The U.S. Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) has announced that railroad workers who received Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (RUIA) benefits in the last calendar year can now access their W-2 and/or 1099-G forms online. In addition, they can opt to be notified by email when their future RUIA tax forms become available online in the new year.
Like many agencies across the federal government, the RRB is currently working through an extensive Information Technology modernization initiative to bring core functions into the 21st century and transform how the agency does business. The undertaking of this project demonstrates the RRB’s commitment to improve mission performance, expand service capabilities, and strengthen cybersecurity.
The next phase of myRRB, the agency’s collection of online services, introduces a new paperless option for RUIA claimants to access their W-2 and/or 1099-G forms by signing in to their accounts at RRB.gov/myRRB instead of being mailed a hard copy.
In January of each year, RUIA claimants may receive either or both forms from the RRB. Form 1099-G reflects the total amount of unemployment benefits paid during the previous year, while Form W-2 shows the total amount of sickness/injury benefits paid. Both forms may include federal tax withholdings and are used for filing federal taxes.
RUIA claimants can now sign in to myRRB using login.gov and click on the button labeled ACCESS MY TAX Documents. From there, they can elect to stop the RRB from mailing their tax forms to them by entering a valid email address and following prompts to validate the email address with the agency’s electronic notification system. The RRB will use the email address provided to notify claimants when forms for the most recent tax year are ready to view and download. Tax documents for the previous year will remain available online until December 15.
Using the current calendar year as an example, 2023 tax forms will be available from approximately January 31, 2024, to December 15, 2024. Those who elect to receive the email notification can access their annual W-2 and 1099-G forms earlier than they would otherwise receive the paper copies sent through the mail. The RRB will start mailing paper copies no later than January 31, 2024.
Because a login.gov account is required to access this new myRRB feature, railroad employees who have been using a Pin Password (PPW) account to sign in are encouraged to transition to login.gov today. For questions and help creating a login.gov account, visit login.gov/contact/.
This new service option is part of the RRB's plan to expand access to information and allow the railroad public to conduct its business with the agency in the most convenient manner possible. Individuals who do not wish to use this online service will still receive a paper copy of their tax form(s) in the mail.