@phdstudent , I understand your issue as follows -- you filed a form 1040-NR-EZ for 2019, you do not have a copy of this any more and did not file a schedule-A ( itemized deduction ). Assuming that you had XXXXX withheld for state taxes in 2019, and not having any other deductions ( charitable contribution, medical expenses etc. ), you probably reported XXXXX as your itemized deduction. The State then refunded you YYYY as over paid taxes. SDo for the purposes of reconciling form 1099-G from CA, you would need to enter your gross income ( from W-2 ), your State taxes withheld ( from W-2) while answering questions about the 1099-G. This should then result in non-taxability of the refund in 2020. I had to go search for a copy of the 2019 1040-NR-EZ to see the line where this was reported ( Line 11 ) -- this particular form has not been released for 2020 yet.
Does this solve your issue ?
