I live in Michigan but taxed in Ohio??

[rkasch]

I live in Michigan (full-time) and have W-2 wages in Michigan.  My spouse lives in Michigan (full-time) and has W-2 wages in Ohio.  Her Ohio wages are taxed in Michigan.  We are filing jointly for 2025.  Why are my W-2 wages and retirement income included in the income for Ohio state taxes?

[MaryK4]

Because you filed your Federal return as Married Filing Jointly (MFJ), Ohio law requires you to use the same filing status for your state return. This causes all income from your federal return—including your Michigan wages and retirement income—to automatically flow into the first line of the Ohio return. 

However, due to reciprocity and residency credits, you should not actually pay Ohio tax on your Michigan-sourced income.  If your husband had Michigan tax withheld, you report the income to Michigan only and do not have to file an Ohio tax return.

[rkasch]

Thank you for your excellent reply!  However, I am wondering why Turbotax is calculating that I have a balance owed for the state of Ohio taxes.  Yes, I can see where all the earnings are flowing over to the Ohio state return and my social security taxable earnings are being deducted and my spouse's earnings are NOT reported as earnings from a neighboring state, but my W-2 wages taxed in Michigan still seem to be part of the calculation.  In addition, there are no state taxes paid reported (that is accurate since they were all paid to Michigan) but that results in a balance owed.  Should I simply not file a return for Ohio?

[SteamTrain]

@rkasch 

Your situation still is not clear....though you do seem to imply that no OH taxes were withheld

...were MI taxes withheld from the Ohio Job W-2?   Or were OH taxes withheld?

...or perhaps no state taxes withheld at all?

If the proper forms were filled out with the OH employer, then only MI taxes would be withheld (or perhaps no state taxes at al)....and if only MI taxes were withheld for the OH job, you do NOT indicate that anyone worked in OH, and you would only file MI taxes on all your joint income.   Then you would just delete the entire OH tax return.

Hmmm...does the state line on the W-2 show up as MI income??? even if no MI withholding?

...or no state listed at all?

[rkasch]

I will try to make my situation more clear.

MI taxes were withheld from the OH job.  My spouse worked the OH job and federal and MI taxes were withheld.

The W-2 state line lists only MI taxes withheld.

Please let me know if helps.

[SteamTrain · Accepted solution]

Yep....Fantastic  !....Since MI and OH are reciprocal tax states....you only pay taxes to MI, on that OH W-2 income.

1)  In the Personal Info screen you remove OH as another state that one of you worked in.....because the income is treated as-if it was earned in MI.

2)  Then you go to the States section and delete the OH tax return entirely.

No, you don't file Ohio taxes.

________________________

As reciprocal tax states....MI-OH cross border W-2 workers only pay taxes on those wages,  in the state they live in.    The only time a MI resident, who works a W-2 job in OH, might have to file an OH tax return is in a situation where OH taxes were withheld by mistake...and then they have to file a non-resident OH tax return indicating zero OH income to get all their withholding back.

_________________

Not your situation...but a MI resident who worked in OH as a self-employed contractor (no W-2)....that person would have to file an OH non-resident tax return. But just for the income they received from their self-employed work there.

@rkasch