Need to file state taxes when you live and work in different states?
Most people in the U.S. live and work in the same state, which makes state taxes pretty easy to understand – you pay taxes to the state where you live and work.
But what if you live in one state and work in another? Do you pay taxes to the state where you live? Where you earn an income? Both?!
You need to pay taxes to both. Most likely you will end up having to file a resident return in the state where you live and a nonresident return in the state where you work.
Resident return
Generally you need to file a resident return in the state where you are a permanent resident. This state has the right to tax ALL of your income, wherever it was earned.
Nonresident return
After you file your resident return in your home state, you then need to go about filing a nonresident return in every other state where you earned money. A nonresident return only taxes you on the money you earned in that state. What often happens is that you withhold some income for each state tax.
Let’s take a real-world example.
Let’s say you live in New Jersey and commute to your NYC job Monday through Friday. Come tax time, you would need to file a resident return in NJ (reporting all of your income) and a nonresident return in NY (reporting only the income you earned in NY).
Worried about being double-taxed? Don’t be. You will have an opportunity to claim a credit for taxes paid to the nonresident state. They will then divide whatever has been withheld between them and the state whose tax liability was not exactly met will either give you a refund or a tax bill.
States without an income tax
There’s always an exception to the rule. In this case, there are seven exceptions. The five states with no income tax and the two states that only tax interest and dividends are the exclusions:
- Alaska
- Florida
- Nevada
- South Dakota
- Texas
- Washington
- Wyoming
- Tennessee
- New Hampshire
If you live in one of these states, you don’t need to file a resident return (unless you live in TN or NH and have interest and dividends income). But if you work in a state that does have an income tax you have to file a nonresident return in that state.
The same holds true when the situation is reversed. If you live in a state with an income tax, you must file a resident return there. But if you work in a state without an income tax, you don’t have to worry about filing a nonresident return.
Sound complicated? There’s a reason for that: it is. But let’s not stress because here’s all you really need to know. For this to work, every state needs to make agreements with every other state covering the income they could both theoretically tax. These agreements are structured to generate a minimum amount of paperwork and special cases: instead of having some workers who lives in a state but doesn’t pay taxes, the states have someone who lives in the state and pays taxes like everyone else — but gets a special tax credit at the end of the year.
In a situation like this, it’s often best to talk to your payroll department about how to proceed. In places with many out-of-state commuters (like New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, as well as cities near state borders), they will have the details on how each state treats out-of-state income.
Even if you have to file multiple state tax returns you can take care of them right here on RapidTax.
I am a resident of Texas. I work and live in Texas. The company I work for is based in New Jersey. I noticed that on my check stubs, I am paying New Jersey taxes…
What should I do?
Hi Cecilia,
You will always be taxed in the the states in which you live and work, so you should be taxed in Texas. You should not, however, be taxed in New Jersey if your company is based there but you don’t work there. But if you own the company, it’s an entirely different tax situation altogether and you could very well be taxed in New Jersey. I would suggest contacting your employer about this.
I was born in Massachusetts, but I have lived and worked in Florida for the past thirty years. I will retire in July 2015, and I am contemplating purchasing a second home in Massachusetts, which I would stay in approximately 150 days per year. The other 215 days I will reside in my home in Florida. My income will be from a Florida State pension and Social Security. I will have no income from work performed in Massachusetts. Will I have any Massachusetts state income tax liability? Thank you.
Hello Richard,
Unfortunately, the rules are not nationwide. It depends based on the states you are living in. For example, in New York, you are considered a resident if you are living there for at least 30 days out of the year. However, that rule differs in Florida where homes are tax-free. I would suggest contacting the IRS to get more information on the Massachusetts laws.
Typically, retirees’ income, like dividends, and other regular investment income, is viewed as earned income in the state in which they keep their primary tax address.
I worked in MS and my house lived in AL. I received a letter yesterday stating I owed AL taxes for 2010 along with penalties and interest for not paying AL taxes. I paid MS taxes. An accountant filed my taxes. Is she somewhat responsible?
Hi Linda,
I’m sorry to hear this happened to you. Keep in mind that you will always need to file taxes for where you live and where you work. I would definitely suggest contacting your accountant as well as the IRS. You should explain a bit of what happened to the IRS. Although your accountant prepared your return, you also were required to sign off on it once it was prepared. However, the IRS may be able to help you out with how to proceed under this certain circumstance.
I live in Florida and do consulting work in different states, one of those being Colorado. I just received a call from a collection agency saying that I owe state of Colorado tax for 07 & 08 I never lived, stayed, or worked in the state of Colorado how would I owe them tax? Please advise.
If you received pay from a Colorado source in your consulting work it could explain why Colorado is requesting you to pay the tax due.
My work place is in Iowa and i have option of living in Iowa or south Dakkota. which one will be better in term of low tax payment.
thanks
Hi, If both state’s have an income tax, it’s always best to live in the state you work in so that you do not face double taxation. If you live in a different state than the state you work in you’ll be forced to file a non-resident return and a resident return.