After you complete your W-2s and distribute them to employees, you still haven’t seen the last of government paperwork. At this point, you total the numbers and fill out another form that looks very much like the W-2 — the W-3, Transmittal of Wage and Tax Statements.
The W-3 is essentially the cover sheet for the information you send to the Social Security Administration. This form is your last chance to reconcile your numbers before actually filing them with the government. The W-3 numbers should match the totals shown on the Form 941 reports that you submitted to the federal government quarterly throughout the year.
The W-3 must be filed by February 28 with the Social Security Administration. As a small business owner, you can mail the W-3 and the copies of the W-2s to the Social Security Administration at:
Social Security Administration
Data Operations Center
Wilkes-Barre, PA 18769-0001
You can also file the forms online through the Social Security Administration website, or file them electronically. Large companies with more than 250 employees must file their W-3s and W-2s by magnetic media or electronically. Any business filing electronically can wait until March 31 to file.
If your company reports tips, you need to complete an additional form called Form 8027, Employer’s Annual Information Return of Tip Income and Allocated Tips. The deadlines for filing Form 8027 are the same as for the W-3 — February 28 for regular filing and March 31 for magnetic media or electronic filings.