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The Daily Insight

How to correct wrong Social Security number on W-2?

Author

James Craig

Published Mar 01, 2026

Wrong social security number on W-2. you will need to notify your employer and have them file a corrected w-2 with the IRS… Because of this your return may be rejected and you may not be able to e-file. The corrected W-2 is a W-2C and it has to be filed by your payroll department. Print your return and file by mail.

What to do if your form W2 has not been corrected?

If by the end of February, your Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement has not been corrected by your employer after you attempted to have your employer or payer issue a corrected form, you can request that an IRS representative initiate a Form W-2 complaint.

Can a Social Security number not be recorded on a Wage Report?

When the labels are not used and EINs are transcribed from other sources, errors may occur. SSA cannot credit earnings to employee records unless the employee name and Social Security number on the wage report matches the name and number in SSA’s files. (See page 9 for tips on ensuring accurate SSNs are recorded.)

What happens if an employer makes an incorrect social security report?

CORRECTING REPORTING ERRORS SSA and IRS maintain employer records by EIN. Reports received with erroneous EINs may be credited to the wrong record. Either missing or incorrect EINs may result in IRS assessing penalties for failure to file correct reports.

What to do if you make an error on a W-2 form?

Common errors on Form W-2 include incorrect names, Social Security numbers, or amounts. You can correct forms that you sent to employees and filed with the SSA. To create a corrected W-2 after filing, you need to use IRS Form W-2c, Corrected Wage and Tax Statements. You can use Form W-2c to correct a variety of errors on Form W-2, including:

Are there penalties for not filing correct W-2s?

Possible penalties for filing an incorrect W-2 Unfortunately, filing an amended form does not guarantee you’ll walk away penalty-free. You might be subject to penalties if you fail to file a Form W-2 with correct information by January 31. Penalty amounts depend on when you file a corrected W-2 form.

Do you have to use W-2c if Ein was incorrect?

If you filed two forms for an employee under your EIN and the wages on one were incorrect, you’ll also need to use the W-2c form. When it comes to filling out Form W-2c, your first step is to purchase copies of the form.