Understanding Form W-2: What is Box W-2 D and its Purpose?
Form W-2 is a wage tax form used to report wages paid to employees as well as taxes withheld. The form must be provided to the IRS and the recipient annually.
There are many parts of a W-2 form that require different information. Keep reading for a deep dive into Form W-2 Box D.
How is a W-2 laid out?
The first part of a W-2 form asks for basic information. Boxes labeled A-F are where you record your
- Box A: Employee’s Social Security number
- Box B: Employer Identification Number (EIN)
- Box C: Employer’s name, address, and zip code
- Box D: Control number
- Box E: Employee’s full name
- Box F: Employee’s address
Next, boxes labeled 1-20 ask for
- Box 1: Wages, tips, and other compensation
- Box 2: Federal income tax withheld
- Box 3: Social Security wages
- Box 4: Social Security tax withheld
- Box 5: Medicare wages and tips
- Box 6: Medicare tax withheld
- Box 7: Social Security tips
- Box 8: Allocated tips
- Box 9: (leave box blank)
- Box 10: Dependent care benefits
- Box 11: Nonqualified plans
- Box 12: w2 box 12 Codes
- Box 13: Checkboxes
- Box 14: Other
- Box 15: State/employer’s state ID number
- Box 16: State wages, tips, etc
- Box 17: State income tax
- Box 18: Local wages, tips, etc
- Box 19: Local income tax
- Box 20: Locality name
What is Box D used for?
Box D is the space for the control number. It may or may not be left blank, depending on whether or not your business uses control numbers.
A control number is used to identify your form. It allows for organized record-keeping. It is usually assigned by an employer’s payroll software.
The lack of a w2 control number will not affect your return in any way.
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