Form W-2 (wage statement) Box D is called the Control Number field. It is
usually located below or near the Employer's Name and Address.
The
Box D Control Number is a code that uniquely identifies your unique W-2
document in your employer's records. This number is assigned by the
company's payroll processing software, and is needed if attempting to
electronically import your W-2 into a tax software program (like
TurboTax). Please note that not all W-2s (or employers) will
necessarily include or support a Box D Control number. Your alternative
to importing a W-2 document is to simply input the information
manually.
The actual Control Number itself is not necessary in
completing your tax return, unless you wish to import your W-2 into
TurboTax (or other tax software); and it that one instance it is
required. In other words, the W-2 Control Number, whatever it is, will
never increase or decrease your actual tax refund (or your amount owed)
by a single penny.
If you choose to type in your W-2 manually,
rather than importing it electronically, then you should not have to
enter anything from Box D at all, if you do not want to. In fact, you
can simply leave the field blank. The exceptions to that would be if
you are attempting to e-file your return and see some sort of W-2
Control Number related error; or if the program insists on a value
before allowing you to continue. In those cases, we have a TurboTax FAQ
article that can help. We've linked this answer to that FAQ page
below.
We hope this information is useful to your needs. Thanks for asking this important question.
https://ttlc.intuit.com/replies/4417180
