CSS - 2016 W-2 doesn't show retirement contributions

If my 2016 W-2 doesn’t show retirement contributions, but I made some (some Roth, some traditional), and my employer at the time also made some, where would I locate and which amounts should be included? All or just the traditional, and mine, or also employer? Thanks.

I am not sure about Roth or traditional since they are after-tax or tax deductible retirement contributions. They might not be listed on the W2.

I know that the pretax 401k contributions we made were listed on the W2 in box 12 with code D.

The fund company will send you a form with your contribution. It may be available for download too.

Thanks. . .for some reason the contributions are not on my W-2 (perhaps because it isn’t/wasn’t being taxed that year). The fund company doesn’t have a summary for 2016 contributions available either, which seems odd, but I can access quarterly statements and add them together. I think the CSS only asks for the tax-deferred contributions, but I will confirm.

@ayl22s

I’m not sure I understand what you mean. You are saying these are tax deferred retirement contributions so those amounts have no tax paid on them in that tax year?

While that is correct…I believe this should have been noted ON you W-2 form.

Did your gross earnings include the amounts you contributed to your tax deferred retirement accounts?

@BelknapPoint something seems “off” here to me!

The W-2 is an employer-produced document. The vast majority of traditional IRA and Roth IRA contributions are made completely independent of an employer. In other words, an employer isn’t going to have any idea if an employee makes these contributions over the course of the year, so there’s no way an employer could include them on a W-2.

Any employee contributions to an employer-sponsored retirement plan will generally be shown in box 12 of the W-2, with the appropriate code letter identifying the specific type of plan.

@ayl22s

Were these retirement account contributions ones your employer withheld from your pay?

Or were these contributions to tax deferred accounts that YOU made yourself?

Just asking to clarify…as @BelknapPoint makes a great point. Contributions you make yourself…would NOT be on an employer based w-2

No, I’m just talking about retirement account contributions withheld from my pay into a 401K (not individual IRA contributions). But the employer did not include the amounts on my 2016 W-2, so I want to be sure to still include the amount I contributed.

@BelknapPoint

So according to post 7, these were retirement contributions withheld by the employer, but not noted on the w-2.

@ayl22s

Do you mean…you want to include the amounts your EMPLOYER withheld…but these amounts your EMPLOYER withheld are not on your 2016 W2 form?

^^^
In that case, it sounds like there was an error in producing the W-2.

Thanks, that’s what I think, so I’m pulling the information to include. Thanks again!

Are you still working at the same place? Can you go to the payroll office…and get this clarified?

Many years ago, I got a W2 and noticed my contributions to my tax deferred account were much less than I thought I had contributed. It turned out…my payroll department had transposed a number on my account…and the money was NOT actually put onto MY account…at all. It was in another person’s account. It took MONTHS to get it all straightened out…but it did get fixed…with me also getting the appropriate interest.

You need to make sure these withdrawals were actually made on your behalf…and if so…I agree with @BelknapPoint an error was made.

It’s also possible you paid taxes on this money in 2016. I’d be checking that too!

I am now not employed by them but just asked for this information. The form also says: “Do not include amounts reported as codes AA, BB, CC, DD, or EE,” so I will try to find out about that as well. I can check the quarterly statements as well, as I am submitting today.

FYI, pretty sure my post tax contributions stay in income, as they aren’t tax deductible.