State of Residence for PHD Student on Stipend working Remotely

Forum|Forum|5 years ago
March 24, 2021
2 replies
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I was employed in Maryland thru the first half of 2020. I left my job and I began a PHD program with a university in California in September 2020, but I remained in Maryland and completed the first quarter of my PHD program 'remotely' while living in Maryland. I received a stipend from the California school, again, while living in Maryland. I performed the 'work' while living in Maryland. I moved to California early in Jan 2021 to continue the PHD program in person. My move to California may or may not be temporary (it is too early to tell). For 2020, do I need to complete a California Part Year tax return?

AnnetteB6

No, you would not need to file a part-year resident return for California.

If all of your work was performed in Maryland while you were a resident of Maryland, then the only return you need to file is a Maryland resident tax return.

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Opus 17

Employee

For 2021, assuming you do not change your permanent residency to California, you will still owe California a non-resident tax return that reports and pays income tax on income that was paid while you were living in CA. You would also owe a MD resident tax return for all your world-wide income (including the CA income) but you get a credit for the taxes you paid in CA on the same money, which limits the impact of double-taxation.