Does a federal worker with residency in WA state need to file income taxes in CA state if sent there TDY for only 26 days?

[contactdwhite]

I am a civilian federal worker employed by the Navy in Washington State. Last year (2015) I was sent TDY to California for 26 days. I am told by my employer that I do not need to file income taxes with California for such a short time; however, TurboTax is guiding me toward paying CA state taxes as a non-resident for the time that I was working there. Do I, or do I not, need to file state taxes with California for 2015?

[ToddL · Accepted solution]

Did your employer withhold CA state tax for the period you worked in CA? (This is unlikely). If they did, you will have to file a CA return to get a refund. As a civil servant, your earnings are considered to be from the state where your position is located. 

If not, then the program is probably directing you to prepare a CA return because you answered "Yes" to the Personal Info interview question "Did you make money in any other states?"

 If so, you should either change the answer to that question to "No" or ignore the prompts to prepare a CA state tax return. If you encounter any errors when you try to file, you MAY have to try Using Clear & Start Over in TurboTax Online.

[contactdwhite]

My employer did not withhold CA state tax. Thank you for the thorough answer.