Boxes A and B

• Box A is where the employee's social security number is entered. Employers are required to verify the employee's social security number by using the Social Security Number Verification Service. The service is free for employers to use. If an employee has applied for a social security number but has not received it yet, the employer can state, "applied" in Box A. A penalty is issued by the IRS for any social security number that is entered incorrectly.
  
  Box B is where the entry for the employer's EIN or employer identification number. It is the same number that employers use for filing their federal taxes. Filing for an EIN is done through the IRS. If an employer does not have an EIN in time to file taxes, writing, "Applied for" in Box B is acceptable.
  
  

Boxes C and D

• Box C is for entering the employer's name and address. The name and address should be the same for all federal and state income tax forms. Box D is not required by the IRS. It is for listing individual W-2's.
  
  

Boxes E and F

• Employee names and addresses go in Boxes E and F.Business people image by huaxiadragon from Fotolia.com
  
  Boxes E and F are for the name and address of the employee. The name should be written exactly as it appears on the employee's social security card. The IRS is very specific when it comes to entering the employee's name: first, middle, last. No titles, academic degrees or abbreviations before or after the name are allowed.
  
  

Boxes 1 and 2

• Box 1 of the W-2 form is for all the wages, scholarships, grants, life insurance and other compensations paid to the employee during the year before payroll deductions. Employers must also include any Medicare or Social Security taxes paid for the employee. Not included in this box are: employee contributions to retirement plans.
  
  Box 2 is for the total federal taxes deducted from the employee's income.
  
  

Boxes 3, 4, 5, and 6

• Box 3 is for wages paid to the employee that are subject to social security taxes. Also include any signing bonuses paid to the employee, taxable life insurance, health insurance premiums and health savings account contributions.
  
  Box 4 is for the amount of taxes that were withheld from the employee's wages for social security.
  
  Box 5 is the total taxable Medicare wages. This entry is usually the same as the social security wages in Box 3.
  
  Box 6 gives the total taxes withheld from the employee's wages for Medicare.
  
  

Boxes 7, 8, 9, and 10

• Enter tips in Box 8.serving drinks image by John Keith from Fotolia.com
  
  Box 7 is for reporting any of the employee's social security tips.
  
  Box 8 is for employers who are in the food or beverage business. Report in Box 8 any tips the employee received for tips.
  
  Box 9 is for the amount the employer paid to the employee for the advanced earned income credit.
  
  Box 10 is for the amount paid to the employee for dependent care benefits for daycare services.
  
  Box 11 is for the Social Security Administration to decide if any of the wages reported in Box 3 or 5 were earned in a previous year.
  
  

Box 12 through 20

• Box 12 is for employers to enter any codes used by the IRS that pertain to each employee. The codes are listed on the back of the W-2 form for every type of employee deferment or contribution. The W-2 codes run from A to Z and AA to BB. Detailed descriptions for the W-2 Codes are on the IRS W-2 Instruction sheet.
  
  Check Box 13 for statutory employees who are subject to social security and Medicare taxes but not federal taxes.
  
  Box 14 is for any compensation given to employees for leasing vehicles, state disability insurance, union dues, uniform reimbursement, educational expenses and other allowances.
  
  Boxes 15 through 20 are for any State and local income taxes withheld from the employee's wages.