Please see below for tax-related changes and W-2 mailing costs from Consolidated Mail Services (CMS) that are effective January 1, 2026.
The following information is related to process changes for taxes:
2026 tax changes from Social Security and WA State’s Employment Security
The Social Security wage base limit increases from $176,100 to $184,500 in 2026.
The employee and employer tax rates remain at 6.2% each (12.4% total).
Note: For employees that are at or near the max that transfer into your agency from another HRMS agency, follow HRMS procedure to ensure that Social Security will not be deducted when the employee maxes out for the year (the state of Washington is one employer for Social Security purposes).
The employee and employer Medicare Tax Rates remain at 1.45% each (2.90% total). There is no maximum wage base for Medicare taxes.
Note: Employers must withhold an additional 0.9% from wages paid to an employee that exceed $200,000 during the year (regardless of the employee’s filing status). This makes the effective employee Medicare tax rate 2.35% on wages over $200,000.
The 2026 state unemployment taxable wage base maximum is $78,200.
The Washington Paid Family and Medical Leave premium rate will increase from 0.92% to 1.13% effective 1/1/2026.
The Washington Long Term Support Services premium rate remains 0.58% of wages.
Distribution of state agency 2025 Form W-2 and the 1099R Wage and Tax Statements
DES CMS will mail statements directly to employees by January 31, 2026.
The 2026 cost for processing W-2’s and 1099R’s will be $.81 per piece, which includes inserting, envelope, postage, and delivery to the USPS. The charges will be reflected on an invoice from CMS addressed to your agency’s billing contact. Questions can be directed to CMS.
Manual adjustments for other state taxes can be created in PU19. The procedure is available on the Year End web page. Note: This process eliminates the need for agencies to pull W-2s to add other state income taxes.
