Live in NJ work NY. W2-bx 14 has NY wages that are lower than Bx 16 wage. Use which for NY nonresident taxes & which for allocation of wages for NJ Resident return?

[likeisaid]

Why is there a different state wage in Box 14?  Box 1 and 16 are the same amount.

Do I ignore box 14 state wages or does turbotax plug it into state return somewhere?

[DanielV01]

Did you work all year in NY, or split time between NY and NJ?  What does Box 14 say specifically (the code that's used)?

[likeisaid]

work all year in NY.  Box 14 says NY Wages

[DanielV01]

Does Box 14 match Box 1?

[likeisaid]

Box 14 is lower than box 1 and 16- which are the same.   its about 6% lower than box 16 state wage amount

[DanielV01 · Accepted solution]

Double-check the following answer with your employer to ensure that there is something I am not missing.  Based on the information you provide above, you should ignore Box 14 on the NY state return.  Usually Box 14 is informational.  You should enter the information into the W2 screen, but it shouldn't automatically change your state return.   Sometimes the information is very useful for certain purposes, but I don't think that this is the case here.  

The reason why is that New York taxes all of the income listed in Box 1.  Since all of that income was earned working in New York, all of it should be taxable in New York.  However, as I mention, you could double-check with your employer to make sure that there might not be some income they are reporting that is excluded from New York tax that agrees with the amount that is listed in Box 14.