[nethajij]

I came to US on March 18th 2006 and I started working in my company which is located in NY. I stayed in NY state till July 4th (i.e for 109 days) and moved to NJ on July 5th 2006. I was single by then. I got married on Aug 10th 2006. My wife came to US on Oct 11th 2006. My stay in NJ state for the year 2006 is 180 days (July 5th - Dec 31 2006). My source of income is from NY state all the time. I am going to file as Married filing jointly with no dependents. Now, could you please tell me what I have to do for filing my state taxes. Also, please clarify the following:

1. I understand that I have to file for both state, NY and NJ. Please clarify the resident, part year resident and non-resident stuff for my case. Also, tell me the form numbers.

2. Should I file as 'single' for NY state tax?

3. My employer withheld local tax for NY? Can I claim for refund?

4. I have filed my federal tax for 2006 along with W-7 for my wife' ITIN. How do I file my NY and NJ state tax return without having my wife' ITIN? What is the procedure followed in this case?

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

1) File as part-year residents for BOTH states, using Form NJ1040NR/PR (I think) for NJ and IT-203 for NY.

2) No. If you are married on 31 dec 06, you are considered married for the entire year.

3) Yes, but the taxes paid will go to NY, so the refund will not be much.

4) You need to wait for the ITIN to be returned before you can file the NJ or NY state tax returns. If you have refunds for both, the delay has no consequences,as you owe no tax.

[nethajij]

thanks so much, ATE.

>>If you have refunds for both, the delay has no consequences,as you owe no tax.
I have refunds for both. Even in this case, do I need to inform IRS that I am waiting for ITIN -- basically asking for extension?

The below are the things that I am going to do for filing my state taxes. So, please correct me if I am wrong or please add if I miss anything.

NJ:

a) I file NJ tax as part year resident. Looks like the form is NJ-1040 for both FULL year and part year resident. Please confirm.

b) And, for the wages, I enter the salary for the period of NJ Residence (July to Dec 2006)

c) And, in the 'Credit for taxes paid to other jurisdictions', I enter the 'state' tax that I paid for NY. Please confirm if that is the state tax alone or the sum of state tax and local tax that I paid to NY during the period of NJ residence.

d) I also fill up the Home rebate application.

NY

a) From the IT 203 instructions:
If you filed a joint federal return and:

1) both spouses are nonresidents but only one has New York source income, or
2) one spouse is a part-yearresident and the other is a nonresident with no New York source income,

Step 2 -

Select your filing status and complete items B through F you must file a joint New York State return using filing status 2 and include in the Federal amount column the joint income as reported on your federal income tax return. However, only the spouse with New York source income (or the part-year resident spouse) should sign Form IT-203. That spouse must also complete Form IT-203-C, Nonresident or Part-Year Resident Spouse's Certification (see Other forms you may have to file), and attach it to the front of Form IT-203. In this case, any refund or notice of tax, penalty, or interest due will be issued only in the name of the spouse required to sign Form IT-203.
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The point no 2 is valid for me. So, I should fill IT 203 C too? Please confirm.


b) Is this required for me?
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Form IT-360.1, Change of City Resident Status
To compute the tax due if you changed your New York City or Yonkers resident status during the year. You must pay the New York City income tax or Yonkers resident income tax surcharge for the part of the year that you lived in New York City or Yonkers.
For more information, see the instructions for Form IT-360.1.
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c) For New York IT-203 - Income, what should I enter for New York Amount? Is it the wages for the period that I stayed in NY or the wages for the NY non resident period too?

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

Sorry, I have no time to walk you through the tax preparation process. If you are not sure, go hire a tax pro to do your return.

[nethajij]

No problem. Thanks.

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

Sorry I could not be of more help!