# Where do US expats pay state taxes? Or do they? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 5, 2012, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005 "2012-05-05T17:04:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![allaround](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@allaround](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/allaround)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2012, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/1 "2012-05-05T17:04:31Z")
If you have no property in the US, but you still consider a state as your residence for voting and maybe other purposes, but you live the entire year abroad, so you pay state taxes? Even if you don’t pay, do you file with the state? I guess, in general, I’m wondering what “state” laws (benefits, rights or obligations or whatever) cover a state resident that lives overseas permanently (military or not might matter I guess). ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2012, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/2 "2012-05-05T17:18:37Z")
> [@allaround](#): > > If you have no property in the US, but you still consider a state as your residence for voting and maybe other purposes, but you live the entire year abroad, so you pay state taxes? Even if you don’t pay, do you file with the state? > > I guess, in general, I’m wondering what “state” laws (benefits, rights or obligations or whatever) cover a state resident that lives overseas permanently (military or not might matter I guess). I’m not sure about the tax question, but I don’t believe that if you claim a state residency, they can still tax your income. As far as other benefits, I can only share anecdotally that a girl in my law school class in 29 years old. Her father was born in West Virginia, but was stationed in Japan for 20 years. She was born in Japan on the base, lived in Japan until age 22, and lived in California until 1 month before attending law school in West Virginia. She was classified, by the fact of her father’s military status, as being a West Virginia resident. I, OTOH, lived in West Virginia for 29 years, moved to Florida, moved back to WV and still 2 years later, they consider me a non-resident for tuition purposes even though I pay taxes here, have 4 vehicles titled and licensed here, own property here, vote, have my DL here, and have family here. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2012, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/3 "2012-05-05T17:25:24Z")
I have no idea whether they are liable for state tax, but if they are, they can simply do what many rich people do, and establish residency in a state that doesn’t have income tax, like Florida or Texas. ---
**Author:** ![allaround](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@allaround](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/allaround)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2012, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/4 "2012-05-05T17:26:53Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > I’m not sure about the tax question, but I don’t believe that if you claim a state residency, they can still tax your income. > > As far as other benefits, I can only share anecdotally that a girl in my law school class in 29 years old. Her father was born in West Virginia, but was stationed in Japan for 20 years. She was born in Japan on the base, lived in Japan until age 22, and lived in California until 1 month before attending law school in West Virginia. She was classified, by the fact of her father’s military status, as being a West Virginia resident. > > I, OTOH, lived in West Virginia for 29 years, moved to Florida, moved back to WV and still 2 years later, they consider me a non-resident for tuition purposes even though I pay taxes here, have 4 vehicles titled and licensed here, own property here, vote, have my DL here, and have family here. Thanks. Sounds like you should have waited a year or two before going to school. : ) But if she lived in CA for 6-7 years, and she’s not a minor or still overseas, it seems something is odd about that. Must be state law loophole. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2012, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/5 "2012-05-05T17:54:02Z")
I lived overseas for a number of years and qualified as tax exempt. To do this, I stayed out of the US for 330 days a year. For federal and state, my salary was exempt for the first $80k. I still had to file both federal and state taxes. I’m a resident of DC, because that’s were my house is I do know people who intentionally set up their residence in states like Texas so that they didn’t have any state tax. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2012, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/6 "2012-05-09T05:05:54Z")
I’ve lived outside of the US for 12 years; my US residence for voting purposes is California because that’s where I lived before I emigrated. California doesn’t require that I pay state taxes, so I don’t. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2012, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/7 "2012-05-09T05:29:39Z")
I’m going to go ahead and disagree with the residency answer. As we’ve discussed on this board in previous threads, state taxes are paid to the state you earned the income in. I am now a resident of Colorado but last tax year had to pay tax to Arizona on some deferred salary from my time living there. Those who work in a couple different states can tell you what a cluster it can be tracking what state you paid taxes to when it comes time to fill out a couple different forms. Under that logic, if you do not earn tax in a sttate, you do not need to pay state taxes on it. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2012, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/8 "2012-05-09T08:03:05Z")
That is not my experience **Cad**. I live in DC, but my employer is in Bethesda, MD. When I took the job, I identified myself as a resident of DC and my employer takes DC taxes out of my pay. I never have any interaction with Maryland tax authorities. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2012, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/9 "2012-05-09T08:21:20Z")
Maryland and the District of Columbia have [an agreement](http://individuals.marylandtaxes.com/incometax/gtpitc/income.asp) that allows you to do that: > [@](#): > > No credit may be claimed for tax paid on wages that you, as a Maryland resident, earned in Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and Washington, D.C., since Maryland shares a reciprocal tax agreement with these jurisdictions allowing residents to pay taxes to the jurisdiction where they reside. (That site is for Maryland residents, but it should work the other way around for DC residents.) ---
**Author:** ![kferr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/71e660/32.png) [@kferr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kferr)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2012, 9:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/10 "2012-05-09T09:26:57Z")
I’ve been an expat for 16 years and was about to jump in with “no, you don’t pay state taxes”, but then thanks to **TonySinclair’s** post I remembered that Texas, where I last lived, didn’t have state taxes anyway. This thread reminds me that I need to file my 2011 federal taxes soon. Expats get until June or July to file. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2012, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/11 "2012-05-09T12:40:45Z")
I have the option. If I pay Michigan income taxes, I keep my homestead property tax exemption. No income taxes means a lot higher property taxes. Since my company equalizes my taxes anyway, but won’t help with property taxes, I simply pay my state income taxes. Because of the equalization formulae, my foreign earned income on paper is well, well above the exclusion amount anyway. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2012, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/12 "2012-05-10T06:05:14Z")
> [@Lord\_Feldon](#): > > Maryland and the District of Columbia have [an agreement](http://individuals.marylandtaxes.com/incometax/gtpitc/income.asp) that allows you to do that: > > (That site is for Maryland residents, but it should work the other way around for DC residents.) I did not know that. In the US, I’ve only lived in the DC area, so I thought this was just how it was done. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2012, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/13 "2012-05-10T11:06:14Z")
If you are an American, you also pretty well have to be a ‘resident’ of some state or another. When I was single, I owned no property anywhere, so I just claimed Nevada since they have no income tax. Now I am wed and so claim Pennsylvania as I own a house there. But if some other state thinks they can get their hooks into you, they will try. I had some mail delivered to a Maryland address and that state got all excited about me for a while. Determining a person’s state of residence is more art than science. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2012, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/14 "2012-05-14T12:09:13Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > But if some other state thinks they can get their hooks into you, they will try. I had some mail delivered to a Maryland address and that state got all excited about me for a while. Determining a person’s state of residence is more art than science. I have a remailer service that I use in Texas, and you had me worried for just a second until I remembered that’s there’s no income tax there. However I’ve changed the billing address on all of my credit cards to my Texas post office box address, and now the downside is I have to pay stupid Texas sales taxes for most online transactions. :smack: (Oh, I’d have to pay Michigan sales taxes for lots of that, too, but Texas taxes are 50% higher!) ---
**Author:** ![Desert\_Nomad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desert_nomad/32/177_2.png) [@Desert\_Nomad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desert_Nomad)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2012, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-us-expats-pay-state-taxes-or-do-they/621005/15 "2012-05-14T13:11:17Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > If you are an American, you also pretty well have to be a ‘resident’ of some state or another. I know Americans that were born overseas and have never been to America. They are not a resident of any state but still pay US income taxes (because they have no other citizenship, they can’t renounce their US citizenship). Really odd to have to pay tax to a country you have never set foot in and never plan to.