# How mortgage brokers request a W-2 from borrowers

Source: https://dokutrak.com/requests/mortgage-brokers/w-2
Author: Arthur Teboul, DokuTrak
Published: 2026-11-08
Language: en-US

> Ask the borrower for their W-2s from the last two years, one from every employer, which is what lenders usually ask for to show a steady income history. Include a co-borrower’s W-2s. The PDFs from each payroll portal are best. If the borrower changed jobs in that period, every employer’s W-2 is needed, not only the current one.

## Why mortgage brokers need a W-2

The W-2s give the underwriter two full years of earnings to set against the current pay stubs. A rise or a drop from one year to the next gets questioned, and variable pay such as overtime, bonus or commission is usually averaged over that history. The lender may also order IRS transcripts to confirm the W-2s match what was filed, so the copies should be the ones the employer issued.

## What exactly to ask for

Copy B or Copy C of every W-2 for the two most recent tax years, for each borrower. Ask the borrower to list their employers over those two years, short jobs included, so you can count the W-2s against the list. Depending on the loan program and the time of year, the lender may want the W-2 for the year just ended as soon as it is issued.

## What to check when it arrives

- Two complete tax years, with a W-2 for every employer in the borrower’s two-year job history.
- Box 1 wages make sense next to the year-to-date figures on the current pay stubs.
- The employee name matches the borrower, and the employer matches the employment on the application.

## Email to send your client

Subject: Your W-2s from the last two years

```text
Hi [Client name],

Next on the list for your loan: your W-2s from the last two years. I need one from every employer you worked for in that time, including any job you only held for a few months. If someone is applying with you, please include theirs.

The PDF from each employer’s payroll portal is ideal. If you can no longer log in to an old employer’s portal, a scan of the paper copy is fine.

Could you send them by [date]? If one is missing, tell me which employer and we will find another way to document it.

Best,
[Your name]
```

## Ask once. DokuTrak does the chasing.

- Your client uploads from one link, with no account and no password.
- Reminders go out on a schedule, by default 2, 5, 10 and 14 days after the request, until the file arrives.
- With AI review switched on in your workspace (it is off by default), each upload gets a first pass that flags a file that is not a W-2 or an unreadable or blurry scan. It says so when it is not sure.
- You accept every file or mark it for re-upload, and your client gets the note by email. The AI never accepts a file.

14-day free trial, no card. Add one only to keep going.