Housing Allowance - Box 1? of 2012 Form W-2?

[duanecpa]

Other including housing allowance for clergy in box 14 of the Form W-2, is the same number for housing allowing included in Box 1 of the Form W-2 for the clergy? Please provide citations. Thank you.

[JohnH]

Housing & utilities allowance is NOT reported in Box 1 of w-2. Only compensation is entered in that box. You MAY enter the H&U allowance in Box 14 as an information entry, and that is what most churches do, but it is not required to be there. A separate letter stating the amount of the H&U lowamce is just as acceptable.

Your cite would be the w-2 instructions.
You can also find this information in the w-2 example instruction on Pub 517. Here's your link http://www.irs.gov/publications/p517/index.html

[S T]

Good post and probably one that is mis-reported

Yea! preparing the W-2 forms for a Church - I am completing the W-2 forms correctly only the compensation in Box 1 - then the housing allowance note in Box 14 - took me forever to set it up correctly from the previous accountant reporting.

Thanks,

Sandy

[Burke]

Other including housing allowance for clergy in box 14 of the Form W-2, is the same number for housing allowing included in Box 1 of the Form W-2 for the clergy? Please provide citations. Thank you.

Putting the HSA in Box 1 would circumvent the income-tax free designation provided by the IRC. Some of it may wind up as taxable if it exceeds the limitations on HSA but that would flow through directly to Line 7 of the 1040 as "excess housing allowance" from the worksheets you fill out. Never put it there on the W-2.

[MAMalody]

I have never seen HSA used for the housing allowance. What does it stand for?