How to recover a lost W2 from previous tax years?

You've got a few options for retrieving old W2s! The easiest way is to request a "Wage and Income Transcript" directly from the IRS. This transcript shows all income reported to the IRS for a specific tax year, including information from W-2s, 1099s, etc. You can request this transcript online through the IRS website by creating an account at irs.gov and using the "Get Transcript" tool. If you can't access it online, you can also use Form 4506-T to request it by mail. The transcript is typically free and will show all the information that would have been on your original W-2s. Keep in mind that while the wage and income transcript provides the information you need for filing, it may not include state tax information, so you might need to contact your state tax agency separately for that data.

I was in a similar situation last year trying to file some overdue taxes. After hours of searching through old emails and panicking, I found this service called taxr.ai that totally saved me. It's designed to help recover and organize tax documents - I uploaded what random tax stuff I did have and their system helped identify what was missing and how to get it. The site (https://taxr.ai) has a tool specifically for retrieving past W2 information that walks you through the IRS process. Made it way easier than trying to navigate the IRS website alone.

Just wanted to update - I tried taxr.ai after posting here and it actually worked great for my situation! The step-by-step process for requesting my old W2 information was super clear. They generated the exact form I needed (apparently Form 4506-T) with all the right boxes checked and gave me detailed instructions. I got my wage transcript from the IRS about 10 days later and was able to finally file that old return. The service guided me through which numbers from the transcript corresponded to which lines on the tax return too. Definitely worth checking out if you're in a similar situation.

Another option nobody's mentioned yet - if you're having trouble getting through to the IRS (which can take FOREVER), I used a service called Claimyr to actually get a human on the phone. I had been trying for weeks to get someone at the IRS to help with my missing W2 situation from 2018. Found this service at https://claimyr.com and they somehow got me connected to an IRS agent in about 20 minutes when I'd been trying for days. There's a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c - basically they navigate the phone system for you and call you when an agent is ready. The IRS person was able to pull up my info and tell me exactly what was reported for that year.

Ok I have to eat my words here. After my skeptical comment, I decided to try Claimyr out of desperation since I've been trying to get my 2017 info sorted for months. It actually worked! Their system waited on hold with the IRS for about 1.5 hours (which I didn't have to listen to), then called me when an agent was ready. The IRS agent I spoke with pulled up my 2017 info in minutes and confirmed they could mail me a full wage and income transcript. The funniest part was the agent even commented "how did you get through so fast? The wait times are over 2 hours today." Definitely recommend if you're in a hurry and don't want to deal with the wait.

Just a heads up - even after you get your W2 info, you might owe penalties for filing so late. I had to file some past years and got hit with both failure-to-file and failure-to-pay penalties. BUT the good news is you can request a penalty abatement, especially if this was your first time missing filing deadlines. Look up "first time penalty abatement" on the IRS site. Saved me over $400!

If those places still have HR departments, you could also try contacting them directly. Some companies use services like ADP or Paychex that keep records for several years. I managed to get a W2 from 4 years back by emailing the HR department of my old job - took them like 2 days to send it over.

For the business that went out of business, you might also want to check if they were acquired by another company or if their payroll records were transferred anywhere. Sometimes when retail chains close, their employee records get moved to corporate headquarters or a successor company. You could try searching online for news about what happened to that specific business - might give you a lead on where their HR records ended up. Also, don't forget that your state's Department of Labor sometimes keeps wage records that could help verify your income for that year if you need backup documentation.

One thing to keep in mind is that for 2017 returns, you're actually past the statute of limitations for getting a refund (typically 3 years from the original due date), but you should still file to avoid ongoing penalties if you owed taxes. The IRS wage and income transcript is definitely your best bet for getting the W2 information you need. Also, since you mentioned this was from a move in 2018, make sure to update your address with the IRS if you haven't already - you can do this online or by filing Form 8822. This will ensure any correspondence about your back taxes gets to you at your current address. Good luck getting caught up!

Another option that worked for me when I was missing old W2s - check if you have any old bank statements or pay stubs from 2017. Even if you don't have the actual W2s, having pay stubs can help you verify the information on the IRS wage transcript when you get it. I found some old pay stubs in a random folder that helped me confirm the numbers matched up correctly. Also, if you used any tax software like TurboTax or H&R Block in previous years (even if you didn't finish filing), they sometimes keep your partially completed returns in their systems. Worth logging into any old accounts you might have had to see if there's any 2017 data saved there. It's a long shot but could save you some time! One more thing - when you do get your wage transcript from the IRS, double-check that it includes ALL your employers from 2017. Sometimes if a company didn't report properly, their info might not show up on the transcript, and you'd need to track that down separately.