Did I file a State tax by mistake?

[Pavement88]

Hello,
I have a tax question regarding a state filing I did recently. I am currently active military and my home state is Florida. I am currently stationed in Illinois. When I enlisted, I was a resident in Florida who lived with my mother. As of January 2023 my mother moved to South Carolina and I use her current South Carolina address as my mailing address. When I filed my Federal Taxes, I used her South Carolina address as my current mailing address. After I filed my federal taxes..turbo tax then said I needed to file South Carolina state taxes..which seemed odd. I went ahead and filed the state tax and filed myself a nonresident because I do not live there nor have I established a residence there. I am not sure if this was the correct thing to do. Since I enlisted in the military in Florida I do not pay state tax. After I filed the South Carolina taxes it did not say anything about owing any state taxes on my income. I am wondering if I will be expected to pay a state tax to South Carolina because I use my mothers address as my mailing address?

[MaryK4 · Accepted solution]

No, your Home of Record is the state where you enlisted (Florida) until you intend to abandon it.  Just because you lived with your mother and she moved to South Carolina does not mean that you must "move" with her.  You should not have paid any taxes to South Carolina unless you had income from South Carolina (like a rental property).  Also, many military use a relative's address as their mailing address when they are deployed- as long as it is reasonable that you will be able to retrieve the mail if needed.   

[Pavement88]

Thank you for the insight! Since I filed a South Carolina Personal Tax return as a non resident..will that cause any issues? 

[MaryK4 · Accepted solution]

No as long as you did not report any income- on the contrary, it is proof that you intend to keep your Florida Home of Record/residency.

[Pavement88]

The SC1040 South Carolina Individual Income Tax Return does show my Federal Taxable Income on line1. Does this count as the reported income..or do you mean report any income made in South Carolina?

[DMarkM1]

Yes, the federal adjusted gross income will automatically transfer to the state returns but then you would have excluded any non SC source income from SC taxable income.  Line 5 would show any SC source income remaining.   If you had none then there would be zero and subsequently zero SC tax.  

[Pavement88]

Thank you!