topic WA resident - do I need to file CA State Tax Return for less $2k in California W2 income in State tax filing

WA resident - do I need to file CA State Tax Return for less $2k in California W2 income

tikitorch — Tue, 24 Feb 2026 07:27:28 GMT

My son who is a resident of WA worked at his university in California while he was in school and made less than $2k. The TurboTax software has calculated an amount that he owes California in state income when I look at the CA state income filing site - it says that if an individual with no dependents has income less than $20k, no state return is needed. Which is right?

Re: WA resident - do I need to file CA State Tax Return for less $2k in California W2 income

TomD8 — Thu, 07 Sep 2023 14:22:44 GMT

See "Do I Have to File?" in this CA tax reference:

https://www.ftb.ca.gov/forms/2022/2022-540nr-booklet.html

Even if your son is not required to file in CA, if CA taxes were withheld from his pay then he'd have to file a return in order to get a refund.