When Can I Expect to Receive My W-2 and Other Tax Forms?

Are you anxiously awaiting the delivery of your tax documents in order to begin filing your 2016 return? As you know, employers and other institutions are required to send out your tax forms by a certain date in order for you to begin the process of having your tax return completed. So, what are these deadlines and when should you expect to see your W-2 and other forms indicating the income you made in the mail? Forbes has a detailed list of these dates and some are conveniently provided for you below.

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You should begin receiving your tax documents if you haven’t already as the deadline for many to be issued has just passed.

  • W-2- If you haven’t already received your W-2 from your employer, you should be any day now. Employers are required to have mailed out any and all W-2’s before or by January 31st. And today marks the first day of February which means their deadline has passed.
  • Form 1098- If you pay a mortgage, the deadline for this form to be mailed out is January 31st.
  • 1099INT- January 31st – Interest income
  • 1099 G-January 31st – Government payments, including tax refunds and unemployment compensation
  • 1099-R- January 31st -Retirement plan distributions
  • 1099 B- February 15th– This document is to report sales, barters, and redemptions of securities.
  • SSA-1099-Social Security payments

There are also many other tax forms that you may receive but these are some of the more common ones. And as you can see, most should already be out in the mail.

And if you don’t want to wait any longer, something to keep in mind is that some institutions allow you to download a copy of your tax form directly from their site.

Should I Get My Return Completed Right After Receiving My W-2?

Tax attorneys in St. Paul, MN have helped various clients with tax mistakes made because individuals rushed to get their taxes filed and made significant errors that caused them to get audited. Therefore, trying to file your taxes after only receiving your W-2 form could mean you are forgetting to file another document. Just because the deadline has passed, mail couriers often get behind with delivery which means you could file without receiving something important.

When Will the IRS Begin Issuing Refunds for 2016 Returns?

Because of the changes and new laws that have come into effect, the IRS has already announced they aren’t going to begin issuing refunds for many returns filed until the week of February 27th.  Therefore, take your time if you have all your documents and ensure you are providing accurate information to the IRS.

What to do if You Are Being Audited by the IRS?

While the new tax season has begun, many are still being haunted by returns from the past. If you have been notified that you’re going to be audited, consider speaking with a skilled St. Paul, Minnesota tax lawyer to determine what you need to be doing to avoid having to pay more of your hard-earned money to the IRS.