2026 Form W-2 Update: Overtime, Tips, Reconciliation and Year-End Reporting

Overview

Preparing W-2s has always required careful year-end review, but 2026 brings new reporting requirements that payroll teams need to account for before forms are finalized. Changes affecting qualified overtime, cash tips, and employee withholding mean payroll professionals must understand not only where information belongs on the W-2, but whether the underlying payroll data has been tracked and classified correctly throughout the year.

Many problems surface during year-end reconciliation. Payroll teams must make sure W-2 totals align with Forms 941, determine how the new overtime and tip reporting requirements apply, address state-specific reporting obligations, and identify discrepancies before forms reach employees. An issue that looks small during routine payroll processing can become a correction problem once W-2s have been issued.

This webinar will take participants through the 2026 Form W-2 box by box and explain the reporting issues that deserve closer attention as the year comes to an end. The session will address W-2 and Form 941 reconciliation, overtime and tip reporting, state-specific considerations, legislative updates, filing requirements, and practical year-end checks. Drawing on more than 17 years of payroll experience and her current work directing payroll operations at a major medical center, Dayna will connect the requirements to the kinds of situations payroll teams encounter during actual year-end processing.

Areas Covered in the Session:

• Details of how to close the 2026 year to make sure your W-2’s are correct, and 941 reconciliation happens correctly
• Review box by box of the W-2
• Most up to date legislation releases
• New overtime and tip reporting on the form W-2
• State specific W-2 reporting and what you need to know
• W-2 Requirements
• W-2 box by Box review
• Updated legislation to consider for W-2 and 2026
• State by State discussion of special W-2 considerations
• Year End and W-2 best Practices
• Supporting Handouts

Attendees will receive two practical reference tools designed to support year-end payroll work beyond the webinar:

2026 W-2 & Form 941 Year-End Reconciliation Working Paper

A working tool to help payroll teams compare quarterly Form 941 information with year-end W-2/W-3 totals, identify variances, and document items requiring further review.

W-2 Error & Correction Decision Guide

A practical reference for evaluating common W-2 errors and determining the appropriate next steps when an issue is discovered before or after forms have been filed or provided to employees.

Why Should You Attend?

The 2026 W-2 introduces reporting changes that can affect how payroll teams handle overtime, tips, employee reporting, and year-end reconciliation. Understanding those requirements before forms are finalized can help reduce corrections, employee questions, and last-minute problems during one of payroll's busiest periods.

This session will help you identify where closer review is needed, understand how W-2 information connects with Forms 941, and recognize the reporting and classification issues that may require additional attention before year-end processing is complete.

The focus will remain practical throughout the session. Dayna will walk participants through what payroll teams should be checking, where reporting problems commonly surface, and how to approach the 2026 year-end process with a clearer understanding of what needs to be reviewed before W-2s are issued.

Who Will Benefit?

This webinar is intended for professionals directly involved in payroll processing, year-end reporting, W-2 preparation, payroll tax compliance, and reconciliation. It will be particularly relevant to those responsible for preparing, reviewing, or approving employee wage and tax reporting, including:

• Payroll Directors
• Payroll Managers
• Payroll Supervisors
• Payroll Administrators
• Payroll Specialists
• Payroll Analysts
• Payroll Tax Managers
• Payroll Tax Specialists
• Payroll Compliance Managers
• Payroll Operations Managers
• HRIS / Payroll Systems Managers
• HR Operations Managers with Payroll Oversight
• Compensation and Benefits Managers with Payroll Responsibilities
• Controllers with Payroll Oversight
• Accounting Managers responsible for Payroll Reconciliation