The end of the year brings extra deadlines, forms, and the occasional correction. Use this article as your one-stop guide to the dates you need to know, the forms we file for you, other year-end to-dos, and how to fix the most common mistakes.
For a general overview of what to expect during tax season, see What to expect during tax-filing season.
Expand the sections below to find what you need. Use CMD + F (or CTRL + F) to search for a specific term.
A few federal tax rules changed under the One Big Beautiful Bill, and the 2026 forms you file in January 2027 are the first ones they affect.
The 1099-NEC reporting threshold went up. For tax year 2026, the IRS threshold is $2,000, up from $600. Reporting contractor payments under $2,000 is optional. We still file a 1099-NEC for every contractor you paid through Gusto, so your contractors can file quickly and accurately.
New deductions apply to tips and overtime. These change what your team can deduct, not what you file. For 2026, we report qualified overtime on the W-2 in Box 12 under code TT, and we collect an occupation code for everyone who earns tips.
For the full picture, see The One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB or OB3) Act.
Here are the federal and state forms we typically file on your behalf for the 2026 tax year.
Form
What it reports
IRS Form 940
Your company's federal unemployment tax return for the year.
IRS Form 944
Your company's annual federal tax return, if you file annually instead of quarterly.
IRS Form W-2
Wages and tax withholding for each employee.
IRS Form 1099-NEC
Payments to each contractor you paid through Gusto. For tax year 2026 the IRS threshold is $2,000 (it was $600 for 2025), but we file a 1099-NEC for every contractor you paid, even below the threshold, so your contractors can file quickly and accurately.
State annual reconciliation
Your state's annual reconciliation return, filed if your state does not require quarterly returns.
State W-2
Wages and tax withholding for each employee, filed with your state.
We also prepare Form W-3 and Form 1096 for you. Learn how to download Form W-3 and Form 1096. For the full picture, you can also view every form Gusto files for you.
If your company has 50 or more full-time equivalent employees and Gusto manages your health benefits, you may also need Form 1095-C and its cover sheet, Form 1094-C, to report the health coverage you offered. See company tax forms for health insurance to find out which forms apply to you.
Review these items before Dec 31st.
This includes any pay that may have been processed outside Gusto, like bonuses or wages from before you switched to us. Run a year-to-date report to check your totals, then report any non-Gusto payroll or run an off-cycle payroll to add anything missing. Gaps and inaccuracies in wages lead to incorrect W-2s and 1099s and the need for amended forms.
Run the Contractor information report to check names, addresses, and other details, and the Contractor payments report to check total payments for the year. Update anything that is wrong, and record any missing payments, before your 1099s are final.
Health insurance, 401(k), and other benefit contributions, both employee and some employer amounts, get reported on your team’s W-2s and affect your company’s tax filings. Check your totals in the benefit deduction report, payroll journal report, or year-to-date report, and process a benefit correction if anything needs fixing before your last payroll of the year.
This applies to any company with a 2% or greater S-corp shareholder. If a shareholder’s status has changed or their health insurance was taxed incorrectly, update their 2% shareholder status and fix past benefit amounts before your last payroll of the year.
Answer the annual tax questionnaire as soon as we ask for it. This is also where you report special compensation, like relocation expenses, dependent care benefits, allocated tips, SEP and Roth SIMPLE IRA contributions, and QSEHRA reimbursements, so it is reflected accurately on your team's W-2s.
We calculate overtime automatically for payrolls run through Gusto. If you paid overtime or double-time outside of Gusto this year, enter the overtime premium when you confirm your annual tax information so it is reflected correctly on your team's W-2s.
If you gave anyone a taxable fringe benefit this year, like a company car or a gift card, add it before your last payroll of the year so it shows up correctly on their W-2.
If you pay a minister or clergy member a housing allowance, confirm it is set up correctly before your last payroll of the year so it shows up correctly on their W-2.
If anyone exercised non-statutory stock options this year, report the exercise before your last payroll of the year so it shows up correctly on their W-2.
Gusto automatically stops contributions once someone hits the annual limit, so you do not need to track the limits yourself. Confirm your team's running totals, and review deferral rate changes and pay-date timing before your last payroll of the year. See Understand 401(k) contribution timing at year-end below for the details.
If your plan renews on Jan 1, renew your company's health benefits in Gusto to keep coverage active without a gap.
Want more detail on how Gusto keeps you compliant? See IRS compliance and Gusto, or contact us.
This applies to any 401(k) you run through Gusto payroll — a plan Gusto manages, a plan with another provider, or manual deductions you set up yourself. Contribution timing follows the paycheck's pay date, not when the work was done.
A contribution counts for the year the paycheck is dated. Payrolls dated January 1 or later count toward the next plan year, no matter when the work was done.
Deferral rate changes have to be saved before the payroll runs. A change saved after you run payroll applies to the next paycheck, not that one. If Gusto manages your plan, your team changes their rate in Gusto. If it is with another provider, they change it there. For manual deductions, update the employee’s deduction yourself under People > Benefits > Edit.
Bonus pay counts toward the annual limit. Bonus payments are not excluded from 401(k) contributions, even when they are paid in a separate payroll.
Nobody can go over the annual limit through Gusto payroll. The IRS limit is built into Gusto, which stops the deduction automatically once it is reached. If you have employees aged 50 or older, make sure the catch-up limit is selected in your plan details, or their deductions will stop at the standard limit. Gusto can only count what it collected, so tracking contributions made outside Gusto, like at a previous job, is up to the employee.
If Gusto manages your 401(k), you have plan-level year-end tasks too. See Before year-end for company information and final employer contributions, and When the new year begins for compensation reporting and corrections. If your plan is with another provider, see Connect an existing 401(k) to Gusto for what Gusto does and does not handle.
This calendar covers the 2026 tax year, which you file at the start of 2027.
The check date, not the date you submit payroll, decides which tax year your wages count toward. Direct deposit needs lead time, so submitting your last payroll on Dec 30 does not guarantee a 2026 check date. Check the deadlines below for your payroll speed, and confirm the check date before you submit your last payroll of the year.
Date
What happens
Nov 19, 2026
Draft 2026 W-2s and 1099-NECs appear in your Documents section so admins can review them for mistakes before we finalize them. Your team will not see these drafts, only the final forms once filed.
Dec 24, 2026
Last day for weekly (4-day) payroll customers to run a regular payroll with a 2026 check date.
Dec 25, 2026
Gusto's phone lines are closed for the winter holiday (chat and email available).
Dec 29, 2026
Last day for 2-day payroll customers to run a regular payroll with a 2026 check date.
Dec 30, 2026
Last day to run a next-day direct deposit payroll with a 2026 check date. Your account needs next-day approval or an expedite request on file.
Jan 1, 2027
Gusto's phone lines are closed for New Year's Day (chat and email available).
Jan 3, 2027
Last day to submit an off-cycle payroll dated in 2026, and the deadline to make changes to 2026 payroll in your Gusto account.
Jan 3, 2027
Deadline for us to make final changes to your 2026 payroll. Changes requested after this date may need amended forms.
Jan 12, 2027
Final 2026 W-2s and 1099-NECs become available in Documents and in your team's individual Gusto accounts.
Jan 26, 2027
Deadline to place mail orders for paper W-2s and 1099-NECs for any employees or contractors who do not have online access to Gusto or who requested paper forms. Place your order by 10 am PT on this date to guarantee a postmark by Feb 1, 2027.
Feb 1, 2027
The IRS deadline to file Forms W-2 and W-3 with the Social Security Administration, whether you file on paper or electronically. Filing late can lead to IRS penalties.
If your team already has online access to Gusto, they can view and download their own forms. You can skip the mail order deadline above for anyone who already has online access.
Once we file your final forms, your team can view and download their W-2s or view and download their 1099-NECs in their own Gusto accounts. You can also distribute W-2s or distribute 1099-NECs yourself.
If you have questions about a deadline above or need to change your payroll processing speed before year-end, contact us.
You are required to distribute Form W-2s to employees and Form 1099-NECs to contractors by the end of January. We make final forms available by mid-January and email your team when they are ready.
You can choose how to deliver copies:
Let Gusto mail them — Place your order by Jan 23 so we can postmark forms by the IRS deadline.
Mail them yourself — Download and print copies to send.
Download the employer packet — Print and hand out forms in person.
Deliver them electronically — This requires your team member's consent.
No matter which option you choose, we also email your team so they can access their forms in their Gusto account. You do not need special paper stock to print and distribute forms.
See Distribute W-2s to your employees and Distribute 1099-NEC forms to your contractors for full details, including how to help your team access their forms directly.
Catch mistakes as soon as you find them. The longer an error sits, the harder it is to fix.
Waiting until the end of the year to fix a mistake can turn a small error into a bigger problem. You may need to refile prior quarters, tax payments can end up late or missing, and your employees can receive an incorrect W-2. Review your payroll information throughout the year, and fix problems as soon as you find them.
Here is how to handle the most common mistakes.
Wrong name or Social Security number on a W-2 — Fix this before your W-2s are final. If we already filed them, correct the W-2 and generate a W-2c.
Wrong payment amount on a 1099-NEC — You can correct a 1099-NEC or stop a filing.
A worker is set up as the wrong type — If someone should be an employee instead of a contractor, or the other way around, change their employment type as soon as you notice the mistake. This affects which forms we file for them.
Wages recorded in the wrong category — For example, commission recorded as regular wages. Contact us if this affects your tax forms. The fix depends on your specific situation.
Need help with something else? Search our help center or contact us.
If you manage clients through Gusto Pro, you are often completing these end-of-year tasks on behalf of several companies at once. Make sure you verify wage totals, benefit totals, 2% shareholder status, annual tax information, special compensation, and 401(k) contribution totals for every client you manage, not just your own firm's account.
Each client needs to complete their own annual tax questionnaire, including reporting any special compensation like relocation expenses, stock options, or minister housing allowances. Confirm each client has completed theirs so their W-2s come out accurate.
Work through the items in this guide, like wage and benefit totals, 2% shareholder status, annual tax information, and 401(k) contributions, separately for each client account. You can switch between client accounts from your Gusto Pro dashboard without signing in and out of each one. Learn how in Manage client accounts (for Gusto Pro Accountants).
S-corp shareholder benefit corrections apply to any company with a 2% or greater shareholder, so check this for every client with one. If a 2% shareholder's health insurance contributions need updating before year-end, you can adjust their S-corp benefits right from your Gusto Pro dashboard. Learn how in Manage client accounts (for Gusto Pro Accountants).
Sometimes a client wants to run a payroll with a specific income tax withholding amount, rather than what their team member's W-4 elections would normally calculate, often to cover an upcoming tax liability. As the accountant on the account, you can override an employee's federal and state income tax withholding when you run a regular, off-cycle, or bonus payroll. Learn how in Override income tax withholding (for accountants).
Each client is responsible for distributing final W-2s and 1099-NECs to their own team, so check in with them about which delivery method they are using and by when. See Distribute W-2s to your employees and Distribute 1099-NEC forms to your contractors for the deadlines and delivery options.
Gusto Partners can download quarterly tax packages and end-of-year W-2 and 1099 forms for all clients at once, instead of signing in to each account separately. Learn how in Manage client accounts (for Gusto Pro Accountants).
A couple of tasks carry over into January. Take care of these once the new year begins.
Update your SUI rates and deposit schedules — States issue new state unemployment insurance (SUI) rates and deposit schedules at the start of the year. As soon as you get your notice, update your rate in Gusto so your tax deposits stay accurate.
Confirm new benefit deduction amounts take effect — If your team made new elections during open enrollment, or your plan renewed with new rates, check that the updated deduction amounts show up correctly on your first payroll of the new year. If you administer any benefit deductions yourself, you will need to update those deduction amounts yourself.
Still have questions? Search our help center or contact us below.
To contact us, sign in to your Gusto account and click the help icon in the top-right corner of the page.