CA/PA married but living and working separately

beltrunner
beltrunner Member Posts: 2 Newcomer
in State Filing

Hi all,

My wife and I married in November of 2024. For the entire year, we both lived and worked full time in our separate states. I lived/worked in CA and she lived and worked in PA.

My understanding is that it would be in our best interest to file our federal return jointly but separately for the state, and thus to make different FreeTaxUSA accounts to accomplish this. Is this correct? Furthermore, I'm not sure how to approach CA's community property law - is her PA income earned during our marriage in 2024 taxable in CA even though she was a nonresident the whole year?

Thanks so much!

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  • WrenD
    WrenD FreeTaxUSA Agent Posts: 30
    Answer ✓

    Hello beltrunner,

    Yes, you're correct — in order to file your state returns separately, you would need to create two additional FreeTaxUSA accounts and file as Married Filing Separately in each one.

    Since you each lived and worked in different states for the full year, this is often the best approach. You can still file your federal return jointly in your original account.

    For California: Because your spouse lived and worked only in Pennsylvania and you married in November, her income is considered separate property and not subject to California’s community property rules. Per FTB Publication 1031, income earned by a nonresident spouse while domiciled in a non–community property state is not treated as community income. You would only report your own California income on your CA return.

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