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New Member
posted Jun 6, 2019 6:14:21 AM

Do I need to pay IL state taxes for Army reserve pay? They didn't include it on the W-2 and now it says that I owe.

Boxes 16 through 20 are empty on the W-2

0 16 3874
16 Replies
Level 15
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:21 AM
Level 15
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:23 AM

TurboTax does not automatically excluded the pay; you have to enter it as a deduction, in the IL interview

New Member
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:25 AM

Turbotax doesn't seem to have 'deduction' as an option.

New Member
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:25 AM

TurboTax only asked me if it was active duty pay, not reserves.

Level 15
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:27 AM

When you entered the W-2 there was a follow up screen that indicates the military pay aspect so the state will know it is military pay ... and when you get to the state interview it will ask how much of the military pay is exempt from IL taxes. 

New Member
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:27 AM

I already entered the W-2 and I don't remember seeing that as an option. Obviously, I would have said it was military pay, but they never asked.

New Member
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:29 AM

It asked if it was active duty pay only, not reserves. So how am I supposed to report it???

Level 15
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:31 AM

Please click on the Active duty to get IL to recognize it.

New Member
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:32 AM

I tried that just for fun earlier and the numbers on the left side of the screen showing how much I owed only reduced by $5

Level 15
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:34 AM

Did you also go to the state interview and enter the amount of military pay so it can exempt it ?  Look at the screenshot in my answer.

New Member
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:35 AM

Military pay exclusion did not appear anywhere for me. I tried to find it.

New Member
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:37 AM

Maybe they just designed it to only ask that if you put 'active duty' for a job somewhere.

New Member
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:38 AM

Yep. It still doesn't work when I enter in the full wages into 'military pay exclusion' Somehow, it's getting my job that I had in Kentucky mixed up with the one in Illinois. It added to my Kentucky return when I said that my IL job was military.

New Member
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:40 AM

I put the amount on 'other subtractions' on Illinois Part-Year and Nonresidents, but that still requires me to essentially lie either just to TurboTax or potentially the IRS that I was active rather than reserves.

Level 15
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:41 AM

It may be best for you to talk in real time to TT Customer Support . They can even screen share with you if necessary to see what is going on.    
Here's how to be assigned a phone number to the proper department at TT Customer Support during the business hours shown below (it will not display when they are closed).

1) Go to <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://support.turbotax.intuit.com/contact/">https://support.turbotax.intuit.com/contact/</a>
2) Choose the product platform you are using.
3)  Ask a question or keywords without quotes, and Submit.
4)  On next page, skip the suggested articles if they don't help.
5) Scroll down, and you should be able to enter the Support module to get a phone number. (That will be grayed out when they are closed).

New Member
Jun 6, 2019 6:14:42 AM

I tricked the system. I went through the IL taxes pretending to TurboTax that I was active duty, then, to make sure that KY didn't pay me extra (I couldn't figure out why) I went back and unchecked the active duty option. It updated KY, but didn't change the IL figures.