Form 4852 is the tax form you need to file in the absence of your W-2 from your employer. One thing to note before filing Form 4852 – if your W2 is lost, contact your employer or previous employer in the case of switching jobs, and ask for another copy. Doing this will save you a lot of time and effort when preparing your federal income tax return, as the IRS doesn’t accept Form 4852 electronically.
Overview of Form 4852
Form 4852 is intended to replace Form W-2 when you don’t have access to it. In some cases, businesses close, and employers choose to ignore their duties. There isn’t much you can do as an ex-employee in these situations, but you still need to file your return. That’s where Form 4852 comes in to replace Form W-2, serving as a substitute.
Fill out Form 4852 online
The below Form 4852 is fillable online, meaning you can enter your information and money amounts on your computer and print out a paper copy with your changes. The benefit of this is simple. It allows you to fill it out faster.
Filling out Form 4852
First things first – you need to fill out Form 4852 using your last paystub of the tax year or the last paystub you received from the previous employer. The money amounts on that must be entered on Form 4852 as exactly as they are.
For more information on filing, make sure to read our instructions to file Form 4852 for the 2024 tax season, in which you file a return for the 2024 taxes.
Once filed, attach Form 4852 the same as any other tax document, in this case, Form W-2. Reporting the income you earned by yourself as an employee may be strange at first but this is a standard process since your employee didn’t furnish you with a copy of Form W-2.