Tax records you can toss

MSN.com ^ | June 28, 2007 | Jeff Schnepper

[gpapa]

You can transform that mountain of papers into a molehill without fearing the wrath of the IRS. Here's exactly what you need to keep -- and for how long.

I can build a papier-mâché replica of the Empire State Building with my old tax records. Unless financial nostalgia brings you a warm feeling on a cold night, most of us would like to dump our old records as soon as possible.

[Mr_Moonlight]

I can build a papier-mâché replica of the Empire State Building with my old tax records

1:1 scale ?

[LibFreeOrDie]

I’d strongly advise keeping all W2s and, if you’re an independent contractor, 1099s.

If you’ve worked at companies that have gone out of business, there’s no way for a prospective employer to verify your past employment.

However, if you’ve kept the W2s/1099s from those defunct employers, prospective employers will accept them as proof of employment. At least that was the case when I applied for my current job at a Fortune 500 company...