Internal Revenue Service :?
The IRS does not want the forms from you. It gets the information directly from the payers. The reason you have to send the W-2 if you file a paper return is that W-2 forms go to the Social Security Administration, not the IRS. Later in the year, the IRS gets the information but not in time to compare against your tax return. Of course, you should keep a copy of all the forms for at least three years. Five is better just in case the IRS wants to claim your return is fraudulent. (I have all of my tax information for at least the past 15 years. Before that, its a little spotty but I have scanned copies of most documents going back to the mid-1990s.) These days most of the tax forms are available electronically or you can get a scanner to use at home. Just make certain you have timely backups of your computer in case its stolen or crashes.