Resident of Oregon, student in Idaho, Income from California - how to file taxes?

Question

I am a total tax newbie that has relied on turbotax for the past couple of years I have had to pay taxes, but now I have a situation that isn't covered by turbotax.

I am/was a resident of Oregon. I live in Idaho and have gone to school there, and I worked my summer internship in California.

I have zero income from Oregon, scholarships from Idaho, and job income from California. I intend to return to California in May.

The forms are somewhat straightforward, but I don't know which state forms to fill out. I have no one to talk to about this. Everyone I know uses turbotax.

Do I not report California income on my Idaho return and not report Idaho scholarships on my Californian return? I am assuming I don't file an Oregon return. The federal return I can use turbo tax for still.

Answer 1

There's a very simple way to answer this, even before you start TurboTax:

1. Go to each State's tax authority website (for example, California's is here)
2. Look for a section that answers the question "Do I need to file?" (for example, California's is here)
3. Read the information there and decide whether or not you have to file for that particular state.

As far as I know, most states have separate instructions for residents, non-residents, and part-year residents.

Yes, it is possible that you may end up filing in quite a few states.

I would do this before you buy the state modules in TurboTax because it may not be worth paying for them if you don't need to file.