Correct a W-2 in Gusto (for admins)
This article is for admins who need to correct an employee’s W-2 in Gusto. It covers every correction type, whether you can fix it yourself, and how long it takes.
If an employee’s W-2 has incorrect information, you can sometimes take action in Gusto to get a corrected Form W-2c faster. We do not charge extra to correct a W-2.
Before you start
We can only create a corrected W-2c if we filed the original W-2 and the correction is less than two years old. If we did not file the original W-2, or if it is more than two years old, work with your previous payroll provider or a CPA to fix the form.
A corrected W-2c will only show the changes — most boxes will be blank. This is normal.
If you’re an employee (not an admin), learn how to update your W-4, which affects your W-2 tax withholdings.
Find your situation — what to do and how long it takes
Use this table to identify your correction type, whether you can fix it yourself in Gusto, and the expected timeline. Click any link in the last column to jump to step-by-step instructions — the section will expand automatically.
What’s incorrect on the W-2
Can you fix it in Gusto?
Timeline
Go to section
Employee legal name — W-2 is still a Draft
✅ Yes — update name in Gusto
~2 business days
Employee legal name — W-2 already Filed
⚠️ Partial — update name, then contact us for W-2c
Varies
Social Security number (SSN) — W-2 is still a Draft
✅ Yes — update SSN in Gusto
~2 business days
Social Security number (SSN) — W-2 already Filed
✅ Yes — update SSN, we create W-2c automatically
~1 week
Work address / incorrect state tax withholding
⚠️ Partial — fix address first, then contact us
Varies
Home address (no wage or tax impact)
✅ Yes — update address in Gusto. No W-2c needed.
~2 business days for W-2 draft update
Benefit deductions or employer contributions
✅ Yes — submit a benefit correction request in Gusto
Varies — we’ll email you when W-2c is ready
Special compensation (Boxes 8, 10, 12, 13, 14)
✅ Yes — via Quick links in Taxes & Compliance
Varies — we’ll email you when W-2c draft is ready
Missing employee wages
✅ Yes — run Payroll Journal report, then report missed payroll
Varies — we’ll create a W-2c if year already filed
Incorrect tax exemptions
⚠️ Partial — verify in app, then contact us
Varies
Company name, address, FEIN, or state tax account number
⚠️ Partial — most company-info changes do not trigger a W-2c. See rules.
—
W-4 election changes
❌ No — W-4 changes don’t generate a W-2c
—
Something else
⚠️ Contact us — we need to review for tax implications
Varies
Learn more about each scenario by clicking the dropdowns below.
When you view an employee’s W-2 in Gusto, you’ll see a status that tells you where it is in the filing process. The status determines what correction actions are available to you.
Status
What it means
Can you make changes?
Draft
The W-2 is being prepared and has not been filed yet.
Yes — you can still make changes
Filed on [date]
The W-2 was electronically submitted to the IRS and applicable state agencies on the date shown. Filing is complete.
No — corrections require a W-2c
W-2c available
A corrected W-2 has been generated and is available for the employee to view in their Gusto account.
—
Note: Employees can only see final W-2s, not drafts. They’ll receive an email when their final forms are ready, typically in mid-to-late January.
You can fix name and SSN errors directly in Gusto. What happens next depends on whether the W-2 is still a Draft or has already been Filed.
For name changes
Update the employee’s name — what happens next depends on when you make the change:
If you update the name before we finalize W-2s (while in Draft):
We’ll automatically create the updated W-2s within two business days, and you can review them.
Employees can only see final W-2s (not drafts). They’ll get an email when final forms are ready — typically mid-to-late January.
If you update the name after we finalize W-2s (status: Filed):
We need to create a corrected W-2c. Contact us after you update the name.
Employees who receive a W-2c should follow the employee filing advice below.
For SSN changes
Update the employee’s SSN — what happens next depends on when you make the change:
If you update the SSN before we finalize W-2s (while in Draft):
We’ll automatically create the updated W-2s within two business days, and you can review them.
Employees can only see final W-2s (not drafts). They’ll get an email when final forms are ready — typically mid-to-late January.
If you update the SSN after we finalize W-2s (status: Filed):
We’ll automatically create a federal W-2c, available in the employee’s profile within the next week. We’ll email you and the employee when it’s ready.
Employees who receive a W-2c should follow the employee filing advice below.
Note: We create W-2c forms for the last two years if you paid the employee through Gusto during that time. If the SSN change is only for the previous year, we need to cancel the other W-2c forms.
State-specific rules for SSN corrections
State W-2 amendments and unemployment filing amendments for SSN changes only apply to certain states.
Correction type
States where Gusto handles the amendment
All other states
State W-2 amendment (SSN changes)
Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, New Jersey, Utah, Virginia
You need to amend the state-specific W-2 outside of Gusto.
Unemployment filing amendment (SSN changes)
Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Mississippi, New Mexico, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming
Contact your state unemployment agency directly to notify them and resolve the incorrect SSN.
If an employee worked in a different state than the one listed as their work address in Gusto (for part or all of the year), we probably withheld the wrong state taxes. You need to correct some information in Gusto before we can create a corrected W-2c.
Note: We do not create a corrected W-2c if the address change does not affect wages or taxes. If wages and taxes stay the same, no W-2c is needed.
To fix incorrect state tax withholding:
Follow the instructions to add or correct the employee’s work address.
Reminder: Before adding a work address in a new state, add it as a company address first and register in the new state.
Make sure the employee’s correct address and relocation dates are updated in their profile.
Contact us to tell us which employee you updated and ask for a corrected W-2c. If you had trouble adding an address or relocation date, include that information when you reach out.
Once our team makes the corrections, we’ll add a draft of the corrected W-2c to the employee’s profile and email you and the employee when it’s ready. Employees should follow the employee filing advice below.
A home address correction usually does not require a W-2c — it only updates the draft form. You or the employee can make this change directly in Gusto.
Admins: update the employee’s home address.
Employees: update their own address.
We’ll update W-2 draft forms with the new address within two business days.
Note: We do not create a corrected W-2c if the address change does not affect wages or taxes. If wages and taxes stay the same, no W-2c is needed.
You can submit benefit corrections directly in Gusto. We’ll automatically create a W-2c if the changes impact year-end filings.
Submit a benefit correction request.
We’ll automatically create a ticket for our team to review and process.
We’ll generate a corrected Form W-2c if the changes impact year-end filings.
Remind employees to follow the employee filing advice below if they receive a W-2c.
Once our team makes the corrections, we’ll add a draft of the corrected W-2c to the employee’s profile and email you and the employee when it’s ready.
Common reasons for incorrect wages or taxes on a W-2 include missing employee wages and incorrect tax exemptions. Follow the steps for your situation below.
Understanding Box 1 (Wages, tips, other compensation): Box 1 reflects total taxable wages for the year. If this amount looks wrong, it could be due to missing or extra payroll runs, incorrect pre-tax benefit deductions (which reduce Box 1), over- or under-reported tips, or incorrect tax exemption settings. Before contacting us, run a Payroll Journal report for the full year to verify total wages against the W-2 amount. If there’s a discrepancy, contact us with the employee’s name, the amount shown on the W-2 vs. what you believe is correct, and the Payroll Journal report showing the discrepancy.
Missing employee wages — what to do
Find out what wages are missing and when they were missed by running a Payroll Journal report in Gusto. This report shows a summary of wages and can be filtered by year.
Once you know the date of the missing wages, report the missed payrolls in Gusto. See our article for step-by-step instructions on how to enter a missed payroll.
We’ll automatically create a ticket for our team to review. If the missed wages are from a year we already generated W-2s for, we’ll create a corrected W-2c.
Fix tax exemptions
If you need to correct employee tax exemptions, follow these steps:
Go to People.
Find the employee and click their name to view their profile.
From the Taxes tab, scroll to the bottom to view the tax exemptions for the employee.
If something is incorrect, contact us and include:
The employee’s name
What the employee is exempt from or not exempt from
The start and end dates of the exemptions (if applicable)
Any supporting documents the employee has (such as exemption documents or emails from agencies)
Once our team makes the corrections, we’ll add a draft of the corrected W-2c to the employee’s profile and email you and the employee when it’s ready. Employees should follow the employee filing advice below.
If your issue is not listed in any section of this article, contact us — we need to review the correction for tax implications.
We fill in Boxes 12, 13, and 14 automatically when a benefit is included in Gusto payroll. If a benefit was not included in payroll and you need to report it, admins can update these box amounts directly in Gusto. You can correct the following special compensation types for the last calendar year:
Allocated tips (Box 8) — covers tips allocated by the employer that were not reported by the employee. If tips were reported incorrectly through payroll and appear in Box 1 (wages) instead, that requires a wage correction — see the Incorrect wages or tax exemptions section. Contact us if you are unsure which applies.
Child and dependent care (Box 10)
Non-taxable housing allowance — issued as a reimbursement. For minister’s housing allowance, see this article.
Nontaxable moving expenses
Exercised Non-Qualified Stock Options (NSOs)
Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Arrangement (QSEHRA)
Untracked health insurance
Retirement plan
Statutory employee
Third-party sick pay
Overtime paid outside of Gusto — see our article on confirming annual wage and tax information for details.
Note: Making changes to special compensation boxes will not update any other box on the W-2.
How to update special compensation for the last calendar year
Go to Taxes & Compliance.
Under Quick links, select Update [202X] W-2 special compensation. You may need to click Overview first if you don’t see Quick links on the main page.
Note: Between December 2nd and January 8th, you can only update special compensation for the current year. If you need to make changes for last year during this window, contact us.
Enter the correct amounts for each employee. If you do not need to update a box, leave it blank.
Confirm all amounts are correct, then click Submit.
Once you submit, we’ll email you and the employee when a draft of the corrected W-2c is available in the employee’s profile. Employees should follow the employee filing advice below.
Most company information changes do not trigger a W-2c. Review the rules below before contacting us.
Admins can learn how to update company details in this article.
Company info change
Will Gusto create a W-2c?
Notes
Company name only
No
Exception: If another correction already requires a W-2c and your company name was updated, the W-2c will reflect the new name.
Company name too long / cut off on form
No — and we cannot fix this
As long as the FEIN is correct, there are no tax problems.
Missing state tax account number only
No
Example: A W-2 was filed with a missing California state tax account number. We will not create a W-2c to add it.
We do not create a corrected W-2c if an employee changes their W-4 elections. The employee will reconcile prior-year taxes when they file their personal tax return.
We apply W-4 changes on the next payroll run, whether you or the employee makes the change.
Additional reference
Gusto will not create a corrected W-2c for the following situations:
Company name change only — We don’t create a W-2c solely for a company name change. Exception: if another correction already requires a W-2c and your company name was also updated, the W-2c will reflect the new name.
Long company name cut off on form — We cannot fix this. As long as the FEIN is correct, there are no tax problems.
Missing state tax account number only — For example: a W-2 was filed with a missing California state tax account number. We will not create a W-2c to add it.
Home or work address change with no wage or tax impact — If the address change does not affect wages or taxes, no W-2c is needed.
W-4 election changes — We do not create a W-2c if an employee changes their W-4 elections. The employee reconciles prior-year taxes when they file their personal tax return. W-4 changes apply on the next payroll run.
How to contact Gusto Support: Sign in to your Gusto account and click the help icon 
in the top-right corner of the page. All “contact us” references throughout this article use this same method.
Advice for employees receiving a corrected W-2c: Employees should wait to file their taxes until they have both the original W-2 and the corrected W-2c. If they already filed, they need to update their tax return with the corrected information.
If you’re looking for help with a 1099-NEC correction instead, check out this article.