Need help getting W2 from previous year - former employer closed down
Title: Need help getting W2 from previous year - former employer closed down 1 My former employer suddenly shut their doors in January of last year, and I've been kicking myself because I didn't file my taxes for that year. I was planning to just file them along with my 2025 taxes, but now I'm hitting a roadblock. The main issue is I can't figure out how to get my W2 from the company since they're completely gone now. I've reached out to my old supervisor who's trying to be helpful, but we're both struggling to find a solution. Is there any way to get this W2 without waiting forever? I'm worried about falling further behind on my tax obligations and potentially facing penalties. Any advice would be super appreciated! I know I messed up by not filing last year, but I'm trying to fix it now.
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Kristian Bishop
8 You have a few options to get your missing W2: The fastest way is to contact the IRS directly at 800-829-1040. They can provide a wage and income transcript that shows all information reported under your Social Security number, including those W2 details from your former employer. You can also request this online through the IRS website by creating an account and requesting your "Wage and Income Transcript" for the specific tax year. Another option is to file Form 4506-T, which is a request for transcript of tax return. Check box 8 for "Form W-2, Form 1099 series, Form 1098 series, or Form 5498 series transcript." This typically takes about 10 business days to process. Don't wait too long though - the IRS generally has a three-year statute of limitations for filing back taxes to claim refunds, so you want to get this handled sooner rather than later.
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Kristian Bishop
•12 Thanks for the info! Do you know if the wage and income transcript would have all the same information as my original W2? I'm worried some details might be missing that I need for filing.
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Kristian Bishop
•8 The wage and income transcript contains all the essential information that was reported to the IRS on your W2, including your wages, federal income tax withheld, Social Security and Medicare wages and taxes, and state tax information. It has everything you need to file your tax return. One thing to note is that while it contains all the tax data, it doesn't look exactly like a W2 form - it's in a different format, but has all the same information fields that you'll need to enter when filing. The IRS accepts this transcript information as a valid substitute when you don't have the original W2.
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Kristian Bishop
6 Just went through this exact nightmare last month! After calling the IRS multiple times with no luck, I found this service called taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) that saved me so much time. They have this tool that can pull your wage and income documents instantly - I just uploaded a photo of my ID and answered some security questions, and within minutes I had all my missing W2 info from 2023 when my company went under. It was way easier than trying to track down my old company's payroll provider or waiting weeks for the IRS to mail transcripts. The system pulled everything I needed to file my late return.
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Kristian Bishop
•15 Is it legit though? I'm always paranoid about giving my ID to random websites. Did you have any issues with security or anything?
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Kristian Bishop
•20 How accurate was the information? I tried getting transcripts directly from the IRS website before but the numbers were slightly different from my actual W2 from the previous year, which made me nervous about using it.
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Kristian Bishop
•6 It's definitely legitimate - they use the same ID verification standards that government sites use. I was skeptical too, but they explain how they protect your data on their security page. The service just facilitates getting official IRS records, they don't store your ID long-term. The information was 100% accurate because it's pulled directly from what was reported to the IRS. What you're getting is exactly what the IRS has on file, which is what matters for tax filing purposes. Those are the official numbers the IRS will be comparing against when you file. If there were discrepancies between your physical W2 and what the IRS has on record, that could actually indicate a reporting error from your employer.
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Kristian Bishop
20 Just wanted to update - I ended up trying taxr.ai after my post here and it worked perfectly! I was worried about the accuracy issue I mentioned, but the W2 transcript I got had every detail I needed. Took me literally 5 minutes to access all my wage information from last year. The transcript showed everything - federal income tax withheld, social security wages, medicare wages, state income tax, etc. I was able to file my back taxes yesterday and even found out I'm getting a decent refund I didn't know about. Definitely recommend if you're still struggling with getting your documents.
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Kristian Bishop
3 Another option if you're getting nowhere with the IRS online system or waiting forever on hold: Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) got me through to an actual human at the IRS in about 15 minutes when I had a similar W2 issue. They have this callback system that basically waits on hold for you - you can see it in action here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I was skeptical, but after spending HOURS trying to reach someone at the IRS myself, this was a game-changer. The IRS agent I spoke with was able to verify my employment info and send me the transcript I needed. They can also initiate an investigation if your employer never filed your W2 properly.
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Kristian Bishop
•9 Wait, how does this actually work? Does it just call the IRS for you? Couldn't I just do that myself?
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Kristian Bishop
•15 Sounds like BS honestly. The IRS wait times are ridiculous by design. No way some random service can magically get through when millions of people can't.
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Kristian Bishop
•3 It doesn't just call the IRS - it navigates the phone tree for you and waits in the queue, which can be hours long. When an agent finally answers, it calls your phone and connects you directly. So you don't have to sit there listening to hold music for 2+ hours. No magic involved - they're just using technology to wait in the phone queue so you don't have to. I was personally on hold for over 3 hours before giving up when I tried myself. With Claimyr, I went about my day and got a call when an agent was available. The IRS isn't creating a special line for them - they're just handling the painful waiting part of the regular process.
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Kristian Bishop
15 Just want to update that I was COMPLETELY wrong about Claimyr. After getting nowhere for weeks trying to get my W2 info, I tried it as a last resort and got a call back with an actual IRS agent in about 45 minutes. The agent accessed my wage transcript while I was on the phone and even offered to mail me copies. I wasted so much time trying to do this myself - spent literally hours on hold over multiple days and never got through. This saved me from having to take time off work just to sit on hold with the IRS. They actually walked me through what I needed to file my late return too. Sorry for being so skeptical earlier. Sometimes I get paranoid about online services but this one actually delivered.
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Kristian Bishop
11 Have you tried contacting the company's payroll provider directly? When my employer went bankrupt in 2023, I was able to get my W2 from ADP even though the company was gone. Worth a shot if you know which service they used.
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Kristian Bishop
•1 That's a good suggestion! I'm not 100% sure who they used for payroll, but I think it might have been Paychex based on some old emails. I'll try reaching out to them. Did you just call ADP's customer service line?
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Kristian Bishop
•11 I initially emailed my former HR director who gave me a contact at ADP. But if you don't have that connection, you can try calling their general customer service and explaining the situation. Have your SSN ready and any old pay stubs if you have them - those usually have the payroll provider's info somewhere on them. Just be prepared to verify your identity since they're obviously careful about giving out tax documents. If Paychex was their provider, they should have records of your W2 for several years after the company closed.
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Kristian Bishop
14 Don't forget you can also use Form 4852 (Substitute for W-2) as a last resort if you can't get your W2 info from any source. You'd need to estimate your wages and withholding as accurately as possible from your final pay stubs.
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Kristian Bishop
•17 Be careful with Form 4852 though - I did this once and ended up with a notice from the IRS because my estimates were off by about $500. It created a bigger headache than just waiting for the official transcript.
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Jamal Anderson
I went through something similar when my company closed unexpectedly. One thing that really helped me was checking if your state has a Department of Labor or Employment office that might have wage records. Some states keep copies of quarterly wage reports that can help you reconstruct your W2 information if other methods don't work out. Also, if you have any old pay stubs from that job, keep them handy - they'll have a lot of the same information as your W2 and can help verify the numbers you get from the IRS transcript. The year-to-date totals on your final pay stub should match what was reported on your W2. Good luck getting this sorted out! It's frustrating when companies just disappear like that, but there are definitely ways to get the info you need to file your taxes.
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