CA Resident and Nonresident Spouse with $0 Income

[ResidentConfused]

I'm recently Married and filing jointly with my wife, prior to this and for the entirety of 2021 she was a resident of and domiciled in MI. I know that she has a Non-resident exemption to CA's healthcare requirement, however, that particular option is not available on Turbo Tax (there is foreign non-resident and non-resident alien, but not residency in another state).

MI does not require health insurance and she stepped away from her job in 2020 to care for family, so no income and no insurance. How do I file our joint return identifying her nonresident exemption to CA's health insurance requirement.

Thanks!

[DaveF1006]

I think it is a California mandate that reads 'Effective January 1, 2020, a new state law requires California residents to maintain qualifying health insurance throughout the year. This requirement applies to each resident, their spouse or domestic partner, and their dependents." So if you are a California resident, your spouse and dependents must have health insurance regardless where they live. There is no waiver for your spouse or dependents if they live out of state, even in a state that doesn't require health insurance.

Please read this State of California link for more details.

[ResidentConfused]

Thank you for your response. The exemption is specifically outlined on CoveredCA’s website Link and on the FTB website as a tax filing exemption Link . My confusion is primarily with the filing method and turbo tax having the proper forms accessible.

Thank you!