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May 30, 2025
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Which State do I File?

  • May 30, 2025
  • 1 reply
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We live in CO, our dependent daughter (20) attends an out of state school (CA) and worked part time, making less than is required to file state taxes.  She also received a 1098-T from a CA school and a 1099-Q. (All of the 529 distributions were for qualified education expenses, so she does not owe tax on these.)
Which State taxes does she need to file?   CO or CA?  
Thanks in advance. 

Best answer by xmasbaby0

When your colleges student is your dependent, living away at school is considered to be a "temporary absence" from home, so your child is still a resident of your own home state--CO--and should file a CO tax return if she has taxable income.   You do not mention how much she earned while at school in CA, so we cannot determine if she needs to file a return for CA, nor have you mentioned if any CA state tax was withheld from her paychecks.  If she needs to file a CA return to seek a refund of tax withheld, it must be a NON-resident CA return.  The non-resident return must be prepared before the resident state return.

1 reply

xmasbaby0Answer
May 30, 2025

When your colleges student is your dependent, living away at school is considered to be a "temporary absence" from home, so your child is still a resident of your own home state--CO--and should file a CO tax return if she has taxable income.   You do not mention how much she earned while at school in CA, so we cannot determine if she needs to file a return for CA, nor have you mentioned if any CA state tax was withheld from her paychecks.  If she needs to file a CA return to seek a refund of tax withheld, it must be a NON-resident CA return.  The non-resident return must be prepared before the resident state return.

**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**
newt45Author
May 30, 2025

Thank you for the prompt response.    No CA State taxes were withheld and she only made 1,200 .  I believe that is below the amount for which taxes are required to be filed.