We here at The Thrill meet every Sunday to discuss what will be posted the following week, among other things (mostly the other things). This week we got to talking about the W-2 forms we had just received in our P.O. boxes. Surprisingly, or not surprisingly, I guess, I was the only person in the room who could explain what a W-2 form was. This was the impetus for starting our How to Be a Grown-Up series, which will explain things that you all probably should know, or attempt to know by this point in your life (without the help of your parental units).

W-2 forms are the legally required forms that are filled out by employers reporting the amount of money withheld for payroll taxes. In addition to amount withheld, the form also reports the amount of money you made in wages this year. The form is useful for two reasons. It reports how much you can expect to receive back at the end of the year (the tax year), and how much you made. Because we generally don’t make enough money to have taxes withheld, this is a very important document that you can use to file your taxes by April 15. The forms are required to be in your mailbox by Jan. 31.

Next week: Tax Brackets!