How W‑2 amounts are determined

Overview

Sage 100 Contractor determines W‑2 amounts using payroll calculations and 2‑Computed and 3‑Posted payroll records.
The system compiles year‑to‑date data from employee records, payroll records, and payroll calculation setup.

How Sage 100 Contractor determines W‑2 amounts

Sage 100 Contractor uses the payroll calculation setup to decide which amounts print in each W‑2 box.
The system gathers year‑to‑date totals from payroll records with a 2‑Computed or 3‑Posted status.
Employee earnings and calculation rows drive taxable wages, taxes withheld, and benefit reporting.

W‑2 box determination details

Box	Description	Determined by
1	Federal taxable wages	YTD unadjusted gross wages, taxable add-ons, minus non‑taxable deductions from 5‑2‑1 Employees.
2	Federal income tax withheld	YTD totals from calculations using Tax Type 5‑Federal Income Tax.
3	Social Security wages	YTD Social Security wages from 5‑2‑1 Employee earnings.
4	Social Security tax withheld	YTD totals from calculations using Tax Type 1‑Employee Social Security.
5	Medicare wages and tips	YTD Medicare wages from 5‑2‑1 Employee earnings.
6	Medicare tax withheld	YTD totals from calculations using Tax Type 2‑Employee Medicare.
7	Social Security tips	Not applicable.
8	Allocated tips	Not applicable.
9	Advance EIC payments	Calculations designated 9 in the W‑2 Box of 5‑3‑1 Payroll Calculations.
10	Dependent care benefits	Calculations designated 10 in the W‑2 Box of 5‑3‑1 Payroll Calculations.
11	Non‑qualified care benefits	Calculations designated 10 in the W‑2 Box of 5‑3‑1 Payroll Calculations.
12	Box 12 codes	Calculations designated 12 in 5‑3‑1 Payroll Calculations, using IRS Box 12 codes.
13	Checkboxes	Retirement and third‑party sick pay are set from the 5‑2‑1 Employees Compensation tab.
14	Other	Calculations designated 14 in the W‑2 Box of 5‑3‑1 Payroll Calculations.
15	State	State selection when printing 5‑4‑3 W‑2s and company State ID from 7‑2 Company Information.
16	State wages, tips, etc.	Amounts from 5‑2‑2 Payroll Records.
17	State income tax	Amounts from 5‑2‑2 Payroll Records.
18	Locality name	Locality from 5‑3‑6 Local Payroll Tax when a District# prints W‑2s.
19	Local wages, tips, etc.	Amounts from 5‑2‑2 Payroll Records.
20	Local income tax	Amounts from 5‑2‑2 Payroll Records.

Reporting considerations

Only payroll records with 2‑Computed or 3‑Posted status affect W‑2 totals.
An incorrect payroll calculation setup causes missing or incorrect W‑2 amounts.
State and local boxes depend on the selection criteria used when printing W‑2s.

More information

For official W‑2 definitions and codes, review the IRS Instructions for Forms W‑2 and W‑3.
An electronic W‑2 example is available at the IRS's website.