topic Military resident from Illinois living in Louisiana. in Get your taxes done using TurboTax

Military resident from Illinois living in Louisiana.

yo_23 — Mon, 14 Apr 2025 01:40:42 GMT

I am a resident of Illinois but I am in the military, so I am currently stationed in Louisiana. My husband changed his drivers license to Louisiana because he had to for work. Do I need to file in both states? How do I file my state taxes? Are we better of filing separately?

Re: Military resident from Illinois living in Louisiana.

SharonD007 — Mon, 14 Apr 2025 02:25:35 GMT

You and your husband can file your state tax return in the state of your legal state of residence, which generally is your Home of Record. If you haven't changed your Home of Record, you will file a resident tax return for Illinois.

To find out if you need to file a state tax return when you aren't stationed in your resident state, check out Military Filing Information on State Websites, which has links for active duty military and their spouses in each state. If you have nonmilitary earnings, review Civilian pay earned by active duty military.

Refer to the TurboTax Help article What is my military state of residence? and Where can I find state information on filing my return as an active duty military member?

Re: Military resident from Illinois living in Louisiana.

yo_23 — Mon, 14 Apr 2025 02:40:37 GMT

Thank you. What about if my spouse works for a municipality in Louisiana and was required to be a resident in order to work there?

Re: Military resident from Illinois living in Louisiana.

RobertB4444 — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 16:18:01 GMT

In that case your spouse is a resident and has to file a Louisiana state tax return. You can file married-filing-separately for Louisiana. Or you can change your state of residence to Louisiana and file jointly.

@yo_23