Ohio Thumbnail

[LawrenceGR]

Could someone from Ohio give a thumbnail of their tax system? Am I following this right? They have a State income tax, School Income tax and on top of that they have what we call in Mich. City Income tax. Here in Mich we file city returns for the city you live in plus the city you work in. Is that the same way it works in Ohio? I am very confused. The nice people at Intuit put all the forms in their Ohio package all I have to do now is figure out how they all work. To make matters more confusing these are part year Ohio residents with a business loss. Any help would be appreciated.

[Koss]

Three Tiers

Not all school districts in Ohio have an income tax.

Download the full-color, PDF version of the Ohio instruction book. In the back, there is a list of school districts, and the ones in red have an income tax.

School district tax is calculated on Form SD-100, and the form is mailed to a different address. It is not the same as the state tax form. It is totally separate.

In general, school district income tax is applicable only if the taxpayer LIVES in the district that has the tax.

There's something weird about how some districts only impose the tax on earned income, but most use Ohio AGI.

As for city income tax...

In most cases, but not all, the taxpayer is only required to file a return for the city where they live. The employer is required to properly withhold the tax for the city where they work. Most cities do not expect to see a return from a person who only works there, if the tax is properly withheld. Self-employment, of course, is a different matter.

Some cities use RITA, which is the Regional Income Tax Agency, as the administrator, and it is a standarized form, but each city still has a different tax rate, and potentially a credit for tax paid to the city where you work, and....

Well, it's a colossal mess. Hope this helps.

[LMathey]

Just a few additional things. Most cities included in RITA are in the Cleveland area but a few are a little more south. There is also CCA. Both of these are agencies hired by the cities to review returns and collect taxes.

If you have to prepare a RITA or CCA return be careful because some cities do not give 100% credit for the taxes from your work city against your resident city tax.

Koss gave great advice...download the Ohio instructions as many cities do not have school district tax.

Good luck.

[LawrenceGR]

Thanks

Burt, I agree this is quite a mess. If I had known what I was getting into I would have these folks find a preparer in Ohio. I know some think Mich is a little weird with all of our cities but that's normal to me.

[veritas]

Ohio

One in ten on food stamps. High unemployment compared to the rest of the country.

Maybe they need some more taxes?