topic Re: Copy+Paste not working in Form W-2 in Get your taxes done using TurboTax

Copy+Paste not working in Form W-2

jreiser3 — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 06:43:12 GMT

In TurboTax Premier 2022, Copy+Paste is not working in Form W-2. For instance, I want to copy Box1 (wages) to Box3 (Social Security wages). Selecting text (left button down, drag , left button up) highlights it as expected, but Copy does not work: Right button does not bring up the context menu to choose Copy, and invoking Edit from the top menu bar does not allow Copy to be choosen. Also, I cannot Paste text (selected and Copied while in Notepad) into TurboTax: Paste operation cannot be chosen from context menu nor top menu bar. (This is on PC, WinPerRelease022.000.0239 of 11/21/2022.)

Re: Copy+Paste not working in Form W-2

DoninGA — Tue, 22 Nov 2022 20:10:17 GMT

Copy using Ctrl+C

Paste using Ctrl+V

Re: Copy+Paste not working in Form W-2

Critter-3 — Tue, 22 Nov 2022 21:55:18 GMT

FYI ...

1) 2022 W-2 forms are not issued until January 2023. Do not use the info on the last pay stub as it may not be correct and if you do make sure you review it against the actual W-2 form once issued.

2) there is nothing stopping you from simply entering the data in each box manually

Re: Copy+Paste not working in Form W-2

jreiser3 — Fri, 25 Nov 2022 15:09:17 GMT

1) I'm forecasting: use F8 to mark a field as Estimated; TT gladly finds the next Error during a review.

2) The previous answer (Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V) is much better than re-typing. I have hundreds of fields to copy. I use TT2021 throughout the year to prepare an estimated 2022 return, updating YTD and forecasting the rest of the year via Itemization (Ctrl+I). With several jobs, stock+bond trades, gambling win+lose, pandemic payments, etc., it is essentially necessary to do this. In fact, my biggest gripe against TT is that it is impossible to import the *DATA* from this estimated return into TT 2022.

Re: Copy+Paste not working in Form W-2

Critter-3 — Fri, 25 Nov 2022 15:21:54 GMT

@jreiser3

If you are using the 2021 downloaded program then you don't need to change every field in a test return ... use the What If tool instead.

This is my mini version of a tutorial that should be in the downloaded program:

What is Forms Mode?

Forms Mode lets you view and make changes to your tax forms "behind the scenes."

If you're adventurous, you can even prepare your return in Forms Mode, but we don't recommend it. You may miss obscure credits and deductions you qualify for, and you may forget to report things that will come back and haunt you later.

Forms Mode is exclusively available in the TurboTax CD/Download software. It is not available in TurboTax Online.

Related Information:

If you want to play around with different figures and tax scenarios without affecting your original return you can ….

>>>In the TurboTax CD/Download software by creating a test copy:
1. Open your return in TurboTax.
2. From the File menu, choose Save As.
3. Give the copy a new name to distinguish it from the original (for example, by adding "Test" or "Example" to the file name).
4. Click Save. You are now safely working in the test copy and anything you do here will not affect the original.
https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1900642-how-to-make-a-test-copy-of-your-return

>> use the WHAT IF tool:
- Click Forms Icon (upper right of screen) or Ctrl 2 (forms view)
- Click on the Open Form Icon
- In the “Type a form name.” area type What-If (with the dash), click on the name of the worksheet - click on Open Form
- You will see the worksheet on the right side of the screen; enter the information right into the form
- To get back to interview mode - click on the Step-by-Step Icon (upper right of screen) or Ctrl 1

Once you have filed successfully … you can shut off the auto updater function and then save the return & .taxfile.

For Windows, up in the top menu, you can set the "Updater Preferences" to "Always Ask" or more commonly set to "I don't have an internet connection" (even if you do), and then you are not forced to update....and can manually force an update when you choose to do so. And then you can open the file(s) at any time with no forced upgrade.

But that's the Windows software.....not a MAC. For a MAC you cannot turn off the auto updater HOWEVER you can simply disconnect from the internet before opening the tax return.

It's always a good idea to make a backup copy of your tax data file, in case your original gets lost or corrupted. Here's how:

From the File menu in the upper-left corner of TurboTax, choose Save As (Windows) or Save (Mac).
Browse to where you want to save your backup.
- Tip: If you're saving to a portable device, save it to your computer first to prevent data corruption. Then, after completing Step 4, copy or move the backup file to your device.
In the File name field, enter a name that will distinguish it from the original tax file (for example, add "Backup" or "Copy" to the file name)
Click Save and then close TurboTax.
Restart TurboTax and open the backup copy to make sure it's not corrupted. If you get an error, delete the backup and repeat these steps.

If you make changes to your original tax return file, repeat these steps to ensure your original and backup copies are in-synch.

Related Information:

AND save it as a PDF so you have access to a copy even if you don’t have the program still installed and operational :

AND protect the files :

How can I protect the tax files on my computer?

*** Other clues to the downloaded program ***

In the forms mode ... double click or right click on a box on a form to data source it ... sadly it doesn't work on all boxes.

What's the meaning of all the different colors in Forms Mode?

When you look at an onscreen tax form using Forms Mode, you might wonder why one figure is blue and the one next to it is red or black.

These colors indicate the source of that data.

Color	Meaning
Blue	You entered this data, either in the interview or Forms Mode.
Black	The program entered this data or calculated this amount.
Red	This data has either been overridden or is invalid (for example, a ZIP code that doesn't exist).
Red italics	You marked this amount as estimated.
Black italics	The program calculated this amount from an amount you marked as estimated.
Purple	This information has supporting details.
Aquamarine	This data was transferred over from last year.
Green	This data was imported from Quicken or QuickBooks.
Yellow fields (Windows)	Yellow fields allow user input. Anything you enter here shows up in blue.

Re: Copy+Paste not working in Form W-2

VolvoGirl — Fri, 25 Nov 2022 15:24:37 GMT

So you have both 2021 and 2022 open? And trying to copy a cell from 2021 into 2022? Seems like a pain. Wouldn't it be easy just to print out the 2021 return and type the amounts into 2022 as you go along?

Re: Copy+Paste not working in Form W-2

Critter-3 — Fri, 25 Nov 2022 15:31:20 GMT

And no program will let you import prior year test info ... they only let you transfer the prior year filed return.

Use the what if tool for tax planning the next year's taxes.

Re: Copy+Paste not working in Form W-2

jreiser3 — Fri, 25 Nov 2022 16:48:58 GMT

Yes, I have both TT'21 and TT'22 (PC download) open with no display overlap on a wide-screen monitor. It is much more reliable to Copy+Paste than to re-type, because Copy guarantees no typos. For numerical amounts or if a field has only one "word", then double-click anywhere in the field will select it, so it can be faster. Multi-word text fields still require {Left button down, sweep, Left buffon up} but this might still be faster than re-type.

Re: Copy+Paste not working in Form W-2

jreiser3 — Fri, 25 Nov 2022 17:03:56 GMT

Thank you for the pointer to What If mode. But I still need to import the data into TT'22, for which your (Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V) tip is the best so far.

Re: Copy+Paste not working in Form W-2

jeepien — Wed, 19 Apr 2023 02:19:10 GMT

There is nothing stopping Intuit from fixing their **bleep** bugs.