
In addition to providing W-2 forms to all employees, you are also responsible for filing a copy of each employee’s W-2 with the Social Security Administration (SSA), as well as submitting Form W-3, which includes all the totals from your employees. The exceptions are for contractors or freelancers: For them, you will need to provide a Form 1099-NEC. Think of it this way: if you have employees and paid them at any time throughout the year, you probably need to provide them with a W-2 come January. Along with employee wages and withholding information, a W-2 also provides totals for deferred compensation, dependent care benefits, health savings account contributions, and tip income.



A W-2 is used by employers to report employee gross annual wages, federal, Social Security, and Medicare taxes withheld, as well as state taxes (if any) that are withheld throughout the year.
