What is my residence state and how should I file state return(s)?

[goddamonabc]

Lived in Maryland from Jan-June, and lived in California from July-December. I worked for a company onsite for the six months and worked remotely for the next six months. I'm not sure whether my income is considered earned all in Maryland or partly in Maryland and partly in California? What is my residence state and how should I file my state returns?

The same goes for my wife -- she worked remotely (living with me in Maryland) for a company in Florida for the first six months, then left for California and worked for a local firm for the rest of the year. It's clear her residence state is California but is the non-residence state Florida or Maryland?

[MaryK1 · Accepted solution]

Income is considered earned in the state where the actual work was performed.  If you work remotely, you would report and pay state taxes to the state where you worked regardless of where the company is located.

For state taxes, in general, you are taxed by your resident state (if they have an income tax) on income from all sources, regardless of where it was earned.  The state where you performed the actual work also can tax the income as a nonresident.  To offset the double tax at the state level, you pay the tax to the nonresident state but can claim a credit for the tax in your resident state. 

Because you moved during the year, you will have to file a Part Year resident tax return for Maryland and California.  You will allocate the income based on where you were a resident when you earned it (so MD for the first half, CA for the second half).  Your wife will pay MD for the income earned while you lived in MD and CA for the income earned in CA.

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