Keep the statement with you
Use the W-2 for the tax year selected. Tax PreCheck asks you to type amounts; it does not request a copy of the form, your Social Security number, your employer’s identification number or bank information. If you have a corrected statement, resolve which figures replace the earlier statement before entering a total.
Match each amount to its label
The questionnaire labels wages as W-2 Box 1, federal income tax withheld as Box 2, and Medicare wages as Box 5. State and local income-tax withholding use their own fields and instructions. Social Security and Medicare tax deductions are not federal income-tax withholding. Do not copy your take-home pay into a wage field.
Keep you and your spouse separate
Enter each person’s income under their own tab. When adding several statements, keep a written record of which statements are included in the total. State payment rows may require one W-2 per row, including Connecticut and Utah withholding. Read the instructions before combining documents.
Qualified overtime is a separate calculation
For supported 2025 W-2 profiles, enter total pay for overtime hours in Income and the documented eligible FLSA premium in Deductions & credits. The premium is generally only the extra half-time amount required by federal law. A record showing $15,000 of time-and-a-half overtime pay generally corresponds to a $5,000 premium. The questionnaire checks the amount, eligibility and MAGI additions. Separate filing receives no overtime deduction. State and local estimates for these overtime cases are not yet supported.
Stop when the profile does not fit
Tips, unsupported overtime arrangements, self-employment, investment income and other special situations need additional rules beyond this wage-only release. Enter what you know accurately; do not remove a real income category to obtain a number. A missing amount stays unknown and an unsupported estimate stays Not calculated.