Employee Date of Birth field required to process W2s for 2023

Thank you for choosing QuickBooks as your payroll service, @BBaker42. I have the answers to your questions about employee information when processing W2s for 2023.

Yes, the employee's Date of Birth is one of the required information when setting them up. Therefore, it's important to input the correct one for tax purposes.

Even if the date of birth is only for employee benefits within the program, we recommend following the accurate date as the W-2 forms will be sent to appropriate agencies.

Here's an article for a list of required fields: Add your new employee to QuickBooks Payroll.

Feel free to share this guide with your employees to help them access their paychecks and W-2s online: Invite your employees to QuickBooks Workforce to see pay stubs and W-2s if you use QuickBooks Deskto....

With this information, you should be able to verify that the correct date of birth is needed. If you have follow-up questions about employee information or any other payroll tasks, add them below. I'll be here to assist you.

I didn't see an answer to the original question, "Will the employee Date of Birth field be required to be entered to process W2s for 2023 (e-file or print)?"  Will the W2 process run w/o a DOB?

I appreciate you for joining the thread, LisaNTC. Allow me to share some insights to answer your query about whether the employee's Date of Birth field is required to process W2s for 2023.

If you use QuickBooks Desktop Payroll Enhanced, you have two options to add your new employee with QuickBooks Online Payroll:

• Set up some info, then invite your employee to add the rest. 
• Set up and add all employee info.

The fields and tabs can vary depending on your payroll service. See below for a list of required fields in each tab:

If you see the Required Info tab:

• Required Info - First and last name, Social Security number, Date of Birth, Home Address, Main phone, and Main email.
• Personal Info - no required fields
• Additional info - no required fields
• Payroll info - To pay your employee, add a pay schedule or pay frequency, pay type and pay rate, W-4 info, Federal, and state taxes. Add deductions, sick or vacation policies, and direct deposit if necessary.
• Employment info - Hire date
• Workers’ compensation (for QuickBooks Desktop Payroll Assisted and Enhanced Payroll only) - assign a workers' compensation code if you want to track this through QuickBooks.

For detailed information, refer to this article: Add your new employee to QuickBooks Payroll.

You can also visit this article you can use in the future: 

• Invite your employees to QuickBooks Workforce to see pay stubs and W-2s if you use QuickBooks Deskto....
• View your pay stubs, time off, and year-to-date pay in QuickBooks Workforce.
• Troubleshoot missing pay stubs or incorrect pay or taxes.
• Understand the taxes and forms that QuickBooks payroll submits for you.

Feel free to post here again if you have further QuickBooks-related concerns. We are available 24/7 to lend a hand with each of your queries. Stay safe!

I still don't see an answer to the original question.  A simple yes or will do.  I don't need help setting up new employees.  I process for several companies.  They were set up long before the SSN was required.  I don't have SSNs for them.  Will I have problems when I go to run W2s for 2023?  

Oops, I mean date of birth not SSN.

Hi there, LisaNTC.

Thanks for getting back to us. I'm here to share some clarification about your W2 question.

After reviewing the information, it appears that the Date of Birth is not necessary for processing the upcoming W-2s for your employees. This information is only required when setting up new employees in QuickBooks Desktop (QBDT).

To check the details that will be included, you can review the W-2 form for 2023 from the IRS's website. Here's the link: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw2.pdf.

To learn more about managing and filing your W-2 forms in QuickBooks, check out this article for future reference: File your W-2 forms.

Please leave a comment below if you have additional questions about this or anything else. I'll be here to assist. Take care.

Thank you.  I feel better knowing that.

It's good to see you feeling better now, @LisaNTC. 

We are still here to help you if you have other concerns within QuickBooks Payroll. The Community people are willing to guide you again.

I just tried processing state and federal W-2's without employee birthdates.  Quickbooks desktop pro plus will not allow me to generate the W-2's.  I do not have my employee birthdates.  Is it okay to enter dummy birthdates, since it does not seem to be needed by law on the federal and state W-2's?

I followed this thread for the same question.  I just tried to file W-2's for my employees.  I do not have birthdates entered for them, so the system blocked me from processing the W-2's.  I looked at the federal and state W-2's.  Neither one of them contains employee birthdates.  Can dummy dates be entered to allow me to process the W-2's since the dates do not seem to appear anywhere?

Welcome to the Community!

Regarding the date of birth, entering this information to process your employees' upcoming W-2s isn't mandatory. However, you will have to provide it when setting up new employees in QuickBooks Desktop (QBDT).

Although the date of birth is only used for employee benefits within the program, entering the correct one is crucial for tax purposes, and the W-2 forms will be sent to the appropriate agencies, such as the Social Security Administration (SSA).

In case you want to print your W-2 and W-3 forms, you can check out this article for guidance: Print your W-2 and W-3 forms.

Feel free to hit us up if you have any other questions regarding W-2 forms. We're always ready to back you up.

It seems like it is required because I am unable to process a W2 after the message to enter the DOB popped up. Or is this another glitch.

Hi 19864,

I'm here to clarify things about processing the W2 forms.

Yes, you're correct. With the new update, the IRS has made it mandatory to include the employee's date of birth when processing W2s. It is designed this way to ensure accuracy when setting up government taxes.

Furthermore, if you need help in filing W2, you can check this article: File your W-2 forms.

I'm always around whenever you have tax-related concerns.

I was curious too why DOB's were being required for W-2's.  As a test, I entered dummy DOB's for a few employees and submitted them.  The current status says the agency accepted them and they were successfully processed by the tax agency so unless I get a future notice, I do not believe that DOB's are required to file W-2's.  Looks like QB is requiring them only for benefit purposes (and not exactly sure why they need DOB for benefits since as far as I know QB doesn't offer benefits!)

I was just on the IRS.GOV webstite and spent quite some time reading the instructions and requirements for the information to be provided for an employee W2 and the employer W3. Nowhere does it state that the DOB is now manditory for processing either one. If the DOB were required it would be on the form for those who Mail In the employee W2 & the employer W3. Seem it is only a QB thing. I have employees that do not wish to supply their DOB and I guess since it is actually a law at this point that it is an optional question to answer on employee forms, I will not be asking them for it. 

I would like to know why QuickBooks STILL requires a date of birth for employees for the W-2.  I am not aware of any IRS notice or publication that requires it for issuing W-2's.  Yes, it is on Form I-9 but that does not mean it is required on the W-2.  The instructions to forms W-2 do not list date of birth.  I have filed W-2's electronically for 15 years and have NEVER included a date of birth in the file (third-party software other than QuickBooks).  I'm tired of QBDT telling me it is REQUIRED.  I understand the need for dates of birth for workers under age 18, since there are a number of restrictions as to hours, jobs, etc.  However, I'm rather tired of QuickBooks mandating I do things that I refuse to do.  

I would like to know why QuickBooks STILL requires a date of birth for employees for the W-2.  I am not aware of any IRS notice or publication that requires it for issuing W-2's.  Yes, it is on Form I-9 but that does not mean it is required on the W-2.  The instructions to forms W-2 do not list date of birth.  I have filed W-2's electronically for 15 years and have NEVER included a date of birth in the file (third-party software other than QuickBooks).  I'm tired of QBDT telling me it is REQUIRED.  I understand the need for dates of birth for workers under age 18, since there are a number of restrictions as to hours, jobs, etc.  However, I'm rather tired of QuickBooks mandating I do things that I refuse to do.  

Are birthdates required for electronically transmitting 2024 W2s? I don't see where it is. Also don't understand why we keep getting asked for birthdates on existing employees. 

Birthdates are not required when electronically processing Forms W-2 for 2024, Steve. Let's explore this topic together to clarify why you're asked for birthdates for existing employees.

The Form W-2 doesn't include a field for employees' date of birth. However, it's required when setting up an employee in QuickBooks Desktop to determine if you're eligible for related benefits and accurate tax calculation.

Updating your employee's date of birth depends on the payroll service you have, as this will identify the tabs available at your end. If you see the Required Info tab, you can add it from there. Otherwise, you can locate it under the Personal tab.

Here's how to update an employee's info:

1. Click the Employees menu, then Employee Center.
2. Locate the worker on the list and double-click on it.
3. Select the Required Info tab or Personal tab, depending on what's available on your end.
4. Provide the birth date on its designated field.
5. Hit OK once done.

For more information, refer to this article: Edit or change employee info in payroll.

Additionally, this material contains complete instructions on processing and submitting your W-2s with QuickBooks: File your W-2 and W-3 forms.

Moreover, review past payroll tax payments and forms with the guide of this resource: View your previously filed tax forms and payments.

We're always available in the Community if you have any other concerns regarding the required information on Form W-2 in QuickBooks Desktop Payroll. Please submit your queries using the Reply button below, and we'll respond to you promptly.