[Help] Two W-2s from Same Internship (NY and CA) – Same Wages, First Time Filing Multi-State Taxes
Hi everyone,
I'm a full-time student and a New York resident. In summer 2024, I completed a paid internship in California (June to August). This internship was my only source of income in 2024 – I had no income in NY.
Here’s the tricky part:
My employer issued two separate W-2s for this one internship:
- W-2 (NY): Includes federal wages and tax info (Boxes 1–6), and NY state info in Boxes 15–20.
- W-2 (CA): Includes only Boxes 15–17 with CA State Wages and CA income tax withheld.
👉 Box 16 (State Wages) is identical on both forms, because they both refer to the same income from my internship.
The problem:
- I entered the NY W-2 for the federal portion since it has all the main data.
- I also entered the CA SDI info in Box 14.
- But when I got to the CA state tax return, the system says I don’t qualify for CA tax credits or refund, because it thinks I didn’t earn income in CA.
💸 The issue is, I had $1,900+ in CA state income tax withheld – but now I may not get any of it refunded because the system thinks I had no California income!
I contacted FreeTaxUSA Live Chat:
- One rep told me to “add another state” to my W-2.
- Another warned me not to report both W-2s in case it double-counts income.
- They suggested I ask my employer whether I should even have two W-2s.
So now I’m stuck and not sure what to do. 😞
My questions:
- Should I report both W-2s separately, even though the wages are the same?
- Should I combine them into one W-2 entry and list both NY and CA in Box 15?
- How do I make sure my $1,900+ in CA state tax is properly reported and refunded?
- Is it correct to use only the NY W-2 on the federal return even though all the income was earned in CA?
This is my first time filing multi-state taxes and I really don’t want to mess it up.
If anyone has dealt with split-state W-2s for an internship or remote job, your help would be incredibly appreciated!
Thank you so much in advance! 🙏