Pub 89-145-22-1 (Rev .08/22) Procedures and Specifications for Filing Wage and Tax Information Electronically 202 2 MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE INCOME TAX BUREAU PO BOX 960 JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI 39205-0960 WWW.DOR.MS.GOV |
TABLE OF CONTENTS Who Must File Electronically Page 3 Electronic Filing Due Date Page 3 Electronic Filing Options Page 3 EFW2 E-File Format Page 4 EFWC2E-FileFormat –Corrected Page 7 Returns W- 2G and 1099 E-File Format Page 11 E-File Testing Page 11 Additional Information Page 11 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Page 12 W2 Upload FAQs Page 12 QuickBooks FAQs Page 14 Appendex A Page 15 |
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EFW2 E-FILE FORMAT Electronic format for W-2 information must be in accordance with the Social Security Administration (SSA), Office of Systems Requirements and EFW2. DOR will follow any new SSA file record specification changes for the current year and prior two years. Although, SSA will accept files that are not delimited, DOR requires that all files be delimited with a carriage return or line feed in position 513 of each record. The following records are read by the DOR: • RA – Submitter Record • RT – Total Record • RS – State Record - Required • RW – Employee Wage Record • RF – Final Record • RE – Employer Record Please visit www.socialsecurity.gov/employer/ for complete instructions, including record specifications and edits for the RA, RT, RW, RF, and RE Records. The RS Record Specifications for Mississippi are unique from the SSA Record Specifications. See the below table for these modifications. MISSISSIPPI RS RECORD SPECIFICATIONS RS FIELD NAME LENGTH FIELD SPECIFICATIONS POSITION 1-2 Record Identifier 2 Constant "RS". 3-4 State Code 2 Enter the appropriate postal NUMERIC Code (see Appendix F). 5-9 Taxing Entity Code 5 Defined by State/ ocalLagency. 10-18 Social Security 9 Enter the employee's SSN as shown on the Number (SSN) original/replacement SSN card issued by SSA. If no SSN is available, enter zeros. 19-33 Employee First 15 Enter the employee's first name as shown on the SSN Name card. Left justify and fill with blanks. 34-48 Employee Middle 15 If applicable, enter the employee's middle name or Name or Initial initial as shown on the SSN card. Left justify and fill with blanks. Otherwise, fill with blanks. 49-68 Employee Last Name 20 Enter the employee's last name as shown on the SSN card. Left justify and fill with blanks. 4 |
RS FIELD NAME LENGTH FIELD SPECIFICATIONS POSITION 69-72 Suffix 4 If applicable, enter the employee's alphabetic suffix. For example: SR, JR Left justify and fill with blanks. Otherwise, fill with blanks. 73-94 Location Address 22 Enter employee's location address (Attention, Suite, Room Number, etc.). Left justify and fill with blanks. 95-116 Delivery Address 22 Enter the employee's delivery address. Left justify and fill with blanks. 117-138 City 22 Enter the employee's city. Left justify and fill with blanks. 139-140 State Abbreviation 2 Enter the employee's State or commonwealth/territory. Use a postal abbreviation as shown in Appendix F. For a foreign address, fill with blanks. 141-145 ZIP Code 5 Enter the employee's ZIP code. For a foreign address, fill with blanks. 146-149 ZIP Code Extension 4 Enter the employee's four-digit extension of the ZIP code. If not applicable, fill with blanks. 150-154 Blank 5 Fill with blanks. Reserved for SSA use. 155-177 Foreign State/ 23 If applicable, enter the employee's foreign State/province . Province Left justify and fill with blanks. Otherwise, fill with blanks. 178-192 Foreign Postal Code 15 If applicable, enter the employee's foreign postal code. Left justify and fill with blanks. Otherwise, fill with blanks. 193-194 Country Code 2 If one of the following applies, fill with blanks: • One of the 50 States of the U.S.A. • District of Columbia • Military Post Office (MPO) • American Samoa • Guam • Northern Mariana Islands • Puerto Rico • Virgin Islands Otherwise, enter the employee's applicable Country Code (See Appendix G). Defined by State/Local agency. 195-196 Optional Code 2 Applies to unemployment reporting. 5 |
RS FIELD NAME LENGTH FIELD SPECIFICATIONS POSITION 197-202 Reporting Period 6 Enter the last month and four-digit year for the calendar quarter for which this report applies; e.g., “032021” for January through March of 2021 . Applies to unemployment reporting. 203-213 State Quarterly 11 Right justify and zero fill. Unemployment Insurance Total Wages Applies to unemployment reporting. 214-224 State Quarterly 11 Right justify and zero fill. Unemployment Insurance Total Taxable Wages Applies to unemployment reporting. 225-226 Number of 2 Defined by State/Local agency. Weeks Worked Applies to unemployment reporting. 227-234 Date First Employed 8 Enter the month, day and four-digit year; e.g., "01312021." Applies to unemployment reporting. *235-242 Date of Separation 8 Enter the month, day and four-digit year; e.g., “01312021.” Applies to unemployment reporting. 243-247 Blank 5 Fill with blanks. Reserved for SSA use. 248-267 State Employer 20 See Glossary, Appendix J. Account Number Applies to unemployment reporting. 268-273 Blank 6 Fill with blanks. Reserved for SSA use. 274-275 State Code 2 Enter the appropriate postal NUMERIC Code (see Appendix F). Applies to income tax reporting. 276-286 State Taxable Wages 11 Right justify and zero fill. Applies to income tax reporting. 287-297 State Income 11 Right justify and zero fill. Tax Withheld Applies to income tax reporting. 298-307 Other State Data 10 Defined by State/Local agency. Applies to income tax reporting. 6 |
RS FIELD NAME LENGTH FIELD SPECIFICATIONS POSITION 308 Tax Type Code 1 Enter the appropriate code for entries in fields 309 -330: • C = City Income Tax • D = County Income Tax • E = School District Income Tax • F = Other Income Tax Applies to income tax reporting. 309-319 Local Taxable Wages 11 To be defined by State/Local agency. Applies to income tax reporting. 320-330 Local Income Tax 11 To be defined by State/Local agency. Withheld Applies to income tax reporting. 331-337 State Control 7 Optional. Number Applies to income tax reporting. 75 To be defined by user. 338-412 Supplemental Data 1 413-487 Supplemental Data 2 75 To be defined by user. 488-512 Blank 25 Fill with blanks. Reserved for SSA use. EFWC2 E-FILE FORMAT – CORRECTED RETURNS If an incorrect amount of income tax withholding was paid to the DOR, an amended return must be filed and any difference paid. To amend the return electronically, follow the guidelines administered by the SSA for the RCA, RCT, RCW, RCF, and RCE Records (DOR uses the same file specifications). However, for the RCS Record, the specifications were modified for state purposes. MISSISSIPPI RCS RECORD SPECIFICATIONS RCS FIELD NAME LENGTH FIELD SPECIFICATIONS POSITION 1-3 Record Identifier 3 Constant "RCS". 4-5 State Code 2 Enter the appropriate postal NUMERIC Code (see Appendix H). 6-10 Originally Reported 5 Enter the incorrectly reported data. Taxing Entity Code 11-15 Correct Taxing Entity 5 Enter the correct code. Code 16-24 Employee's Originally 9 Use only if employee's SSN was reported incorrectly Reported Social on the original report. Security Number Enter the incorrectly reported SSN. (SSN) If this field is not used, fill with blanks. 7 |
RCS FIELD NAME LENGTH FIELD SPECIFICATIONS POSITION 25-33 Employee's Correct 9 This is a required field. Social Security Enter the employee's SSN. Number (SSN) Use the number shown on the original/replacement SSN card issued to the employee by SSA. Enter only numeric characters. If the SSN is not available, enter "zeros" (0). 34-48 Employee's Originally 15 Enter the incorrectly reported first name. Reported First Name Left justify and fill with blanks. 49-63 Employee's Originally 15 Enter the incorrectly reported middle name or initial. Reported Middle Name or Initial Left justify and fill with blanks. 64-83 Employee's Originally 20 Enter the incorrectly reported last name. Reported Last Name Left justify and fill with blanks. 84-98 15 Enter the employee’s first name as shown on the Employee's Correct Social Security card. First Name Left justify and fill with blanks. 99-113 Employee's Correct 15 If applicable, enter the employee’s middle name Middle Name or or initial as shown on the Social Security card. Initial Left justify and fill with blanks. 114-133 Employee's Correct 20 Enter the employee’s last name as shown on the Last Name Social Security card. Left justify and fill with blanks. 134-155 Location Address 22 Enter the employee's location address (Attention, Suite, Room Number, etc.) for the employee named. Left justify and fill with blanks. 156-177 Delivery Address 22 Enter the employee's mailing address (Street or Post Office box). Left justify and fill with blanks. 178-199 City 22 Enter the employee's city. Left justify and fill with blanks. 200-201 State Abbreviation 2 Enter the employee's State or commonwealth/territory. Use a postal abbreviation from Appendix H. For a foreign address, fill with blanks. 202-206 ZIP Code 5 Enter a valid ZIP code. For a foreign address, fill with blanks. 207-210 ZIP Code Extension 4 Enter the four-digit extension of the ZIP code. If not applicable, fill with blanks. 211-215 Blank 5 Fill with blanks. Reserved for SSA use. 8 |
RCS FIELD NAME LENGTH FIELD SPECIFICATIONS POSITION 216-238 Foreign State/ 23 If applicable, enter the foreign State/ province. Province Left justify and fill with blanks. Otherwise, fill with blanks. 239-253 Foreign Postal Code 15 If applicable, enter the foreign postal code. Left justify and fill with blanks. Otherwise, fill with blanks. 254-255 Optional Code 2 To be defined by State/Local agency. Applies to unemployment reporting. 256-257 Country Code 2 If one of the following applies, fill with blanks: • One of the 50 States of the U.S.A. • District of Columbia • Military Post Office (MPO) • American Samoa • Guam • Northern Mariana Islands • Puerto Rico • Virgin Islands Otherwise, enter the applicable Country Code (see Appendix I). 258-263 Originally Reported 6 Enter the incorrectly reported data. Reporting Period Applies to unemployment reporting. 264-269 Correct Reporting 6 Enter the last month and four-digit year for Period the correct calendar quarter. Applies to unemployment reporting. 270-275 Blank 6 Fill with blanks. Reserved for SSA use. 276-286 Originally Reported 11 Enter the incorrectly reported data. State Quarterly Right justify and zero fill. Unemployment No negative amounts. Insurance Total Wages Applies to unemployment reporting. 287-297 Correct State Quarterly 11 Right justify and zero fill. Unemployment No negative amounts. Insurance Total Wages Applies to unemployment reporting. 298-299 Originally Reported 2 Enter the incorrectly reported data. Number of Weeks Worked Applies to unemployment reporting. 300-301 Correct Number of 2 Enter the correct number of weeks worked. Weeks Worked Applies to unemployment reporting. 302-309 Originally Reported 8 Enter the incorrectly reported data. Date First Employed Applies to unemployment reporting. 310-317 Correct Date First 8 Enter the correct date. Employed Applies to unemployment reporting. 318-325 Originally Reported 8 Enter the incorrectly reported data. Date of Separation Applies to unemployment reporting. 9 |
RCS FIELD NAME LENGTH FIELD SPECIFICATIONS POSITION 326-333 Correct Date of 8 Enter the correct date. Separation Applies to unemployment reporting. 334-343 Blank 10 Fill with blanks. Reserved for SSA use. 344-363 Originally Reported 20 Enter the incorrectly reported data. State Employer Account Number Applies to unemployment reporting. 364-383 Corrected State 20 Enter the correct account number. Employer Account Number Applies to unemployment reporting. 384-395 Blank 12 Fill with blanks. Reserved for SSA use. 396-397 State Code 2 Enter the appropriate postal numeric code (See Appendix H). Applies to Income Tax reporting. 398-408 Originally Reported 11 Enter the incorrectly reported data. State Taxable Right justify and zero fill. Wages No negative amounts. Applies to Income Tax reporting. 409-419 Correct State 11 Right justify and zero fill. Taxable Wages No negative amounts. Applies to Income Tax reporting. 420-430 Originally Reported 11 Enter the incorrectly reported data. State Income Tax Right justify and zero fill. Withheld No negative amounts. Applies to Income Tax reporting. 431-441 Correct State Income 11 Right justify and zero fill. Tax Withheld No negative amounts. Applies to Income Tax reporting. 442-461 20 To be defined by State/Local agency. Other State Data Applies to Income Tax reporting. 462 Originally Reported 1 Enter the incorrectly reported data. Tax Type Code Applies to Income Tax reporting. 463 Correct Tax Type 1 Enter the correct code: • Code C = City Income Tax • D = County Income Tax • E = School District Income Tax • F = Other Income Tax Applies to Income Tax reporting. 464-474 Originally Reported 11 Enter the incorrectly reported data. Local Taxable If not making a correction, fill with blanks. Wages No negative amounts. Applies to Income Tax reporting. 475-485 Correct Local 11 If not making a correction, fill with blanks. Taxable Wages No negative amounts. Applies to Income Tax reporting. 10 |
RCS FIELD NAME LENGTH FIELD SPECIFICATIONS POSITION 486-492 Originally Reported 7 Enter the incorrectly reported data. State Control Number Applies to Income Tax reporting. 493-499 Correct State 7 Enter the correct Control Number. Control Number Applies to Income Tax reporting. 500-649 Supplem ental Data 1 150 To be defined by user. 650-799 Supplemental Data 2 150 To be defined by user. 800-1024 Blank 225 Fill with blanks. Reserved for SSA use. W-2G AND 1099 E-FILE FORMAT The layout for W-2Gs and various 1099s are the same as described in the Federal Publication 1220. The specifications and procedures for these documents must be followed according to the instructions outlined in the IRS Publication in order for the DOR to accept the information electronically. DOR will follow any new IRS file record specification changes for the current year and prior two years. Although, IRS will accept files that are not delimited, DOR requires that all files be delimited with a carriage return or line feed in position 751 of each record. For more information concerning the IRS Publication 1220 procedures and specifications, please visit the website at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1220.pdf. E-FILE TESTING Asoftware company can submit their W2 and 1099 file format for testing by emailing them to FSETSupport@dor.ms.gov. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Each withholding tax account (employer record) must only contain a single “RE” Record. Multiple “RE” Records result in subtotals of the Mississippi income tax withheld rather than a single total as required. This applies to accounts which have multiple locations. All locations reported under a particular Mississippi withholding tax account number must be represented by a single “RE” Record. If there are multiple withholding accounts (employer records) included in one submission, then each record must b e separated according to the SSA EFW2 Specifications. If you are a provider, software company or accounting firm that submits W2s or 1099s for clients---but you do not have a Mississippi tax liability---register for TAP; but, do not request or open atax account. 11 |
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs) The following is intended to provide general information concerning frequently asked questions about filing W-2, W-2G,and 1099 information electronically. W-2 Upload FAQs: 1. What format is required to submit W-2 files electronically? The Department of Revenue uses the EFW2 format administered by the SSA. Each file must contain the RA, RE, RW, RS, RT, and RF records which will be validated based on the SSA EFW2 Specifications. Any new format or specification changes made by the SSA will be followed. The Department of Revenue will accept submissions for the current tax year and prior two tax years. The two prior tax years must be in accordance with the current SSA EFW2 format. 2. What format is required to submit 1099 files electronically? The Department of Revenue uses the E-File format administered by the IRS. Each file must contain the T, A, B, C and F records which will be validated based on the IRS E-File Specifications. Any new format or specification changes made by the IRS will be followed. The Department of Revenue will accept submissions for the current tax year and two prior tax years. The two prior tax years must be in accordance with the current IRS E-File format. 3. When uploading my file, what goes in the description field? You can put anything that can be used to distinguish one file fr m another. o This allows you to upload multiple W-2 submission files. 4. How to convert a file with the SSA EFW2 or IRS format into a .txt file? Once the file has been generated, right-click on the file and select “Rename”. At the end of the file name, type “.txt”. Do not save as a .txt file, only rename the file.(PDF files can’t be converted because the original file is not in the required SSA EFW2 or IRS format.) 5. How do I create a zip file? Right-Click on the .txt file and select “Send To>Compressed (zipped) Folder”. Any file over 10 MB needs to be compressed (zipped). 6. What does error on line 2, Record Type: RE – Tax year must be for current tax year or prior 2 tax years mean? You have entered an invalid tax year on line 2 of the RE record. The tax year must be the current tax year or prior two tax years. 7. What does the error “Record Type: RA – the record length must be 512” mean? This record did not meet the SSA EFW2 record length of 512 characters positions. Each R Type record must be on a separate line of 512 bytes with the LF/CR in position 513. Your record could be too short, too long or you have one continuous line of data in your file. 12 |
8. What does the error “Record Type B – the record length must be 750” mean? This record did not meet the IRS E-File record length of 750 characters positions. Each record must be on a separate line of 750 bytes with the LF/CR in position 751. Your record could be too short, too long or you have one continuous line of data in your file. 9. What does the error “RW Position 342-252” mean? This position 342-352 on the RW record must be blank according to the TY2 2 EFW2 Specifications, which means only blanks are allowed in position 342-352. 10. What does the error “unknown error has occurred” mean? You have data after the RF record, which is the final record in your file. You can’t have data or spaces after this record. To correct this error, go to the end of the file and delete any data or spaces after the RF record. 11. What does the error “RE record must contain one of the following codes: F, S, T, Y, N” mean? Based on the EFW2 specifications, the RE record position 174 must have one of the codes under specifications for kind of employer from the table below. RE FIELD NAME LENGTH SPECIFICATIONS POSITION 174 Kind of Employer 1 This is a required field. Enter the appropriate kind of employer: F = Federal Government S= State and Local Governmental Employer T= Tax Exempt Employer Y=State and Local Tax Exempt Employer N = None Apply 13 |
QuickBooks FAQs: 1. Does the Department of Revenue (DOR) participate in a Federal program that allows employers to submit W-2s through QuickBooks electronically? No. 2. Can I submit the Excel file from QuickBooks? The DOR DOES NOT accept the excel spreadsheet that is generated from QuickBooks. 3. How to create the EFW2 W2REPORT directly from QuickBooks?QuickBooks 2012 or newer with an Enhanced Payroll Subscription can use the below steps to create the W2REPORT Step 1: Click Get QuickBooks Data:QuickBooks imports your W-2 data into an Excel spreadsheet which is used as the source for creating the W-2 electronic file that is sent to the DOR. (Do not send the Excel file to the state). Step 2: Click Add-ins Tab and locate the QuickBooks Payroll State W-2 drop-down menu. Step 3: Click Start Interview: QuickBooks asks a few questions to get additional information required by the DOR. Step 4: Click Create W-2 file:QuickBooks combines the data in the spreadsheet with the answers from the interview and creates a W-2 file in the format required by the DOR. The file that is created is a text file in the EFW2 format. The file name must be W2REPORT.txt. If the file name does not have “.txt” at the end, right- click on the file and select “Rename”. At the end of the file name, type “.txt”. Step 5: Save the Excel Spreadsheet: QuickBooks will save the spreadsheet for your records. We recommend that you save the file in the same folder as the W-2 electronic file. Step 6: Send the W-2 (the text file created in Step 4) File to Mississippi: It is important to note that QuickBooks does not send your W2 file to the DOR. Be sure to send the W-2 file that QuickBooks created, which is a text file. Do not send the Excel spreadsheet. 4. Where does the state Account ID go in QuickBooks? The state Account ID goes in the field labeled “State Agency ID”. 14 |
APPENDIX A – POSTAL ABBREVIATIONS AND NUMERIC CODES STATE ABBREVIATION NUMERIC STATE ABBREVIATION NUMERIC CODE* CODE* Alabama AL 01 Montana MT 30 Alaska AK 02 Nebraska NE 31 Arizona AZ 04 Nevada NV 32 Arkansas AR 05 New Hampshire NH 33 California CA 06 New Jersey NJ 34 Colorado CO 08 New Mexico NM 35 Connecticut CT 09 New York NY 36 Delaware DE 10 North Carolina NC 37 District of Columbia DC 11 North Dakota ND 38 Florida FL 12 Ohio OH 39 Georgia GA 13 Oklahoma OK 40 Hawaii HI 15 Oregon OR 41 Idaho ID 16 Pennsylvania PA 42 Illinois IL 17 Rhode Island RI 44 Indiana IN 18 South Carolina SC 45 Iowa IA 19 South Dakota SD 46 Kansas KS 20 Tennessee TN 47 Kentucky KY 21 Texas TX 48 Louisiana LA 22 Utah UT 49 Maine ME 23 Vermont VT 50 Maryland MD 24 Virginia VA 51 Massachusetts MA 25 Washington WA 53 Michigan MI 26 West Virginia WV 54 Minnesota MN 27 Wisconsin WI 55 Mississippi MS 28 Wyoming WY 56 Missouri MO 29 * Use on RS and RCS State Wage Records only 15 |
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