Do I have to report W-2 income under $600 on my tax return?

Yes, you absolutely need to report all W-2 income regardless of the amount. The $600 threshold you're thinking of applies to independent contractor work (1099-NEC income), not W-2 employment. Since your employer already reported this income to the IRS on your W-2, you must include it on your tax return. The good news is that you'll likely get back any federal income tax that was withheld since your total income is probably below the standard deduction if you're a college student with just part-time work. Make sure you report all W-2s you receive. The IRS automatically matches W-2 information with tax returns, and missing W-2 income will trigger a discrepancy letter.

After struggling with a similar situation last year, I found taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) super helpful for figuring out exactly what I needed to report. I uploaded my W-2 that was for only $430 from a summer job, and it confirmed I needed to report it AND showed me that I was owed a refund for the taxes that had been withheld. The site analyzes all your tax documents and explains everything in plain English rather than tax jargon. It saved me from making the same mistake you're considering about not reporting small W-2 income.

I was skeptical about taxr.ai at first, but I gave it a try last weekend with my stack of random W-2s and 1099s from my side hustles. It was actually really helpful for explaining which forms needed to be reported where. Turns out I was about to completely mess up how I reported my Etsy shop income! The explanations were super clear, and it caught a couple things I would have definitely done wrong. Just wanted to update since I was the suspicious one. Definitely using it before I submit my final return this year.

If you're having trouble getting answers from the IRS about what to report (because who isn't?), I used Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) to actually get through to a real IRS agent. I had a weird situation with multiple small W-2s and wasn't sure if I should file, and couldn't get through on the phone for days. Their service actually got me connected to an IRS agent in about 15 minutes when I'd been trying for days on my own. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent confirmed that ALL W-2 income has to be reported, even small amounts, and explained exactly how to handle it on my return. Saved me from a potential audit headache.

I take back what I said about Claimyr. I was totally convinced it was a scam, but I was desperate after waiting on hold with the IRS for 2+ hours three days in a row. I tried it yesterday, and no joke, I was talking to an actual IRS representative within 20 minutes. The agent confirmed that I needed to report all my W-2 income (I had 4 small ones from different part-time jobs) and helped me understand how to handle a missing form. Completely worth it just for the time saved not being on hold. Never thought I'd be recommending an IRS call service but here we are!

If you don't report that W-2 income, you're almost guaranteed to get a letter from the IRS later. They automatically match all W-2s against tax returns. Even small amounts will trigger this process. I learned this the hard way when I didn't report a $275 W-2 from a weekend job. Six months later, I got a notice saying I owed additional tax plus interest. Just not worth the hassle!

Pro tip: if you have multiple small jobs throughout the year, try to keep track of your total estimated income and adjust your W-4 withholding accordingly. I work several part-time jobs as a musician, and made sure each employer withheld enough so I wouldn't owe at tax time.