Can anyone help me understand Maine's non-resident state income tax rules?

NephroBSN, BSN, RN · Mar 2, 2006

I have an interview Friday for a position in a Maine hospital- a hospital with a great reputation, on a unit I would be honored to work on. Dream job territory here! I considered applying to this hospital last year when I was trying to find out what my dream job would be, but ended up taking a per diem maternity position intending to cross-train or transfer to a similar unit in that hospital. I commute an hour, both ways, for my current job, and am making less money than I did at my previous job. This position in Maine should pay better, will be full-time with benefits, and will only be a few minutes more on my commute- it's just over an hour's drive. My husband, though, is very concerned about the Maine state income taxes. When his parents lived in New Hampshire (where we live now) his dad worked in Maine, his mom worked in NH, and they had to pay Maine state income tax on their combined income. Living on the seacoast, so close to maine, we heard the same from several of our friends and coworkers. He doesn't want to have to pay Maine state income tax when he's not living or working in Maine (and who could blame him?) and is so adamant about it that his solution would be for us to divorce and just live together (twisted thinking!) So he's stressed out because I'm only working part-time right now without benefits because my hours are not guaranteed and his job situation is unstable, so I applied for this job figuring at least we'd be able to have benefits and steady income on my end... and now he's stressed about his job, stressed about finances, stressed because I called out of work last night (chest cold with a fever- I could have dragged myself in but I don't think it's appropriate to work with newborns that sick, nor did I want to be "that nurse" who comes in sick, coughing on everyone, getting everyone else sick), and now stressed about being forced to pay taxes to a state he neither lives in nor works in.
I went to the Maine State's income tax website and found some info on "Schedule NRH"- married person electing to file single due to both spouses being nonresidents and only one having Maine-source income during the tax year.
Does anybody know anything about this? It seems to be an incredibly complicated form; I'll have to read it over better tomorrow when I'll less sick & less tired... I'm certainly tired of being sick, lol.
Can anybody here on allnurses shine some light on this? Do nonresidents really have to pay state income tax on both spouses? Will using the Sch NRH mean I'll only have to pay Maine state taxes on my own income? I would appreciate any help given!

If I were you I'd talk to some of the guys who work at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. They'd know. And I believe you'll have to both pay taxes in Maine if you file married joint return.

Maine has to get it's money any way it can. I believe it has a negative population growth.

palesarah · Mar 2, 2006

If I were you I'd talk to some of the guys who work at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. They'd know. And I believe you'll have to both pay taxes in Maine if you file married joint return.
Maine has to get it's money any way it can. I believe it has a negative population growth.

Yeah, my father in law works at the Shipyard, as do several of the people DH & I worked with at the NH State Liquor Store we were working at when we started dating! (The people who worked at the Shipyard worked at the Liquor store for extra money, as was my now-husband, who started working there in college and kept it as a second job; it was one of the 2 or more jobs I always had while I was in school) (Good times, at the Portsmouth Circle Liquor Store!)

I did end up talking more to my father in law, and yeah, Maine screws non-residents on the state income taxes. Apparently if you file the right complicated form, they don't completely tax both incomes, but we would still end up paying a chunk of taxes on DH's NH income. So I'm trying to figure out what the worst case scenario would be, and how much I'd have to make to equal what I could make elsewhere... I luckily was able to get an interview for a NICU in my current facility in New Hampshire (about the same distance/maybe 5 minutes less on the commute than if I took the Maine job). So hopefully I'll just get my dream job in my current hospital!

Thanks for the input, NephroBSN, I appreciate it. Are you in the Maine/NH seacoast area? (feel free to PM me if you don't want to answer publicly)

NephroBSN, BSN, RN · Mar 4, 2006

Yeah, my father in law works at the Shipyard, as do several of the people DH & I worked with at the NH State Liquor Store we were working at when we started dating! (The people who worked at the Shipyard worked at the Liquor store for extra money, as was my now-husband, who started working there in college and kept it as a second job; it was one of the 2 or more jobs I always had while I was in school) (Good times, at the Portsmouth Circle Liquor Store!)
I did end up talking more to my father in law, and yeah, Maine screws non-residents on the state income taxes. Apparently if you file the right complicated form, they don't completely tax both incomes, but we would still end up paying a chunk of taxes on DH's NH income. So I'm trying to figure out what the worst case scenario would be, and how much I'd have to make to equal what I could make elsewhere... I luckily was able to get an interview for a NICU in my current facility in New Hampshire (about the same distance/maybe 5 minutes less on the commute than if I took the Maine job). So hopefully I'll just get my dream job in my current hospital!
Thanks for the input, NephroBSN, I appreciate it. Are you in the Maine/NH seacoast area? (feel free to PM me if you don't want to answer publicly)

I'm a native Maniah. I have a place in SO Maine. I am a traveling dialysis nurse. I've been traveling for almost four years. Sad state of affairs when you have to work out of state in order to "live" there.

I've paid Maine income tax now every year because none of the states I've worked in take out as much as Maine requires. So I do my out of state taxes first, get my meager return and turn most of it over to Maine.

I worked in 4 states last year so I have to do 6 income taxes this year.

One of the cons of traveling. Luckily they are few.

My ex b/f worked at PANSY.. And I remember all the hull-a-baloo several years ago about Maine taxing NH and Mass spouses.. I still believe it's taxation without representation........ IMHO.

samkblam · Mar 4, 2006

I live in Southern Maine and have many friends in your situation. I would suggest contacting a tax professional that knows the ins and outs of this subject as it can be confusing if not done right.

Mainenikki · Mar 12, 2006

My wife is a traveler and we had to pay out to Maine this year. Our tax home is in Maine (unfortunately). Maine taxes all income earned in that state, residents or not, and taxes all income for residents (tax homes) earned in any other state. Sounds greedy cause it is. I wish now that we would have changed addresses to N.H. just to save a few hundred dollars.