It might be time consuming to file multiple returns, but it’s not particularly difficult or challenging. And thanks to a 2015 U.S. Supreme Court decision, you won’t have to pay taxes to both states.
How To Get Started
Figure out how much income you earned in the nonresident state and how much you earned in your home state. Most nonresident returns use the figures from your federal return, so it can make things easier if you complete your federal return first. Then you’ll have that information at your fingertips.
Allocating Your Income
List your total income from your federal return in one column and your earnings as a nonresident in another column. Calculate the percentage of your nonresident income to total income from the totals in those two columns. This is your “nonresident percentage.” You’ll use this percentage to allocate your taxable income, your deductions, and your tax liability. Some states will require that you calculate your taxable earnings in that state as if you were a resident there, even if you didn’t live there. You would then multiply this by your “nonresident percentage” to come up with your taxable income as a nonresident. Virginia uses this method.
Allocating Your Deductions
Other states will have you multiply this “nonresident percentage” by your federal deductions. This amount will be your nonresident deduction amount, which you would then subtract from the earnings you made in that state as a nonresident.
Allocating Your Tax Liability
Some states, such as Delaware, allow you to offset your nonresident income by your federal itemized deductions after adjusting for nondeductible items such as state and local taxes. These returns then have you multiply your actual tax liability by your “nonresident percentage” to come up with your tax liability as a nonresident.
If You Moved During the Year
You’ll probably have to file a part-year return instead of a nonresident return if you moved to another state during the year so you have income from two states and you lived in both. Many states have a separate tax form for part-year filers, but you’ll simply check a box on the regular resident return in others, indicating that you didn’t live in the state for the entire year.
Some States Have Reciprocity
Several neighboring states have entered into reciprocity agreements with each other. These agreements allow income earned in one state to be taxed in the other, eradicating the need for tax credits to compensate for these taxes. Employers would make withholdings from pay only for taxes owed to the employee’s state of residence.
Filing a Return in Your Resident State
You must also file a tax return in your resident state. You’ll include all your earnings on this return, even what you made in the nonresident state, because most states tax the income of their residents regardless of its source. But you should receive a credit from your home state for any taxes you paid to the nonresident state.
Taxes Paid to Another State
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2015 that two states cannot tax the same income. New Jersey can’t tax you on income you earned in Pennsylvania if you pay tax to Pennsylvania on the income you earned there. Maryland was hit particularly hard by this decision. In fact, the suit was brought by the state of Maryland. A handful of other states that had historically collected tax from residents who worked elsewhere were affected as well. States have since been required to provide tax credits for taxes paid to other states. You can subtract this amount from your overall taxable earnings. Be sure to take this credit on the return you file in your home state.
If You Have a Business
This information doesn’t apply to individuals who have separate businesses in two or more states. Business deductions would generally be claimed separately with respect to each business. Employees aren’t likely to have business expenses to allocate to their work or earnings from different states.
