My job had me listed as living in North Carolina when I worked and lived in Pennsylvania

[querti132679]

hi all as the title suggests I got a job while I was a student in North Carolina and had to move up to Pennsylvania for said job. Unfortunately I did not notice that I was getting North Carolina taxes, and immediately emailed the payroll administrator. The payroll administrator updated my address to be in PA on November 22 of last year. I paid around $1000 in taxes to North Carolina and when I went to file this year, it says I owe 1000 more and that does not feel right. Can anybody help me out?

[AmyC]

Student in NC- first issue, where your parents live vs your residency. If your parents do not live in NC, you probably were never a NC resident. Residency is the place you call home and where you intend to return after school. Maybe you had a NC license, registered to vote, car tags, etc.

File either a nonresident or part-year resident NC return for the time there. Income earned while in NC is taxed to NC on either return.

As you go through the NC return, it asks about the wages and NC source. You need the correct wages and tax to pull over. Follow these steps:

1. Open to federal income
2. Edit the W2 (employer already notified federal and states)
3. Scroll down to the state section of the W2
4. Enter the correct wages for while you were a NC resident. 
   • If zero was earned while in NC, mark zero wages and zero tax. (Put all of the income under PA) 
   • If you did earn something while in NC, enter the wages and tax.
5. Continue
6. If you had zero wages, you need to enter the $1,000 tax paid.
   1. Go to federal deductions and credits
   2. Scroll down to Estimates and Other Taxes Paid
   3. Select Other Income Taxes
   4. Scroll down to Other Income Taxes Paid in 2025
   5. Select withholding not already entered on a W2
   6. Select yes to withholding not yet entered
   7. Select the state and enter the tax paid
7. continue through to state return

Next, complete PA - a part-year or resident return (if that was your residency all year).

• If part-year, list only the income earned while in PA.
• If full year, list all income and claim a credit for the tax paid to NC.

You need to do the states in this order, if you are claiming a credit. The credit will be the lower of the state tax liabilities on the same gross income. You may owe your resident state,  if they have a higher tax rate along with differences in how the taxable income is calculated.

[querti132679]

hi thank you I’ll give that a shot once I get home from work. I was a North Carolina resident who moved Pennsylvania.

[NCperson]

@querti132679 it is not clear whether you moved to PA permanently or simply this was a summer job "while a student".  it makes a difference. 

if you moved to PA permanently, then you'd file both a NC part year and PA part year tax return.

However, if this was a temporary summer job and your domicle did not change, then you'd file a PA non-resident tax return and a NC resident tax return.  Only the money earned in PA would be reported there, while all your earning, regardless of state would be reported to NC and then you'd get a tax credit for taxes paid to another state. 

[querti132679]

no, I permanently moved to Pennsylvania. I finished college and was offered a job up here so I completely relocated. The issue was that my place of employment, had my college apartment listed as my residence and as such was taxing me for NC.

[NCperson]

when you complete both part-year returns, you should have a large refund on the NC return and owe on the PA return.