Moving between states in 2024 - Why are both NY and VA taxing my full income?

This is a common issue with state taxes when you move mid-year. The problem is likely in how the tax software is allocating your income between states. In most cases, you need to file as a part-year resident in both states, and each state should only tax the income you earned while physically living and working in that state. What's probably happening is that the software is counting your full-year income for both states instead of correctly apportioning it. You'll need to make sure you're specifically telling the software exactly when you moved and how much money you earned in each state separately. Regarding your second question about federal tax withholding - this refers ONLY to what's in Box 2 of your W-2 ("Federal Income Tax Withheld"). It does not include Social Security (Box 4) or Medicare (Box 6). Those are separate payroll taxes and aren't part of your federal income tax withholding total.

I ran into a similar issue last year when I moved from California to Texas. After pulling my hair out trying to figure it out myself, I discovered taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) which really helped me sort through my multi-state tax nightmare. It analyzes your specific situation, including part-year residency issues, and breaks everything down in plain English. For my situation, it turned out that the tax software I was using wasn't properly allocating my income between states - it was double-counting everything! The tool helped me identify exactly where the error was happening and guided me through fixing it. Might be worth checking out since your issue sounds almost identical to what I experienced.

Just wanted to update - I tried taxr.ai after seeing it mentioned here. THANK YOU for recommending this! My situation with moving from Colorado to Washington was causing me similar headaches with double taxation. The service immediately identified that my tax software was calculating my WA income incorrectly (even though WA doesn't have income tax, it was affecting my CO part-year calculation). It pointed out exactly which forms and which lines needed correction, and explained the specific part-year resident rules that applied to my situation. After making the changes it recommended, my tax bill dropped by over $1,200! Definitely worth checking out if you're dealing with a multi-state move like the original poster.

I had the exact same problem when I moved from Georgia to Tennessee last year. I spent weeks trying to get through to my state tax departments for help with no luck - constant busy signals, disconnections, and "call back later" messages. Finally, I found Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) which got me connected to an actual human at the Georgia DOR in less than 20 minutes. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. They basically hold your place in the phone queue and call you when an agent is about to answer. The Georgia tax rep walked me through exactly how to handle my part-year resident return and explained that my tax software was double-counting my income. After getting it straightened out, I went from owing $900 to getting a $340 refund! Might be worth a try for getting direct answers from NY or VA tax departments.

Well I'll be damned. After posting my skeptical comment, I decided to try Claimyr anyway out of desperation. I've been trying to reach the NY tax department for THREE WEEKS with no success. Used this service yesterday and got connected to a real person at NY tax dept in about 35 minutes. The rep confirmed exactly what others here suggested - my tax software was incorrectly allocating income between states. She walked me through exactly what forms I needed to complete and which boxes needed adjustment. Turns out I had checked "resident" for both states instead of "part-year resident" which was causing the double taxation issue. I'm still processing my updated return, but preliminary numbers show I'm getting a $1,200 refund instead of owing $700. Consider me a convert - sometimes skepticism is warranted, but this service delivered exactly what it promised.

Former state tax auditor here. This happens ALL THE TIME with moves between states. Here's what you need to do: 1) Make sure you've selected "part-year resident" for BOTH states 2) Verify the exact dates of residency for each state 3) Double-check that your income is being properly allocated - NY should only tax what you earned while living in NY, and VA should only tax what you earned while living in VA 4) Be aware that some states have "convenience of employer" rules (NY is one of them) that can complicate remote work situations Regarding your federal withholding question - it's ONLY box 2. Never include SS or Medicare in that figure. Also, be prepared for some complexity - NY is particularly aggressive about taxing former residents, especially high-income ones. If you did any remote work for your NY employer after moving to VA, they might try to claim that income too.

I'm not sure if anyone mentioned this, but most tax software has a specific "part-year resident" wizard or interview section. For example, in TurboTax, there's a separate section for "I lived in more than one state." Have you specifically completed that section? Also, double-check your W-2s. Sometimes employers mess up and put the wrong state code on your W-2, which can cause exactly the issue you're describing. My company once put CA on my W-2 even though I had moved to OR, and it caused a similar double-taxation problem.

This is a classic multi-state tax issue that trips up a lot of people! The key thing to understand is that you should NOT be paying full income tax to both states - that's definitely wrong. Here's what's likely happening: your tax software is treating you as a full-year resident of both states instead of a part-year resident. This causes it to calculate taxes on your entire annual income for both states, which is exactly what you're seeing. To fix this, you need to: 1. Make sure you've selected "part-year resident" (not just "resident") for both NY and VA 2. Enter your exact move date (July 1st, 2024) 3. Verify that your NY income is only what you earned Jan-June while living in NY (~$52k) 4. Verify that your VA income is only what you earned July-Dec while living in VA (~$19k) The taxable income amounts you're seeing ($61k for NY, $58k for VA) suggest the software is applying deductions incorrectly or double-counting income. Once you fix the residency settings, those numbers should drop dramatically. Also, just to confirm - you mentioned having separate W-2s from each employer. Make sure when you enter each W-2, you're telling the software which state that job was performed in. This helps the software properly allocate the income. Good luck! This should result in a much better outcome once sorted out properly.