IRS W-3 Form 2026 PDF - Free Fillable Transmittal Download

Box a — Control Number

Optional. Leave blank unless your payroll system uses control numbers to track submissions. Most small employers skip this box entirely.

Box b — Kind of Payer

Check exactly one box describing your organization type:

• 941 — Most businesses; choose this if unsure (quarterly employment tax filers)
• Military — Active duty military employers
• 943 — Agricultural employers (farm labor)
• 944 — Employers with annual tax liability under $1,000 (annual filers)
• CT-1 — Railroad employers
• Hshld. emp. — Household employers (nannies, domestic workers)
• Medicare govt. emp. — Government employees covered only by Medicare (not Social Security)

Box c — Total Number of Forms W-2

Enter the exact count of W-2 Copy A forms enclosed in this package. If submitting W-2s for 12 employees, enter "12". This number must match what you physically enclose — the SSA counts the forms received.

Box e — Employer Identification Number (EIN)

Enter your 9-digit EIN in XX-XXXXXXX format. This must exactly match the EIN on all attached W-2 forms. If any W-2 has a different EIN, it belongs in a separate W-3 submission. Never use a Social Security Number here.

Boxes f & g — Employer Name and Address

Enter your legal business name exactly as registered with the IRS (Box f) and your complete mailing address (Box g). The SSA uses this address for any correspondence about your filing.

Boxes 1–6 — Wage and Tax Totals

These are the core totals — the sum of the corresponding boxes across every W-2 form you're submitting:

• Box 1: Total wages, tips, and other compensation (sum of all W-2 Box 1)
• Box 2: Total federal income tax withheld (sum of all W-2 Box 2)
• Box 3: Total Social Security wages (sum of all W-2 Box 3)
• Box 4: Total Social Security tax withheld — should equal 6.2% × Box 3
• Box 5: Total Medicare wages and tips (sum of all W-2 Box 5)
• Box 6: Total Medicare tax withheld — should equal 1.45% × Box 5 (plus 0.9% Additional Medicare on wages over $200k)

Boxes 7–11 — Tips, Dependent Care, and Other Wages

These boxes capture additional compensation categories that appear on individual W-2s:

• Box 7: Total Social Security tips — the sum of all W-2 Box 7 amounts. Applies only if any employees reported cash tips subject to Social Security tax. Leave blank if none.
• Box 8: Total allocated tips — sum of all W-2 Box 8. These are tips allocated by the employer to employees in food and beverage establishments; they differ from reported tips.
• Box 9: Reserved for future IRS use — leave blank.
• Box 10: Total dependent care benefits — sum of all W-2 Box 10. Includes amounts paid or incurred under a dependent care assistance program (DCAP). The annual exclusion limit is set by the IRS — verify the current limit at IRS.gov before filing.
• Box 11: Total nonqualified deferred compensation — sum of all W-2 Box 11. Applies only if you have a nonqualified deferred compensation plan subject to Section 409A or amounts distributed under Section 457 plans.

Box 12 — Codes and Special Compensation Totals

Box 12 on the W-3 captures aggregated totals for specific compensation codes reported in Box 12 of the underlying W-2 forms. Common codes employers may need to total here include:

• Code D: Elective deferrals to a 401(k) plan
• Code E / F: Elective deferrals to 403(b) / 408(k)(6) SEP plans
• Code DD: Cost of employer-sponsored health coverage (informational only)
• Code W: Employer contributions to a Health Savings Account (HSA)

Enter only the codes and totals that actually appear on your employees' W-2s. Do not enter codes that don't apply. Refer to the IRS General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 for the complete list of valid codes.

Box 13 — Checkboxes (Statutory Employee, Retirement Plan, Third-Party Sick Pay)

Box 13 contains three checkboxes. Check each one on the W-3 if any of your attached W-2 forms have that box checked:

• Statutory employee: Check if any W-2 covers a statutory employee (certain agent-drivers, traveling salespeople, etc.).
• Retirement plan: Check if any employee was an active participant in any employer retirement plan (401k, 403b, pension, etc.) during the year.
• Third-party sick pay: Check this box if any W-2 includes sick pay paid by a third-party insurer under an employer-paid policy. When a third-party payer (insurer) pays sick pay, it issues its own W-2 to the employee — and may also send you a separate W-2 or information return showing amounts it withheld on your behalf. The amounts from the insurer's W-2 and your W-2 must be reconciled carefully before totaling Box 1. If you receive a Form 8922 (Third-Party Sick Pay Recap) from the insurer, those wages may already be reported under the insurer's EIN — do not double-count them on your W-3.

Box 14 — Other

Box 14 is a catch-all for any items an employer wishes to report to employees that don't fit elsewhere. On the W-3, enter the total of all Box 14 amounts if the same code appears across multiple W-2s and you wish to aggregate them. Common Box 14 items include state disability insurance (SDI) withheld, union dues, educational assistance, or employer-paid FMLA wages. Box 14 is generally informational and does not affect SSA processing, but accuracy matters if your state requires specific codes here for state income tax purposes.

Signature Section

An authorized officer or owner must sign and date in ink. Include your title (CEO, Owner, Payroll Manager), a contact person's name, phone number, and optional email address. The SSA may contact the listed person if they have questions about the submission.

Identify the Affected W-2s

Determine which employees have incorrect W-2 data. Gather the original W-2 amounts for each affected employee — you will need to enter the "previously reported" figures exactly.

Prepare One Form W-2c Per Affected Employee

For each affected employee, complete a W-2c showing both the previously reported and correct amounts for each box that changed. Send a copy to the employee so they can file an amended return if needed.

Complete Form W-3c

Fill out the W-3c header with the same EIN, employer name, and tax year as the original W-3. In the money boxes, enter column (a) previously-reported totals and column (b) correct totals — summed across all the W-2c forms in this submission. If only one employee had an error, the W-3c totals reflect only that employee's corrected amounts.

Mail W-3c with W-2c Copy A Forms

If filing on paper, mail the signed W-3c with W-2c Copy A forms to the SSA Data Operations Center at the same Wilkes-Barre, PA address used for original filings. Do not staple. Use certified mail.