Stationed at Scott AFB in IL. Service member is Michigan resident, spouse is Louisiana residence. Spouse got a job across the state line in Missouri.
Does the spouse pay Louisiana state taxes or Missouri state taxes? Or someplace else?
What state gets spouse’s taxes?
byu/star_flower95 inMilitaryFinance
Posted by star_flower95
4 Comments
Spouse and Servicemember can choose Servicemember’s residence, spouse’s residence, or duty station location.
Spouse should be able to choose where to file: servicemember’s domicile, spouse’s domicile or the state in which the money was made.
I’d recommend filing in the state with the least tax rate, and if that’s different than the state in which the spouse is employed, then the spouse can file a return in most states to claim their state withholdings back.
Spouse is not a Missouri resident and should have their employer exempt them from MO tax withholding (file a non-resident MO return next year for a refund of any tax already withheld).
Louisiana’s progressive income tax rates are lower than Michigan’s flat tax, so spouse should probably still maintain LA residence, have their employer withhold to LA if possible or pay estimated taxes if not, and file a resident return with LA next year.
Michigan appears to exempt most military income from taxation, so servicemember should definitely maintain MI residency and file Michigan resident returns. If filing separate resident state income tax returns in both LA & MI is a hassle, consider having spouse elect to use MI for tax purposes going forward. Probably is a higher tax bill than spouse separately maintaining LA residency, but simplicity of only one state tax return may be worth the cost if the spouse’s taxable income isn’t very high.
Military spouse may choose their home state, military member state, or state you currently live.
You should have made this decision on the spouse’s tax elections even they starting working their current job.