Moving between states: what happens to your taxes

Moving changes your state tax, not your federal tax. Here's what changes on your paycheck, what you file for the year you move, and where remote work gets complicated.

Which state taxes your pay

Wages are generally taxed by the state where you do the work, and your home state taxes all of its residents' income. When those are different states, your home state usually gives a credit for the tax paid to the work state so you aren't taxed twice on the same pay, and some neighboring states have agreements that let you pay only your home state. Each state's paycheck page covers its own rules, including any agreement with its neighbors.

Your paycheck when you move

• Federal W-4: nothing to change because of the move — federal withholding is the same in every state.
• State withholding: give your employer the new state's withholding form (if it has an income tax) and make sure the old state's withholding stops.
• State payroll premiums — disability, family leave, long-term care — follow the state you work in; some states have them and most don't.
• Local taxes change too: some cities and counties tax where you live, others where you work.

The year you move: part-year returns

If you move in the middle of the year, you're usually a part-year resident of both states and file a return in each that has an income tax. New York, for example, splits a part-year resident's income, with part taxed under resident rules and the rest under nonresident rules, on Form IT-203. Keep your final pay stub from before the move: it shows how much of the year's pay and withholding belongs to each state.

Working remotely for an employer in another state

Most states tax a nonresident only on work done inside the state, so working from home in another state usually moves the tax there. A few states don't follow that. New York treats a nonresident whose primary office is in New York as working in New York on telecommuting days, unless the employer has set up a bona fide employer office where they work — so the tax can stay with New York even if you never go in. Check the rules of both states before you move, and ask your employer which state it will withhold for.

Comparing the money

For the whole picture — take-home in each state and what it's worth after prices — use the job offer comparison calculator or the salary needed to move calculator. The most common moves, from Census migration data:

California vs Texas · Florida vs Texas · New Jersey vs New York · Florida vs Georgia · Arizona vs California · Florida vs New York · California vs Nevada · California vs Washington · New Jersey vs Pennsylvania · North Carolina vs South Carolina · Florida vs North Carolina · Florida vs Pennsylvania · California vs New York · Florida vs Virginia · Maryland vs Virginia · Oregon vs Washington · New York vs Pennsylvania · California vs Florida · North Carolina vs Virginia · Colorado vs Texas · California vs Oregon · Oklahoma vs Texas · New York vs Texas · Louisiana vs Texas · Minnesota vs Wisconsin · Illinois vs Texas · Georgia vs Texas · Connecticut vs New York · Kansas vs Missouri · Illinois vs Indiana · Florida vs Ohio · California vs Virginia · Illinois vs Wisconsin · Florida vs Michigan · Florida vs Illinois · Massachusetts vs New York · California vs Colorado · California vs Illinois · Florida vs New Jersey · Florida vs Tennessee

This guide describes general rules; your situation may differ, especially with income from more than one state. A tax professional can help with a multi-state year.

Sources

• New York State Department of Taxation and Finance — Filing requirements, residency and telecommuting FAQs — a nonresident whose primary office is in New York: telecommuting days count as days worked in the state unless the employer set up a bona fide employer office there; part-year residents split income between resident and nonresident rules, Form IT-203 (checked 2026-09-27)
• U.S. Census Bureau — State-to-State Migration Flows, 2024 (ACS 1-year, Table 1) — movers age 1 and over by current state and state of residence one year earlier; estimates with margins of error (checked 2026-09-27)
• BEA — Real Personal Consumption Expenditures by State and Real Personal Income by State, 2024 (Feb 19, 2026) — Regional Price Parities: California 110.7, Hawaii 110.0, D.C. 109.9, New Jersey 108.8 highest; Arkansas 86.9 lowest; full table SARPP in BEA's interactive data (checked 2026-09-27)
• FRED (St. Louis Fed) — 2024 Regional Price Parities by State (BEA data) — all items, goods, rents and other services for every state and D.C. (checked 2026-09-27)