My employer paid income tax to a state I did not live in, and won't issue a correction.

[xmasbaby0]

TN has no state income tax so you do not have to file anything in TN.     If you did not live or work in GA then file a non-resident tax return for GA to get a refund of tax withheld.

[maryadrew32]

Last year I filed a nonresident return thinking that since the company who employs me is based in GA that I had to pay GA income tax. Now I’ve learned that if I was working remotely from home in TN and not working IN Georgia I go by TN tax laws. So now I’m assuming I need to do an amended Georgia nonresident return for 2020. It’s asking for the amended federal return to be sent with it. Do I need to change my federal return at all?

[Critter-3]

There is nothing to amend on the federal return ... send a copy of the original return along with a copy of the W-2 and a note from the employer if you can get one.

[lonlewis]

My employer witheld taxes for the State of California, but i live and work in Texas.  I tried to correct the situation all year, but it was not corrected until December.

Now they are not reimbursing me saying I'll have to get it from the State.  please let me know if this is something that intuit can help me with.

[Critter-3]

You will simply file a CA non resident state return to show no CA income and get a refund of the CA withholding.

[Crstlmlr]

What do I do if there is no state tax ID for the state they issued money to in error? Do I need this to complete my taxes? 

[TeresaM]

If you have withholding for a state, you can file a state return to request a refund. You will not need the state ID for your federal taxes, however the withholding in box 17 will need to flow from the W-2 entry in the federal return to the state return. Try using the federal ID in box 15, or if the state requires a particular format, such as ending in XYZ, then enter 9999999XYZ for the number of digits it specifies.

Your state department of revenue will be able to easily identify your employer from the 9-digit federal EIN, so the state ID number is a little redundant anyway, but is still a way that your state tracks employers in their internal state computer system.  The state employer ID number is a bureaucratic convenience for your state's department of revenue; it is not an essential element to the correct filing and processing of a valid personal income tax return (either state or federal)

[Mackensieg]

I have a similar situation. I moved to Florida from California in March 2020 and have worked remotely for a CA company ever since. I documented my new address but it still said my new address was in CA. I was charged California state taxes until August 2021 when I noticed the error and fixed it on one of our (arbitrary) employee portals. My paycheck immediately changed after that. My company is refusing to issue a new W-2 because they’re saying it’s my fault that my address was wrong in the system (my full address was right, including the zip code,  except the state and I received my 2020 W-2 at my correct address so it must have been right somewhere). I imagine I won’t have much luck getting my 2020 withheld income back, but I haven’t filed my 2021 taxes yet. Tax professional said they cannot do anything until I have a corrected W-2. How do I proceed? 

[Vanessa A]

If you were not a resident of CA, you would just need to file a CA Non-Resident return for 2021 to claim a refund of your taxes paid reporting $0 as your wages.

For 2020, you would need to file a Part Year resident return if you did not and report only the portion of income you earned while a resident of CA.  If you did already file a CA return for 2020 and included all of your income for the year, you would just need to  Amend Your Return for CA for 2020 to allocate your income earned in CA versus earned while a resident of FL. 

[Mackensieg]

Thank you, Vanessa. I was told that I cannot report $0 for my wages without a corrected W-2. Is there a way to do this without a W-2? 

[AmyC]

In the program, you file a CA return as a nonresident. When the program asks you to allocate how much income was earned in CA, enter zero. Your CA taxes are in the program and you get a refund. Your situation is common.

@Mackensieg

[BluJay614]

What if a previous employer was based out of a different state and charged me for the income tax of their state, while I only ever worked in my home state? In this case, they are based in Idaho, and I live and worked in Texas

[ErnieS0]

File a non-resident Idaho income tax return to claim state withholding that your previous employer took out by mistake.

You can ask your former employer to send you a corrected W-2 and return the Idaho tax withheld, but most employers will not do that, so you’ll have to file a tax return.

Idaho does not tax remote employees.

See Should I Withhold Income Tax?

On your Idaho return, change your income to $0. The refund should be the same as your withholding.

Consider filing by mail. Attach a note (and letter from your former employer, if you can get one) explaining that tax was withheld by mistake because you were remote and never lived or worked in Idaho.

If you mail your return, we suggest sending it by certified mail with delivery confirmation.

@Bluejay614

[sfreincle99]

My employer totally screwed me.  She took out MA taxes for half a year then switched to PA taxes.  I paid MA taxes for over 10 years!  Her excuse was that the tax laws changed.  I protested saying that tax laws do not change mid-year.  Now, trying to apply for unemployment insurance has been a nightmare.

[Courtneybarrick]

Currently going through similar situation, wondering how all this worked out for those who commented in 2020?