W2 State Tax Section

[TaxNoob18]

I'm using Turbotax Deluxe desktop edition. I've just entered a W2 from an employer in Texas. I filled it out exactly as the W2 shows:

Box 15 State TX but Employer State ID is blank.

Box 16 State wages, tips etc has some numbers in it.

Box 17 State income tax is blank.

There is no state income tax in Texas. There's a note that says it can only be blank if there is no state income tax. That is all fine and dandy but Turbotax keeps flagging that W2 (need review). It also says that I can't file electronically if it's empty. What should I do?

[DoninGA]

Since Texas does not have a personal income tax, leave boxes 15, 16 and 17 blank (empty) on the TurboTax W-2

[TaxNoob18]

If I leave them blank the entries don't match the entries in the W-2. Is that ok? I'm afraid it will be rejected. I'm asking because I'm a new Texas resident (moved in mid 2025). I've never prepared my income taxes in TX.

The following is what the W-2 shows so I filled them out exactly as shown. That's what Turbotax flags. It says that it needs an employer ID number.

Box 15 State | Employer's state ID number

TX  |

Box 16 State wages, tips etc

$6,970

Box 17 State income tax

[DoninGA]

@TaxNoob18 The IRS does not care about state tax entries on a W-2.

Since there were no state taxes withheld in box 17, there is no reason to have information in boxes 15 and 16.

[TaxNoob18]

Yeah I don't know why the employer's accountant (a small mom & pop restaurant) filled out those boxes when there's no state income tax here. I just blanked them out. I hope there won't be any issues in both Federal and State. Thanks for your help.