Exciting news for tax preparers and taxpayers alike! According to industry insiders, the IRS will be making Wage & Income transcripts available much earlier in the tax season. Starting March 30, 2025, tax professionals and taxpayers can access these transcripts for the 2024 tax year prior to the original 1040 filing deadline—more than a month ahead of the usual late-May or early-June release.
This early release is a game-changer for tax pros preparing returns before the April 15 filing deadline. Traditionally, Wage & Income transcripts were released too late to be useful for timely filings, limiting their usefulness. Now, with this revised timeline, tax professionals can leverage IRS-reported “third-party form” data (e.g., W-2, 1099, K-1, 1098, etc) as a starting point for accurate return preparation.
Is access to this Wage & Income transcript really a big deal? Ask a tax pro begging their client to send them their W-2s and 1099s from the previous year with only days before the filing deadline… The answer is yes! Having this transcript available in March allows tax prepayers to:
**Important Considerations**
While the early release is a significant improvement, tax professionals should still proceed with caution. The March 30 version of the transcript may not include:
– Schedule K-1s filed on extended returns
– Paper-filed forms that aren’t processed by March 30 (e.g., some Forms 1099)
– Form 5498 (IRA contributions) due April 15
– Other amended or late-filed third-party forms
Therefore, tax pros should use Wage & Income transcripts as a tool but not as a sole source of income verification
That’s where TaxNow steps in. Accessing this document through the IRS’ online tools or over the phone can be complex and hard to manage with a large client base. But with TaxNowPRO, pulling Wage & Income transcripts for your clients is as easy as 1-2-3:
1. Sign up for a TaxNowPRO Demo
2. Onboard yourself and your clients (via Forms 8821)
3. Allow the IRS to process, and voila – instant access to clients’ Wage & Income transcripts!
No more back and forth, no more IRS phone tag. TaxNow makes accessing Wage and Income transcripts effortless, with a 10-year lookback so you can retrieve past and present transcripts instantly.
