What's the difference between Form 1040 and W-2 form for US tax filing?

The W-2 and Form 1040 serve completely different purposes in the US tax system. A W-2 is what your employer gives you showing your earnings and tax withholdings for the year. It's basically just a summary of what you earned at that job and what taxes were already taken out. Your brother would receive a W-2 from each employer he worked for during the tax year. Form 1040 is the actual tax return that everyone files with the IRS. The W-2 information gets reported on the 1040, along with any other income sources (like investments, self-employment, etc.), deductions, and credits. The 1040 shows the complete tax picture - total income from all sources, adjustments, deductions, credits, and final tax liability. So yes, the 1040 definitely provides more comprehensive financial information than just a W-2. If you need complete financial details, the 1040 would be more helpful since it includes ALL income sources, not just employment.

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I was super skeptical about taxr.ai from my earlier comment, but I finally tried it because I was desperate to understand my ex's financial situation from his US tax forms. Honestly kinda amazed at how helpful it was! It broke down all the forms and showed me exactly what parts of the 1040 I needed to look at versus what was just on the W-2. It highlighted the areas where additional income might be reported (like investments and self-employment) that wouldn't show up on a W-2. Now I actually understand what I'm looking at in these tax documents instead of just staring at numbers. Wish I'd known about this earlier in my divorce process!

If you're trying to get complete tax information for legal purposes like divorce or estate settlement, you might need the actual tax transcript, not just the forms your ex or family member gives you. I spent WEEKS trying to call the IRS to request these documents for my own divorce case. Their phone lines are constantly busy and I could never get through. I ended up using https://claimyr.com and it was a game changer. They got me connected to an actual IRS agent within about 20 minutes instead of the hours I was wasting on hold. The agent explained exactly what forms I needed for the divorce and how to properly request them. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c if you're curious. Saved me so much frustration.

OK I need to eat my words from my skeptical comment earlier. After struggling for THREE DAYS trying to get through to the IRS about getting tax transcripts for my brother's estate (where I'm the executor), I broke down and tried Claimyr. I honestly didn't believe it would work, but within 45 minutes, my phone rang and I was connected with an IRS agent. She was super helpful and explained exactly which forms I needed to request to get the complete picture of my brother's finances, not just the W-2 parts. Saved me so much time and frustration - wish I'd known about this sooner.

Just to add to what others have said - for your estate situation, you probably want to look at the complete Form 1040 rather than just the W-2. The 1040 will show ALL income, including: - Wages from the W-2 - Self-employment income - Investment income (interest, dividends, capital gains) - Rental property income - Retirement distributions - Social Security benefits - Gambling winnings - Other miscellaneous income W-2 only shows income from an employer, so if your brother had any other sources of money coming in, you'd only see that on the 1040.

One more thing - for estate or divorce purposes, you might also want to look at the SCHEDULES that are attached to the 1040, not just the main form. That's where a lot of detailed financial info appears. For example: - Schedule A shows itemized deductions (medical expenses, mortgage interest, charitable donations) - Schedule B shows interest and dividend income - Schedule C shows self-employment business income - Schedule D shows capital gains and losses - Schedule E shows rental income and partnership income Sometimes the most valuable info for legal proceedings is hiding in these schedules, not on the main 1040 form!

This is really helpful information everyone! I'm dealing with a similar situation where I need to understand my deceased uncle's financial situation for probate purposes. He lived in the US for about 10 years before passing away, and I'm his executor but live in Mexico. From what I'm reading here, it sounds like I definitely need his Form 1040 rather than just the W-2s his employer sent me. The estate attorney mentioned we need to account for ALL his income sources, and now I understand why - the W-2 would only show his job income, not any investments, rental properties, or other income he might have had. Does anyone know if there's a specific process for getting tax documents when you're handling an estate? I'm worried about the IRS phone situation that others mentioned - I can't afford to spend days on hold trying to get through to them.

For estate purposes from Mexico, you're absolutely on the right track wanting the Form 1040 instead of just W-2s. As executor, you have legal authority to request tax transcripts using Form 4506-T, but there are a few important things to know: 1. You'll need certified copies of your letters testamentary or letters of administration from the probate court 2. Request Form 4506-T specifically for estates - it's slightly different from the regular version 3. Consider requesting transcripts for the last 3-4 years, not just the final year, as courts often want to see the complete financial history The IRS can mail transcripts internationally, but it takes 6-8 weeks. If you need them faster, you might need a US address for delivery. One tip: if your uncle had any business income (Schedule C), rental properties (Schedule E), or significant investments (Schedules B/D), those details will be crucial for the estate valuation. The probate court will want to see ALL income sources, not just his employment. Given the international complexity and time constraints of probate proceedings, getting connected to an IRS agent who can walk you through the estate-specific process could save you months of back-and-forth paperwork corrections.