Do I have to pay state tax to NJ and PA? My family moved to NY in 11/15/2016. I went to school in PA. I have W2's from my job in NJ and my job while at college in PA.

[sharkam39]

My family moved to NY the end of 2016.  I had a part time job in NJ and a job in PA while at college.  My PA employer classified my earnings as "local wages, tips, etc" box 18.  Do I have to file state income tax to NJ, PA and/or NY?

[MiriamF · Accepted solution]

Yes, you must file tax returns in all three states (with a possible exception - see the info about reciprocal agreements, below.) Whether you must pay state tax to those states depends upon their rules.

You were a part-year resident of NY for a month and a half. Any income you earned while a resident of NY is taxable in NY, whether you earned it in NY or elsewhere.

You don't say where you lived for the rest of 2016. New Jersey and Pennsylvania have reciprocal agreements, which means that if you lived in one and worked in the other, you will only need to file a tax return in your state of residence. This assumes that you filed the proper form with your employer (NJ-165 if you were a resident of PA; REV-419 if you were a resident of NJ). If you worked in NJ but lived in PA, and only PA tax was withheld, then you filed the proper form.

[mattkam0722]

I was told that you don't have to file in NJ if income is less than $10k or just to get withholdings back. We aren't talking a lot of money here $1500 in NJ. $1400 in PA. Why would I have to file in NY?

[MiriamF]

The filing requirement for NJ is $10,000 income from all sources, whether NJ or out of state ($20k if filing jointly, as head of household, or qualifying widow(er)). The filing requirement for PA is $33 in PA gross income. Because you lived in NY for 1/8 of the year (1.5/12 months), your filing requirement is 1/8 of the standard deduction for your filing status. As a single dependent, your filing requirement would be $388 in income during the time you lived in NY.

Based upon what you have said, you would not need to file a NJ return. You would definitely need to file a PA return, and you may need to file a NY return, depending upon when you earned your income.