California employers should remember that they must revise their notice to employees regarding the federal Earned Income Tax Notice to include California’s version of it. Effective January 1, 2017, employers must revise their notice to employees regarding the earned income tax credit when issuing W-2 or 1099 forms.

For several years, California employers have been required to notify employees regarding the federal Earned Income Tax Credit. In September 2016, California AB 1847 was signed into law which requires those same employers to also notify employees that they may be eligible for the California Earned Income Tax Credit (“EITC”).

Effective January 1, 2017, the new law states that an employer shall notify all employees that they may be eligible for the federal and the California EITC within one week before or after, or at the same time, that the employer provides an annual wage summary, including, but not limited to, a Form W-2 or a Form 1099, to any employee.

The employer must physically give it to the employee or can mail it to their last known home address.