Liz Weston: Some remote workers may be in for tax surprise

If the pandemic caused you to relocate across state lines, even temporarily, the next surprise could be having to file an extra tax return and potentially pay more taxes.

The issue gained national attention in May, when Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York said out-of-state health care workers who came to help with the pandemic would face New York income taxes.

Cuomo’s comments generated outrage, but in fact, most states tax people who earn money within their borders, even if those people usually live and file tax returns elsewhere. Even a single day in some states can trigger a tax bill.

REMOTE WORKING COULD MEAN TAX HASSLES

Multistate taxation has long been a headache for entertainers, athletes, professional speakers and others who earn money in more than one state. Snowbirds, retirees who move south for the winter, can face it as well. Now it could be a problem for many people who relocated, however temporarily, because of the pandemic.

Nearly one in 10 young adults, those ages 18 to 29, said they had relocated because of the pandemic, according to a Pew Research Survey poll taken in early June. Overall, 3% of adults said they’d moved and 6% said someone else had moved into their households. Those who moved cited reducing their risk of infection (28%), college campuses closing (23%), wanting to be with family (20%) and job loss or other financial issues (18%).

Changing attitudes about remote work mean that multistate taxation could be an issue for more people and companies in the future. Nearly half of the company leaders surveyed by research firm Gartner in June said they planned to let employees work remotely full time even after people can return to the workplace. Remote working allows people to move to more affordable areas, which could be in a different state. But having even a single employee in another state...