Reconcile Line 1 with Box 1

[8243]

There is a discrepancy between Line 1 on 1040 and Box 1 on W2 that I cannot reconcile.  On the W2 there are codes and amounts on boxes 12 and 14. No combination of numbers shown in those boxes matches the discrepancy between Line 1 and Box 1.  Why?

[rjs]

The amounts in W-2 boxes 12 and 14 probably have nothing to do with the discrepancy. Is the amount on Form 1040 line 1 higher or lower than the amount in W-2 box 1? If the Form 1040 amount is higher, there are a number of different kinds of income that get added into the wages on line 1 of your Form 1040, but do not come from W-2 box 1. Many, but not all, of these types of added wage income are indicated by an abbreviation and amount shown to the left of the total wages on line 1. Do you have an abbreviation to the left of the amount on line 1? The most common of these are the following.

SCH - Taxable scholarship income
HSH - Wages earned as a household employee but not reported on a W-2
DCB - Taxable dependent care benefits from W-2 box 10

Some other types of income that might be added into line 1, without an abbreviation, are the following.

- Tips that you did not report to your employer.
- Allocated tips from W-2 box 8.
- Disability payments from a pension plan from Form 1099-R with distribution code 3 in box 7, if you are below the minimum retirement age for the plan.
- A corrective distribution or return of excess contributions from a retirement plan, from Form 1099-R with distribution code 8 in box 7.

If you are using the CD or download TurboTax software, go to forms mode and open the Wages, Salaries, & Tips Worksheet. It will show you everything that is included in line 1, and where it comes from, including all of the possibilities mentioned above. In TurboTax Online the only way to see the worksheet is to print your tax return with all forms and worksheets.

[MarilynG1 · Accepted solution]

Type 'w2' in the Search area, then click on 'Jump to w2'.  On the W-2 Summary Page, you can see if more than one W-2 was entered, or a W-2 was entered twice. 

Box 14 entries are informational only, and don't affect your tax return.

Box 12 may show information about your Retirement Plan, HSA, or Employer Insurance, but these amounts should already be reflected in your W-2, Box 1.

Once you have paid for your return, you can look at your 1040 Worksheet to see the calculations that make up Line 1 on your Form 1040.