W-2 Kits and W-3 Transmittal Forms
Two deadlines, both 31 January: employees must have their copies, and Copy A must be with the Social Security Administration. Missing either carries penalties, so order early enough that a delivery problem is not your problem.
Read This Before You Order
If your dealership files 10 or more information returns in total, counting W-2s together with 1099s and other information returns, you are required to file electronically rather than on paper. The threshold is an aggregate across form types, not 10 of each.
For a dealership with 25 employees, that means the Copy A and W-3 portions of these kits will not be what you file with the SSA. You still need the kit, because employees must be furnished their copies, and unless they have consented to electronic delivery those go out on paper in envelopes.
A waiver from electronic filing can be requested on IRS Form 8508. Confirm your own position with your accountant before deciding how to file, since this is your obligation rather than ours to determine.
Which Kit
Choose by how many copies your state and locality require.
The 4-part kit covers federal copies, with premium laser forms and double window envelopes for 25 employees. Suitable where there is no state income tax withholding to report.
The 6-part kit adds state and local copies, and includes W-3 transmittal forms.
The 8-part kit carries federal, state and city copies plus W-3 transmittals, for dealerships in jurisdictions with city-level withholding.
The 6-Part Is Usually Better Value Than the 4-Part
Worth two minutes of arithmetic. The 4-part kit does not include W-3 transmittal forms. If you are paper filing, you need those, and bought separately they cost more than the gap between the 4-part and 6-part kits.
So unless you only need four parts and already hold W-3 stock, the 6-part kit costs less in total and includes more. Buy the 4-part only when you are certain the extra copies are surplus.
W-3 Transmittal Forms
Form W-3 is the Transmittal of Wage and Tax Statements, required to accompany paper Copy A forms filed with the SSA. One W-3 summarises all paper Copy A forms for a single company.
Order W-3 forms separately if you bought a 4-part kit, are topping up an existing supply, or need spares. If you are e-filing, the W-3 data goes with the electronic submission rather than on paper.
Count Everyone You Employed, Not Your Current Headcount
The most common ordering mistake in this category. You need a W-2 for every person who worked for you during the year, including anyone who left in February, seasonal detailers, and part-time lot staff.
Dealerships routinely order to current headcount and come up short in the last week of January, which is the worst possible week to discover it. Count from payroll records for the full year, then add a margin for spoiled sheets, because a misfeed costs you a form.
Order in Time
Kits sell fastest in January, which is exactly when you need them. Ordering in November or early December costs nothing extra and removes the risk entirely.
If you are reading this close to the deadline, call us rather than ordering online and hoping. We will tell you honestly what can reach you in time.
Related Tax and Payroll Supplies
See 1099 kits and 1096 transmittal for contractors and other payees, and remember those count toward the same 10-return threshold. Browse all tax forms.
For the records behind the numbers, see work and employee time cards, employment forms and supplies, and car dealership accounting forms. For mailing, see custom printed envelopes.
