2018 Untaxed Relo Bonus in my 2019 W-2

[amozfil]

Received a relo bonus (untaxed) in 12/2018.

Employer’s 2018 W-2 didn't include this bonus (nor any 1099 etc), so we added it to our 2018 tax return as “additional income” & paid the taxes on this untaxed bonus.

However, Employer’s 2019 W-2 has included this relo bonus from 12/2018, as part of my total gross 2019 income.

What is the best way to fix this?

1. Request a new 2019 W-2 from employer?
2. If we don’t get a new or modified W-2, do we have to file an amended tax return for 2018, OR
3. Is there anywhere on my 1040 for 2019 filing that should exclude this 2018 bonus as part of of my 2019 gross amount?

tia!

[DianeC958]

The best way to correct this is to file an amended return for 2018 and take off the relocation bonus since it was not included in your W-2 income and is being included for 2019.

Please follow the link below for instructions on how to amend 2018 tax return

Link to amend prior year taxes using TurboTax.

[amozfil]

Thanks.  

Additional questions:

1. If we amend our 2018 this year, does it matter if we file the amended first before we file our 2019 return (besides (or assuming) it will expedite getting back the taxes we paid for the bonus processed earlier)?

2. How long does it usually take to receive back the taxes we paid for the untaxed relo bonus once we file an amended 2018?

[CatinaT1]

You do not need to wait on filing your 2019 since you are needing to amend 2018.

Allow 8-12 weeks for processing.

See this TurboTax FAQ for help with amending.

You can check the status of your amended return here, but allow 3 weeks after filing for it to show up.