Hal_Al
Level 15

State tax filing

 You DO need to file a CCA city tax return, even if  the box 19 (city withholding) amount on your W-2 is the correct amount.

There are only a handful of Ohio cities that do not have a mandatory filing requirement and Cleveland is not one of them.. If you work in a different city than Cleveland, the box 19 amount may be for the work city* (box 20 should have the name of the city that was withheld for). Cleveland only allows a 50% credit for tax paid to another city.

I actually find it easier to fill out a city return by hand or at the city, CCA or RITA web site, than to use TT. Things don't happen automatically and you need to know what you’re doing. The actual  CCA/city forms are easier to follow than the TT interview.

http://www.ccatax.ci.cleveland.oh.us/

*You are  only required to file a city return in the city you live in, if that city has an income tax.

You are not required to file in the city you work in, if different from your residence city, unless they failed to withhold the proper amount. If both cities have an income tax,  you may end up owing your resident city nothing, but you are still required to file a return. If you live and work in the same city and your employer did withhold the exact correct amount, you still have to file a return. Incidentally, employers are only required to withhold for the work city, although many will voluntarily withhold for the resident city as well. Employees of most big companies, in Ohio, seldom owe any city tax, at tax time, because the employer holds out exactly the right amount for both work and resident city, taking into account the credit.

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