In this article, Turbotax recommends correcting Box 4 of the W-2 in the event an employer won't provide a corrected W-2 for excess social security withholding. However, to request a refund of this excess from the IRS, IRS Form 843 requires the original W-2 to prove such excess withholding (among other documentation). I'm in a situation where I cannot get a corrected W-2 or a rebate directly from my employer. I have a single W-2, as this is a PEO, from whom I've earned income from multiple clients.
Thus, this guidance from Turbotax sounds somewhat odd. I understand the reasoning somewhat, as it stands in place of a W-2C, but it still seems strange not to provide the original W-2 info, especially when the IRS requires it for Form 843. Furthermore, I can't seem to corroborate this guidance (to self-correct a W-2) with other sites or articles outside of Turbotax, not even the IRS.
Is this truly a legitimate way of addressing this issue? Are there any external references to this effect? Has anyone done this before and succeeded?
