My spouse and I reside in different states. One of us is in South Carolina and one in Florida. How does this impact our filing status? SC has state tax, Florida does not.

If you file a joint federal return, you must file a joint South Carolina return SC1040 with Schedule NR.  The resident spouse will report to South Carolina all income for the entire year. The spouse who is not a resident on the joint return will only report income earned in SC, if any.

If you file separate federal returns, you must file a separate South Carolina return. Your spouse must also file a separate South Carolina return if he/she has income taxable by South Carolina.

Florida, of course, has no personal income tax.