Tax year 2026Checked
Worked in two states in 2026 on OPT or CPT? How your state returns work
Part-year resident or nonresident, which state taxes which wages, when two states can tax the same pay, what to check on your W-2s, and an Illinois to California example with 2026 figures.
In short
- Each state that taxes wages taxes the pay for work done there, so a 2026 year split between Illinois and California usually means an Illinois return, a California Form 540NR and one federal Form 1040-NR.
- Two states usually tax the same wages only when one of them treats you as its resident while you worked in the other. The resident state may then give a credit; in Illinois it is Form IL-1040, line 15 (2025 form).
- California and New York work out your tax as if all your income were theirs and keep only their share, so wages from the other state raise the rate on your California or New York wages.
- Boxes 15 to 17 of each 2026 Form W-2 show the state, the state wages and the state tax withheld; employers must send W-2s by Monday, February 1, 2027.
- A 2026 Form 1040-NR that reports wages subject to US income tax withholding is due Thursday, April 15, 2027, and California, New York, Illinois and Massachusetts returns are expected to be due the same day.
Contents, 11 sections
F-1 and J-1 students who earned wages in two states in tax year 2026 usually file a return in each state that taxes wages, plus one federal Form 1040-NR. Each state taxes the wages for work done inside it. A student who worked in Illinois from January to May and in California from June to December files an Illinois return and a California Form 540NR.
What else a state taxes depends on whether it treats you as its resident, and for which part of the year.
Note
No state has published its 2026 forms yet (as of October 14, 2026). Line numbers below come from the 2025 forms. Figures are 2026 figures only where the state has already published them.
Do I file a state return in both states?
Yes, if both states tax wages and you earned wages in each. A state taxes nonresidents on income from sources inside it, for most students wages for work done there (FTB Publication 1031).
| Your 2026 year | State returns you usually file |
|---|---|
| Studied and worked in one state, summer CPT in another, both tax wages | Usually a nonresident return in the internship state, and a return in your school state for the campus pay. If your school state treats you as its resident, its return covers the internship pay too |
| Graduated in one state, moved to another for OPT, both tax wages | A part-year resident or nonresident return in each state, each covering the wages earned there |
| Lived in Texas, interned in California | California Form 540NR only, because Texas does not tax wages |
| Studied in California, summer internship in Washington | California only, because Washington does not tax wages in tax year 2026. If California treats you as a resident, it also taxes the Washington pay |
| Worked remotely for an employer in another state | Not covered here. Read both states' nonresident instructions |
Your federal return does not change. One Form 1040-NR reports the wages from every W-2, whichever state they came from. For the federal form, see how to fill out Form 1040-NR.
Key facts
- Returns for a two-state year
- One federal Form 1040-NR, plus a return in each state that taxes wages
- What each state taxes
- Residents: all income. Nonresidents: income from the state. Part-year residents (CA and IL forms): income while a resident, plus income from the state
- Illinois, 2026
- 4.95% flat rate; $2,925 exemption, which Schedule NR cuts to the Illinois share of your income
- California standard deduction, 2026
- $5,900, which Form 540NR cuts to the California share of your income
- W-2s due from employers
- Monday, February 1, 2027
- Federal return with wages; CA, NY, IL and MA returns
- Thursday, April 15, 2027 (state dates expected, not yet published)
- For
- F-1, J-1, M-1 and Q students who were nonresident aliens for federal tax in 2026 and earned wages in more than one US state, for example on a summer CPT internship or after a move for OPT.
- Not for
- Resident aliens who file Form 1040, and anyone who worked remotely for an employer in another state. Remote-work rules are not covered here.
Am I a part-year resident or a nonresident of each state?
Each state decides with its own test, and being a nonresident alien for federal tax does not settle it. You are a part-year resident of a state if you were its resident for only part of 2026, and a nonresident if you were never its resident in 2026.
Most states look first at your domicile, which is your permanent home. The visa rules require you to keep a residence abroad that you do not intend to abandon, which is evidence your domicile is outside the US. Some states also count a home in the state plus the days you spend there.
| State | You are a resident if |
|---|---|
| California | You are in California for other than a temporary or transitory purpose, or California is your domicile and you are away only temporarily |
| New York | New York is your domicile, or you keep a permanent place of abode there for substantially all of the year and spend 184 days or more in the state |
| Illinois | You are in Illinois for other than a temporary or transitory purpose, or Illinois is your domicile and you are away only temporarily |
| Massachusetts | Massachusetts is your domicile, or you keep a permanent place of abode there and spend more than 183 days in the state |
The tests come from FTB Publication 1031, the New York definitions, 35 ILCS 5/1501(a)(20) and Massachusetts General Laws c.62 section 1. Each of the four states uses one return for both nonresidents and part-year residents: Form 540NR, Form IT-203, Form IL-1040 with Schedule NR, and Form 1-NR/PY.
Some cases are not settled: no source we found decides whether a graduate student who lives in California all year is a California resident. Our guide to state income tax for international students explains it, and New York's apartment rule.
For a simple move, the label matters less than students expect. If you had only wages, earned in the state where you lived at the time, each state taxes the same wages whichever label it gives you.
Which state taxes which wages?
A state taxes a full-year resident on all income and a nonresident on income from that state. California and Illinois tax a part-year resident on income received while a resident, plus income from the state for the rest of the year.
California's Schedule CA (540NR) column E is headed "income earned or received as a CA resident and income earned or received from CA sources as a nonresident" (2025 form). Illinois says the same in its Schedule NR instructions. Column B holds the income you received while an Illinois resident and the Illinois income you received while a nonresident. Those instructions add that Illinois wages received as a nonresident are identified on the Illinois copy of your W-2. Massachusetts asks part-year residents to report income "earned and/or received while a resident" on Form 1-NR/PY and nonresidents to report Massachusetts source income only. If you were both in one year, you complete its Schedule R/NR (2025 form).
California and New York then work out the tax on all your income as if you were a resident. They keep only their share (2025 Form 540NR, lines 31 to 39; Form IT-203, lines 45 and 46). Wages from the other state are not taxed there, but they raise the rate on your California or New York wages. Illinois and Massachusetts tax a nonresident only on income from the state. They cut the exemption to the state's share (Schedule NR, lines 46 to 52; Form 1-NR/PY, line 22).
How does a move from Illinois to California work out?
After a move from Illinois to California, Illinois taxes the wages earned in Illinois, and California taxes the wages earned in California at a rate set by all your income. The example below uses Illinois's published 2026 figures and California's 2026 rate schedule, standard deduction and exemption credit.
Worked example: Lina, F-1 student, Illinois to California in 2026
Lina is an illustrative F-1 student who is a nonresident alien for 2026 and claims no tax treaty. From January to May she worked as a graduate research assistant at her university in Chicago and earned $14,000. After graduating, she moved to California and started an OPT job on June 1 that paid $56,000 by December 31. Her federal adjusted gross income is $14,000 plus $56,000 = $70,000.
Illinois: Form IL-1040 with Schedule NR (2025 line numbers, 2026 figures)
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Illinois base income: her Illinois wages (line 46) | $14,000 |
| Base income from all sources, from Form IL-1040 (line 47) | $70,000 |
| Illinois share: $14,000 divided by $70,000 (line 48) | 0.200 |
| 2026 exemption allowance (line 49) | $2,925 |
| Illinois exemption: $2,925 times 0.200 (line 50) | $585 |
| Illinois net income: $14,000 minus $585 (line 51) | $13,415 |
| Illinois tax: $13,415 times 4.95% (line 52) | $664.04 |
California: Form 540NR and Schedule CA (540NR) (2025 line numbers, 2026 figures)
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Income from all sources (line 17) | $70,000 |
| 2026 standard deduction (line 18) | $5,900 |
| Total taxable income: $70,000 minus $5,900 (line 19) | $64,100 |
| California income (Schedule CA, Part IV, line 1) | $56,000 |
| Deduction percentage: $56,000 divided by $70,000 (Part IV, line 3) | 0.8000 |
| California deduction: $5,900 times 0.8000 (Part IV, line 4) | $4,720 |
| California taxable income: $56,000 minus $4,720 (line 35) | $51,280 |
California taxes the $51,280 at the average rate a full-year resident would pay on $64,100 (lines 36 and 37). The 2026 rate schedule puts the tax on $64,100 at $2,054.96 plus 8% of $4,602 = $2,423.12, entered as $2,423 (line 31). Divided by $64,100 and rounded to four decimals, as FTB does, that is a rate of 0.0378 (line 36). Her California tax before credits is $51,280 times 0.0378 = $1,938 (line 37). Her exemption credit is cut the same way: the 2026 single credit is $158, and 80% of $158 is $126.40 (lines 38 and 39).
Both forms take whole dollars, so Lina enters $664 on Schedule NR, line 52, and $126 on Form 540NR, line 39. Her California tax after the credit is about $1,938 minus $126 = $1,812 (line 40). At her income the return uses FTB's 2026 tax table, due in late December, which can move these figures by a few dollars.
Whether Illinois calls her a part-year resident or a nonresident, its share holds the same $14,000, because she received no other income while in Illinois. The same is true of California's $56,000.
The 2026 Illinois rate of 4.95% is in the IL-700-T, and the $2,925 exemption is in Bulletin FY 2026-15. California's 2026 rate schedule, $5,900 standard deduction and $158 exemption credit are in FTB's October 2026 Tax News. The 2026 tax table, which a return with taxable income of $100,000 or less uses, comes with FTB's complete 2026 rates in late December.
Each state then refunds or bills the difference between its tax and the state tax withheld in box 17 of that state's W-2. On her federal return, Lina can deduct the income tax withheld by both states on Schedule A (Form 1040-NR), line 1a of the 2026 draft.
Can both states tax the same wages?
Yes, when one state treats you as its resident while you worked in the other. The resident state taxes all your income, and may then give a credit for the tax the work state charges on the wages earned there.
Take a student who studies in Illinois and spends the summer on a CPT internship in New York. New York taxes the internship wages on Form IT-203. If Illinois treats the student as its resident for the whole year, Illinois taxes all the student's income, including the New York pay. The Schedule NR instructions say temporary absences from Illinois do not make you a part-year resident.
If Illinois treats that student as a nonresident instead, Illinois taxes only the Illinois wages, and no credit is needed. Where a credit applies, each state claims it on its own schedule:
| State | Credit for tax paid to another state (2025 forms) |
|---|---|
| Illinois | Form IL-1040, line 15, "Income tax paid to another state while an Illinois resident", with Schedule CR |
| Massachusetts | Form 1, line 30, or Form 1-NR/PY, line 34 for part-year residents, with Schedule OJC |
| California | Schedule S, with a copy of the other state's return attached. A full-year California nonresident can claim it only as a resident of Arizona, Guam, Oregon or Virginia (Schedule S instructions) |
| New York | Form IT-112-R, filed with Form IT-201 by full-year residents or Form IT-203 by part-year residents (IT-112-R instructions) |
File the work state first
We recommend finishing the work state's return before the resident state's. The credit needs the tax figure from it, and California asks you to attach a copy of the other state's return.
What if one of the states does not tax wages?
If one of the two states does not tax wages, you file a state return for your wages only in the state that does. Nine states do not tax wages in 2026: Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming (Tax Foundation; state-by-state guide).
A student who lives in Texas and interns in California files only a California Form 540NR, for the California pay. The reverse case needs more care. A student at a California school who interns in Seattle in 2026 owes no Washington income tax on that pay. If California treats the student as its resident, though, California taxes the Seattle wages, and there is no other state tax to credit.
What should I check on my W-2s?
Boxes 15 to 17 of each 2026 Form W-2 show the state, the state wages and the state income tax withheld. Employers must send your 2026 W-2s by Monday, February 1, 2027.
Each W-2 has room for two states, one per row (IRS W-2 instructions). If one employer had you working in two states, both may appear on the same form. California's Form 540NR asks for "Total California wages from your federal Form(s) W-2, box 16" (2025 form, line 12), so the box 16 amounts feed the state returns directly.
Check each state in box 15 against where you actually lived and worked in 2026. If a W-2 names a state where you never worked, such as the employer's head office state, ask the employer whether it can correct it. Employers correct state data on Form W-2c. If the employer cannot fix it, file that state's nonresident return to get the tax back, because a state credits withholding only on a return.
Illinois sets its own rule: if the Illinois wages on your W-2 are wrong, attach a letter from the employer on company letterhead. For a nonresident, it states the correct Illinois wages and the days you worked in each state; for a part-year resident, the Illinois tax withheld. Illinois does not accept a letter from you or your preparer (2025 Schedule NR instructions).
Does my tax treaty carry over to both states?
Not in every state: California taxes wages that a tax treaty exempts from federal tax, while New York, Massachusetts and Illinois leave them out. If you claim a treaty and worked in California, California taxes your California pay, including the part the treaty exempts from federal tax.
| State | Wages a treaty exempts from federal tax |
|---|---|
| California | Taxed (Schedule CA (540NR) instructions) |
| New York | Not taxed: Form IT-203 starts from federal adjusted gross income |
| Massachusetts | Not taxed: if they are in your W-2 wages, you subtract them on Schedule Y, line 4b (2025 form) |
| Illinois | Not taxed: Form IL-1040 starts from federal adjusted gross income, and the 2025 Schedule M has no addition for treaty income |
To claim the treaty on the federal return, see how to claim a tax treaty on Form 1040-NR.
What to do next
- Collect every 2026 W-2 (due from employers by Monday, February 1, 2027). For each one, write down the state in box 15 and the amounts in boxes 16 and 17.
- Write down your 2026 dates: the day you moved, and when each job started and ended.
- For each state, decide under its own test whether you were its resident in 2026, and for which dates. Our guides to California, New York, Illinois and Massachusetts cover each test.
- Finish your federal Form 1040-NR first. California, New York and Illinois start from the federal adjusted gross income on it.
- If one state taxes you as a resident on wages the other state also taxes, file the work state's return first, then claim the credit on the resident state's return.
- File your federal Form 1040-NR by Thursday, April 15, 2027. California, New York, Illinois and Massachusetts returns are expected to be due the same day; for tax year 2025, all four were due April 15, 2026 (California, New York, Illinois, Massachusetts). Of the four, only New York gave June 15, 2026 to nonresident aliens whose federal return was due June 15 (2025 IT-203 instructions, special condition code E4). Mail each state return to the address in that state's 2026 instructions, and see tax deadlines for international students in 2027 for every date.
F1TaxReturn prepares the federal Form 1040-NR and Form 8843 for free; you print, sign and mail them. Its state returns cover California, New York, Illinois and Massachusetts; one payment of $30 plus a $2 processing fee covers the state forms on your return. As of October 2026, its Illinois, New York and Massachusetts forms count all your W-2 wages as wages of that state. In a two-state year that overstates the state's wages and the tax worked out from them. Check those returns line by line against box 16 of that state's W-2s before you sign. Tax year 2026 returns open once the final 2026 forms are published; you can create an account now.
Questions students ask
I interned in another state over the summer. Which state do I file in?
Will I pay state tax twice on the same wages?
My W-2 shows state tax for a state where I never worked. What should I do?
Do I need to tell each state the date I moved?
Is my state return due June 15, like some federal returns?
Sources
This guide is checked against these 23 documents, most recently on .
- Publication 1031 (2025), Guidelines for Determining Resident Status, California Franchise Tax Board
- 2025 Form 540NR booklet (Form 540NR and Schedule CA (540NR)), California Franchise Tax Board
- 2025 Instructions for Schedule CA (540NR), California Franchise Tax Board
- 2025 Instructions for Schedule S, Other State Tax Credit, California Franchise Tax Board
- Tax News, October 2026 (2026 tax rate schedules, standard deduction and exemption credit), California Franchise Tax Board
- Due dates for personal income tax, California Franchise Tax Board
- 2025 IL-1040 Schedule NR Instructions, Illinois Department of Revenue
- Informational Bulletin FY 2026-15, What's New for Illinois Income Taxes, Illinois Department of Revenue
- IL-700-T, Illinois Withholding Tax Tables (2026), Illinois Department of Revenue
- Extension of time to file, Illinois Department of Revenue
- Personal income tax definitions (resident, domicile, permanent place of abode), New York State Department of Taxation and Finance
- Instructions for Form IT-112-R, New York State Resident Credit, New York State Department of Taxation and Finance
- Filing resources ahead of the April 15 deadline (2025 release), New York State Department of Taxation and Finance
- Instructions for Form IT-203 (2025), When to file and special condition code E4, New York State Department of Taxation and Finance
- Mass. General Laws c.62 section 1 (definition of resident), Massachusetts Department of Revenue
- 2025 Form 1-NR/PY instructions, Massachusetts Department of Revenue
- Massachusetts DOR tax due dates and extensions, Massachusetts Department of Revenue
- General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2026), IRS
- Instructions for Form 1040-NR (2025), IRS
- Draft tax forms (2026 Form 1040-NR and Schedule A (Form 1040-NR)), IRS
- State Individual Income Tax Rates and Brackets, 2026, Tax Foundation (secondary source)
- 8 U.S. Code 1101, definitions (F, J, M and Q nonimmigrant status), US Code (Legal Information Institute)
- 2025 Schedule M (IL-1040), Other Additions and Subtractions for Individuals, Illinois Department of Revenue