# Form W-2

*Taxes — Finicade finance glossary*

A W-2 is the annual statement a US employer sends reporting your wages and every tax withheld. Its boxes rarely agree with each other and that's usually correct, not an error: Box 1 excludes pre-tax retirement contributions while Box 3 includes them, because those contributions escape income tax but not Social Security tax. Employers file a copy with the IRS, so the numbers are already known before you file.

**Also known as:** W-2, wage and tax statement

**Related terms:** [Form 1099](https://finicade.com/glossary/form-1099), [Withholding](https://finicade.com/glossary/withholding), [Gross Income](https://finicade.com/glossary/gross-income), [FICA](https://finicade.com/glossary/fica), [Pay Stub](https://finicade.com/glossary/pay-stub)

Source: https://finicade.com/glossary/form-w-2