Married filling jointly but spouses living and working in different states

Question

I live in Wisconsin (full-time resident) whereas my wife lives in Georgia (full-time resident). I had no income in georgia and my wife had no income in wisconsin. Federal taxes looks straightforward but filling state taxes are complicated right now. We are trying not to get double taxed in both states. Georgia is allowing a straightforward filling on freetaxusa but since wisconsin is a community property state, it is very confusing. The software is not letting us split the income. It is showing us that it will need to filed on paper. Is there a solution?

MatthewD · Answer

Hi Nik,

Yes, send a Pro Forma federal return (prepared as married filing separately) with your Wisconsin return if your federal return was filed jointly. You must also include a worksheet or statement allocating income and withholdings per Wisconsin marital property laws, especially if separating community income, even if your spouse is a nonresident.

Nik · Answer

Hello,

I am working on sending the papercopy of my wisconsin return (filing separately) after filling federal return jointly. Should I send the original federal tax return (filed jointly) or Pro Forma Return prepared along with WI return? Also, do I need to include Worksheet showing how you figured your income and income tax withheld based on Wisconsin's marital
 property law even though my spouse was a non-resident?

TaxMorgan · Answer

Hello Nik,

Yes, generally you can choose to file a joint state return when you file a joint federal return. In fact, some states require you to file a joint return if you file a joint federal return even if one of the spouses did not reside in the state.