Multiple states

Forum|Forum|4 years ago
July 5, 2021
1 reply
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I filed both my Federal and Colorado taxes manually. My husband works remotely for a company in Connecticut so I need to file that return as well and I can't find anyone to help me. Should I re-file my Federal taxes using TurboTax and not submit the return, but use it to file CT taxes? If so, can I print the CT taxes and mail them in so I don't file my Federal taxes twice?

Best answer by Hal_Al

Q. Do I need to do an amended return for Colorado?

A. Probably not. I believe CT tax was mistakenly withheld, since he did not physically work there. You need to file a non resident CT return for a full refund. You may need to attach a letter of explanation.

However, if he occasionally worked in CT (trips, including training days, to the home office), you are required to pay CT tax on the income for those days. So, in that case, you would need to file an amended CO return to claim a credit for the net CT tax paid.

He should talk to his employer about stopping the CT withholding, to avoid filing for a CT refund every year.

Hal_Al

Level 15

Yes. If you want to prepare a state return using TurboTax (TT), you must first complete the federal return, in TT. Be sure that the federal return you prepare matches what you actually filed. You will not be able to e-file the CT return. So it will have to be printed and mailed.

But, you need to explain more. You may need professional tax prep help. What does "works remotely for a company in Connecticut " mean? You may not need to file a CT return if he did not physically work in CT. Was CT tax withheld? Did you file MFJ (Married filing jointly) Federal & CO returns? Normally you should not have prepared your CO (residence state) return without first having prepared a CT (work state) return.

This is the general rule: The income is work state (WS) source income only if it was physically earned there. Resident States (RS) tax all their resident's income, regardless of where earned. You file a non-resident tax return for the WS and report the WS income. You file a full year resident return for the RS, reporting all your income. The RS will give you a credit, or partial credit for any tax paid to the WS.

alisonjhadeAuthor

Level 2

Thank you for your reply. He works from home in CO and will continue to do so. The office is in CT. Yes, CT taxes were withheld. Yes, we filed MFJ for Federal and CO.

Your third paragraph makes me think I need to do an amended return for Colorado. We didn't get a credit for tax paid to the WS.