Last year I worked in NJ and NY, and I live full time in NY. I received two w2s 1 NJ and 1 NY. In box 1 it shows 78,077.88 and in box 16 it shows 50,055.77 and 56,572.22 for NY and NJ wages respectively. My problem is that I only worked in NJ in January and February, so it seems as though this number is way too high as I only worked 2 months in NJ. How could box 16 be higher for NJ than NY? My Issue comes into play when I am filling out the information for the NYS resident credit... What should I be entering for amount taxable in NJ? Is it the difference between box 1 and 16 on my NY W2?

Same problem comes into play when I fill out the information for the NJ return. From which number should I be allocating wages?

You need to pro-rate the income on the NJ Form 1040NR (which is the state returns for non-residents like yourself) to properly reflect how much of the income was earned while working in New Jersey.

Also, if your employer is still withholding NJ taxes when you are NOT working in NJ, you need to have him stop that withholding and refund the money withheld since 1 January 2011.

If you need professional help filing your return, email me at [email protected].