Is this stealing or not?

[LaughingBoy1503]

I just want some opinions on my situation and what I am considering doing.

I worked for 4 different companies last year. I got w2’s from 2 of them already, but am still yet to receive the other 2. I do not have a lot of faith the companies that I have not gotten w2s from yet might have sent them out. So if I don’t get them, I have to file a missing w2 report with the IRS get another form and so fourth and wait several more months to get my tax refund and I am not a rich person. I was hoping to use my refund to make a repair on my truck, which I need for work. It runs, but I need to take it to the shop to find out why my Check Engine light came on a few weeks ago, and I don’t know how much it might cost to fix whatever the problem is.

I am wondering if it would be wrong, if I do not get my w2s from these companies, if I just filed my taxes anyway. This would mean not reporting my the income I made with them but I only made exactly $899.88 total between them. Not including that money, I earned about 28k last year. So including that $899 lets say I really made 29k. Not a lot of money. I did already pay the normal deductions on that income. I am not sure if not reporting that $899.88 would mean I need to pay more taxes, and therefore would get a smaller refund, or if it would mean I paid just a little more taxes than I should have, and would get a bigger refund.

I just really do not want to steal from the government. I know it is a small amount of money anyway and I might just actually be shortchanging my refund but I also do not want to get into the habit of justifying my wrongdoings by calling them insignificant. Any opinions?

 

[PaulfromIowa]

Do the right thing. Get on the phone to the companies that owe you a w2 form and ask them why you have not received them.

 

[RitasKid]

Not dishonest if you’re honest. When you file ,put in your best guess of the amount you were paid. Don’t put withholding, so you won’t exaggerate. The computer will send you what you claim when you file. Then you get your car fixed. Later on the computer will see it owes you more and send it on. I can be a little scrupulous, but wouldn’t have any problem with this.

 

[WiccanWoman]

Not dishonest if you’re honest. When you file ,put in your best guess of the amount you were paid. Don’t put withholding, so you won’t exaggerate. The computer will send you what you claim when you file. Then you get your car fixed. Later on the computer will see it owes you more and send it on. I can be a little scrupulous, but wouldn’t have any problem with this.

This makes sense.

Also, be aware of the fact that although you may not receive a copy of your W2 (say it got lost in the mail), the IRS receives this information anyway. They match what you report with what is reported by your employers, and if the information doesn’t match… you have a problem.

Do you prepare your own taxes, or use a service? They might be able to advise you.

 

[coachdennis]

Do the right thing. Get on the phone to the companies that owe you a w2 form and ask them why you have not received them.

Why are you going through all this mental angst and not simply doing what Paul says – contact your employers? As another person said, the IRS has this information anyway so you will not be able to full them.

Plus, your last paystub of the year should have your tax, SSN, and medicare info for the year on it. Another reminder to save those documents

 

[LaughingBoy1503]

This makes sense.

Also, be aware of the fact that although you may not receive a copy of your W2 (say it got lost in the mail), the IRS receives this information anyway. They match what you report with what is reported by your employers, and if the information doesn’t match… you have a problem.

Do you prepare your own taxes, or use a service? They might be able to advise you.

I know exactly how much I made with them. I save every paycheck stub and have already added up the money and like I said, It comes to $899.88. I can prove it. I do not prepare my own taxes. I did the “Turbo Tax” thing a few years ago and ended up shortchanging myself over $700. Good thing my tax lady caught that the next year so I got it amended. I did call both the companies. One called me back and said I should get the w2 form in the mail this week. So it might come today. The other never called me back. We shall see.

 

[LaughingBoy1503]

Why are you going through all this mental angst and not simply doing what Paul says – contact your employers? As another person said, the IRS has this information anyway so you will not be able to full them.

Plus, your last paystub of the year should have your tax, SSN, and medicare info for the year on it. Another reminder to save those documents

I did contact them and I do save every paycheck stub. I am going to give it another week. I am not trying to fool the government. You completely missed the point.

 

[UpUpAndAway]

My line of thinking is that it would be wrong to knowingly report an income figure that is different from what you actually earned.

Also, be aware of the fact that although you may not receive a copy of your W2 (say it got lost in the mail), the IRS receives this information anyway. They match what you report with what is reported by your employers, and if the information doesn’t match… you have a problem.

This. I will tell you from my own experience that the IRS is mean mean mean when it comes to discrepancies. One year, unbeknownst to me, my bank incorrectly reported something to the IRS (income on an investment ten times higher than what it actually was). It was correct on my return documentation but didn’t match what the bank said. Two years later the IRS came after **me **for an explanation, which I had thirty days to provide to their satisfaction or I would be arrested for tax evasion. Trust me, you do not want to have to deal with this. :nope:

Paul is right. If I were you, I would keep contacting the two companies in question until I had the W2s in hand. Hound them (kindly ) if you must. Praying you get all the forms you need in a timely fashion. God bless!

 

[pensmama87]

We are waiting on documentation too, though in our case it’s a 1099. Nobody answers the phone or responds to our email inquiries. It’s very obnoxious and we have a big refund coming that I want to get ASAP - we’re using ours to pay off debt and the sooner we pay it off, the less interest we pay.

We are keeping documentation of every attempt we make at contact, in case we need it later with the IRS. I can’t even figure out how to report the income if I don’t have a form for it.

 

[maryjk]

Do the right thing. Get on the phone to the companies that owe you a w2 form and ask them why you have not received them.

And they will tell you that they don’t have to give you a form under a certain amount.

It used to be $600. I don’t know what the limit is now.

 

[Gia_B]

I know exactly how much I made with them. I save every paycheck stub and have already added up the money and like I said, It comes to $899.88. I can prove it. I do not prepare my own taxes. I did the “Turbo Tax” thing a few years ago and ended up shortchanging myself over $700. Good thing my tax lady caught that the next year so I got it amended. I did call both the companies. One called me back and said I should get the w2 form in the mail this week. So it might come today. The other never called me back. We shall see.

So you’re going to have a professional prepare your taxes for you? It would be prudent to call and ask her about this situation. She’ll know a lot more about tax law than a bunch of random people on the internet and will be able to give you better advice on what to do if not all of your paperwork arrives.

 

[LaughingBoy1503]

So you’re going to have a professional prepare your taxes for you? It would be prudent to call and ask her about this situation. She’ll know a lot more about tax law than a bunch of random people on the internet and will be able to give you better advice on what to do if not all of your paperwork arrives.

This is about whether what I was contemplating doing (just filing anyway if my w2s don’t surface so I can get my refund and make a repair on my truck) and whether it is stealing or not, if I don’t report the money from the w2s that I have not gotten yet. Yes, if I want advice on tax law, I will ask a professional who knows about that. That is not what this post is about.

I am just going to wait another week, contacting those old employers until I get answers as to whether they send out the forms or not. If they say yes, no problem. If they say they don’t owe me w2s because I did not earn enough then I will take it to the next level. One company said I will get them this week. Today is the last day of the week and I have not gotten them. The other company never returned my phone call, but I am going call them again next week. I will go about it the right way and make sure I report everything. Even if I have to wait half a year for my refund. I really want to just be honest and unless the IRS itself says “$899.88? Big deal, just file anyway” I will go about it the right way. And I know they are not going to say that

 

[Listener]

I notice that if I file our taxes electronically, I don’t actually need the physical copy of the W-2. Since you know the amounts that should be on it, I think you could file without it, and then work on getting it.

If you ignore it, you may be cheating yourself more than cheating the IRS, if they withheld some money for your income tax.

 

[Publisher]

I just want some opinions on my situation and what I am considering doing.

I worked for 4 different companies last year. I got w2’s from 2 of them already, but am still yet to receive the other 2. I do not have a lot of faith the companies that I have not gotten w2s from yet might have sent them out. So if I don’t get them, I have to file a missing w2 report with the IRS get another form and so fourth and wait several more months to get my tax refund and I am not a rich person. I was hoping to use my refund to make a repair on my truck, which I need for work. It runs, but I need to take it to the shop to find out why my Check Engine light came on a few weeks ago, and I don’t know how much it might cost to fix whatever the problem is.

I am wondering if it would be wrong, if I do not get my w2s from these companies, if I just filed my taxes anyway. This would mean not reporting my the income I made with them but I only made exactly $899.88 total between them. Not including that money, I earned about 28k last year. So including that $899 lets say I really made 29k. Not a lot of money. I did already pay the normal deductions on that income. I am not sure if not reporting that $899.88 would mean I need to pay more taxes, and therefore would get a smaller refund, or if it would mean I paid just a little more taxes than I should have, and would get a bigger refund.

I just really do not want to steal from the government. I know it is a small amount of money anyway and I might just actually be shortchanging my refund but I also do not want to get into the habit of justifying my wrongdoings by calling them insignificant. Any opinions?

I’m not sure it is a matter of stealing since you may get a larger return with the other two incomes reported…but more of a matter of honesty and deceit…you must sign your return attesting that it is accurate and truthful. I guess if you wish to “sell your birthright for a bowl of pottage” that is your choice.

Question…is affixing your name to a document you are affirming is truthful and accurate when you know it is not is being faithful to Truth…only you…and you only are accountable to God.

You have the option of estimating additional incomes if you don’t have the W2’s…you can then sign your good name to a document attesting it is truthful and accurate.

 

[LaughingBoy1503]

I’m not sure it is a matter of stealing since you may get a larger return with the other two incomes reported…but more of a matter of honesty and deceit…you must sign your return attesting that it is accurate and truthful. I guess if you wish to “sell your birthright for a bowl of pottage” that is your choice.

Question…is affixing your name to a document you are affirming is truthful and accurate when you know it is not is being faithful to Truth…only you…and you only are accountable to God.

You have the option of estimating additional incomes if you don’t have the W2’s…you can then sign your good name to a document attesting it is truthful and accurate.

I do not have to “estimate” how much I made. I know exactly how much I made from the two companies that did not give me my w2s. I believe I said that more than once already And if my tax preparer says that I can just report that income anyways without a w2, that would make things a lot easier. But, I believe that would require a different form or something. I am no tax expert.

I most likely would only be shortchanging my own refund. That is why I got it into my mind that it might not matter so such. I don’t care about shortchanging myself a few measly dollars. But anyways, I already decided I am going to go about this the complete honest way and make sure every penny is reported, one way or the other so that there will be no doubt in my mind I was honest. So I actually agree with you. Selling my birthright for a bowl of pottage is kind of extreme when we are talking about maybe shortchanging myself whatever $899.88 more on my report would get me from the government. There, I said the amount a third time