielle22]

It is law that he has to give you one and he has to mail it to you! He can not require you to come pick it up. If you no longer work there he was supposed to mail it to the last address he had on file postmarked BY January 31st. What a jerk I would be glad I didn't work for him anymore.

Where does it say that it must be mailed? As I previously stated, it does not say that on the W-2 form. Also many companies hand W-2s to their employees. Are they breaking the law because the W-2s are not mailed?

 

[nicki.momof3]

He says he's mailing it now, I'm just annoyed....I have to file taxes soon, and I don't want to get in trouble because he didn't do his job correctly...

Sorry he is being such a jerk.

Don't worry about the time factor. You have lots of time until they are due - April 15th is the official deadline. You have a month and a half.

If you want it right now and you don't think he is going to mail it I would just have DBF find a different ride to work (maybe you can drop him off and pick him up for 1 day) and go pick it up yourself. I know you shouldn't have to but it might just save you a lot of headache.

 

[HelenePA]

Where does it say that it must be mailed? As I previously stated, it does not say that on the W-2 form. Also many companies hand W-2s to their employees. Are they breaking the law because the W-2s are not mailed?

I'm assuming that if the company doesn't give it to them in person by Jan 31 (or mailed before then) that by law it should be mailed on that date.

 

[jgreco]

If you were an employee, no matter how much you made, the employer is required to provide you with a W-2.

A payroll company will not provide you with a W-2. You will be referred back to your former employer.

I use ADP to process my payroll and they provide the W2 to employees directly.

 

[csharpwv]

They are in no way shape or form REQUIRED to mail W-2's.
They are however required to distribute them OR have them available to you by January 31st.

Since you are no longer employed with the company, they should have been mailed to you or made available to you electronically by January 31st.

If your W-2 has been sitting there for over a month someone should have called you, or taken the 2 minutes it would have taken to drop it in the mail to you as soon as it arrived.

But to sum it up - they have to make it available to you by January 31st. AND in a way, it was - but they didn't inform you. So that's where they fell short.

 

[My3kiddos]

Where does it say that it must be mailed? As I previously stated, it does not say that on the W-2 form. Also many companies hand W-2s to their employees. Are they breaking the law because the W-2s are not mailed?

What I'm saying is if the employer does not give the W2 to the employee in person then by law it has to be postmarked by Jan 31st. Employees or ex-employees are not responsible for picking up their W2s. Employers are responsible for getting the W2 to the employee either by handing them out or mailing them to the last address they have for them. If it was the employees responsibility for picking up the W2 many would be out of luck, like an ex-employee who moved out of state.

 

[lianne_0325]

I'm not sure about if they have to mail the W-2 or not but it seems crazy it has just been sitting there for the last month. I do want to mention though that the due date for taxes isn't the 15th of April this year but the 18th of April.

From the IRS site "The traditional tax return filing deadline is April 15 of each year, but the IRS has approved April 18, 2011 as the tax filing deadline for 2010 Tax Returns and extension requests in observation of Emancipation Day in the District of Columbia."

 

[tink2dw]

1. They are required, by Federal law, to distribute them. They cannot require you to pick it up. They have to mail it. Or, they can make a .pdf and e-mail it to you.

This is TOTALLY WRONG!!!

We moved out of state. Beginning of Jan. Dh call his former employer and gave them our new Address. Jan 31 came and went. Middle of Feb. DH calls again, oh they sent it to the old address they told him to get from there. Dh call bull and restated that he had called to Make Sure they had his new Address. Just a minute says the woman on the phone and she comes back on the phone and says she is a new hire and knows zip about zip but if DH will just mail them a self addressed envelope and a letter stating that he didn't receive his w-2 and send his Social Security no# they will try to find his info and send out the w-2. I tried to call the IRS but even though it was after the date on the recording that said to call then back if you had not received your w-2 no one would pick up, at the local irs or national number?? SO, Dh send out all the info they had requested. Which I thought was wrong and dangerous!! After all that, it took 2 more weeks to get his w-2 we got it Monday of this week.

Only to find out his fed. withholding is $5.00, the state is a little more, but his wages are such that we still have to file. Oh and the job we moved here for was gone due to a worse economy than we left!!

So thank your lucky stars your Boss is sending yours!

I would tape a dime to a piece of card stock and send it to that whiny boss!!

Oh, on a side note, since we have moved[over 1200 miles away] both Dh and I have gotten Jury Summons from our old state!! I had to send a letter stating I had moved out of state and would not return to do Jury Duty. Dh called and they accepted his refusal over the phone.

 

[Allison]

Taken directly from the IRS website:

Generally, you must furnish Copies B, C, and 2 of Form W-2 to your employees by January 31, 2012. You will meet the “furnish” requirement if the form is properly addressed and mailed on or before the due date.

 

[Arielle22]

Further info from Publication 17 is that your employee has 30 days after receiving a written request from you to mail you the form.