The answer for your W-2 is printed on the W-2 itself. In the instructions for employees, the IRS says to keep Copy C for at least three years after the due date for filing your income tax return, and then adds the part most people skip: to help protect your Social Security benefits, keep Copy C until you begin receiving Social Security benefits.
1099s are simpler. They don't have a period of their own. In the US, generally, they follow the same rules as the return they back up, which means three years after you file for most people and longer in a few specific situations.
The short version
| Form | Keep for | Why / source |
|---|---|---|
| W-2, Copy C | At least 3 years after the return's due date; ideally until you start receiving Social Security | Form W-2 instructions; Publication 17 |
| 1099-INT, 1099-DIV, 1099-OID and other investment-income forms | With that year's tax records, generally 3 years after filing | Publication 550 calls them "an important part of your records" |
| Other 1099s (freelance, contract and other income) | Same as the return: generally 3 years, longer in specific cases | IRS period of limitations; no separate 1099 rule |
| 1099-B for a sale of covered securities | With the return for the year of the sale | It shows your basis for securities generally bought after 2010 |
| Your own purchase records for older shares | Until the window closes for the year you sell | Older (noncovered) securities aren't subject to the same basis reporting |
| W-2s and pay stubs for a year your earnings record looks wrong | Until Social Security has fixed it | Social Security asks for these as evidence |
The FTC's current consumer advice (June 2025) agrees on the floor: W-2s and 1099s sit in its "keep for at least three years" group. The IRS instruction on the W-2 is what pushes that much further.
Why the W-2 rule outlasts the tax rule
The three-year part is about taxes. The "until you receive benefits" part is about Social Security, which keeps its own record of what you earned each year. The IRS wording is that you should hold on to Copy C "just in case there is a question about your work record and/or earnings in a particular year."
That record has a deadline for fixes. Social Security says that, ordinarily, you can't correct your earnings after 3 years, 3 months and 15 days from the end of the year in which the wages were paid. The same limit is written into federal regulation (20 CFR 404.802). For wages paid in 2026, that window closes in mid-April 2030.
There are exceptions. Social Security lists situations it can still correct after the limit, such as errors from an employer report that was missing or left out an employee. But the first thing it asks for, in its own words, is "evidence of your earnings such as forms W-2, pay stubs, etc." Without your copy, you're relying on an employer that may have merged, moved or closed twenty years ago.
That's the case for keeping every W-2 for your whole working life. They're one page each, and a career's worth fits in a single folder.
If the form itself is new to you, the W-2 glossary entry explains what each box means.
1099s: no separate clock
Most 1099s report income that doesn't come with a paycheck: bank interest, dividends, freelance or contract work, and more. The 1099 glossary entry covers the common types.
For retention, the IRS doesn't name a separate period. Publication 550 simply says to keep the forms showing your investment income "as an important part of your records." So a 1099 follows the window of the return it supports: generally three years after filing, six years if you left out income worth more than 25% of the gross income on the return, and the other cases set out on the IRS page "How long should I keep records?"
Note what that six-year case means in practice. If the IRS ever believes you left out income, the 1099 is the document that shows what was actually reported to you. It's worth keeping on that basis alone.
The 1099-B and what you paid
Sales of investments are where 1099s get longer-lived. For a covered security (generally one you bought after 2010), your broker should send a 1099-B that shows your basis, meaning what you paid. For older, noncovered securities, the broker isn't subject to the same added reporting, so the 1099-B may not show what you paid.
That's why your own purchase records matter. The IRS rule for property is to keep the records until the period of limitations expires for the year you sell. Shares bought in 2008 and sold in 2031 need their purchase records until the window on the 2031 return closes.
The master retention chart lists the full set of tax windows, including the seven-year and no-limit cases, alongside every other document in the filing box.
Where to keep them
Two homes work well, and you can use both:
- With each year's tax records. Every W-2 and 1099 goes in that year's tax folder with the return. This is what you'll reach for if the IRS ever asks.
- In one long-term "W-2s" folder. A single folder holding every W-2 you've ever received, which you never clear out. This is the one Social Security cares about.
On an iPhone, the Files app handles both for free. Open Files, tap the More button, choose Scan Documents, capture the form, then tap Save and pick the folder. Many employers and banks also post these forms as PDFs; save them the same day, because access to an old employer's payroll site tends to end when the job does.
Folders work as long as you keep them up. The harder part is the question that comes years later, like "what did I earn at my first job?" If you'd rather ask than dig, Paperlock reads each form you save, including who it's from, the year and the amounts, and answers in plain English with the form attached. Either way, keep the W-2s long after the tax window closes, and let your future self thank you around retirement.