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This guide has general information about Personal Income tax for nonresidents. It is not designed to address all questions which may arise nor to address complex issues in detail. Nothing contained herein supersedes, alters or otherwise changes any provision of the Massachusetts General Laws, Massachusetts Department of Revenue Regulations, Department rulings or any other sources of the law.
Updated: January 30, 2023
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Note: Prior year Massachusetts Personal Income tax law changes can be found within the Form 1 and Form 1-NR/PY instruction booklet for any given year.
If you're a nonresident of Massachusetts, you must file a Massachusetts Income Tax Return if you received Massachusetts source income in excess of your personal exemption multiplied by the ratio of your Massachusetts source income to your total income, or your gross income was more than $8,000 – whether received from sources inside or outside Massachusetts.
You're a nonresident if you are neither a full-year nor a part-year resident. Your Massachusetts tax treatment is based on your residency status and not the type of visa you hold.
Nonresidents use Form 1-NR/PY - Massachusetts Nonresident or Part-Year Resident Income Tax Return.
Use Schedule R/NR – Resident/Nonresident Worksheet to adjust your income, deductions, and exemptions.
If your employer mistakenly withheld Massachusetts income tax, file a Massachusetts Nonresident/Part-Year Resident Return, Form 1-NR/PY, to request a refund. Submit a letter from your employer along with the return, which verifies that you didn't work in Massachusetts.
For federal purposes, your filing status determines your income tax rate. For Massachusetts purposes, your filing status determines how many personal exemptions you're allowed. For federal purposes, there are 5 filing statuses:
Massachusetts offers all but the qualifying widow(er) with dependent child. Generally, if you claim this status federally, you qualify for head of household for Massachusetts.
Enter your filing status on either Form 1 or 1-NR/PY, Line 1, and fill in the appropriate oval. Enter your spouse's Social Security Number in the appropriate space at the top of the return under taxpayer's Social Security Number. If you're married filing joint, both spouses must sign the return.
As a nonresident, your exemptions are based on the income you reported.
Multiply your exemption amounts by the Nonresident Deduction and Exemption Ratio (Form 1-NR/PY, Line 22a by Line 14g). This ratio is your Massachusetts gross income (from sources in Massachusetts), divided by Massachusetts gross income from all sources (as if you were a full-year Massachusetts resident).
For nonresidents, you can only take deductions that are attributable to the income you reported.
Multiply your deduction by the Nonresident Deduction and Exemption ratio (Form 1-NR/PY, Line 14). This ratio is your Massachusetts gross income (from sources in Massachusetts), divided by your Massachusetts gross income from all sources (as if you were a full-year resident).
In addition to deductions that you will find on the Form 1-NR/PY itself, such as those allowed nonresidents for FICA, Medicare, RR, U.S. or Massachusetts retirement, certain dependent care expenses and the rental deduction, there is also a list of deductions the nonresidents are allowed to take on Form 1-NR/PY, Schedule Y, more fully explained in the instructions. All these deductions are allowed if directly related to specific taxable income reported on Form 1-NR/PY or to a personal Massachusetts residence.
As a nonresident, you may also qualify for certain personal income tax credits, which can reduce the amount of tax you owe.
See business-related credits you may be able to claim on your personal income tax return.
If your Massachusetts Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) doesn't exceed certain amounts for the taxable year, you qualify for No Tax Status (NTS) and are not required to pay any Massachusetts income tax, but still need to file a tax return.
Adjusted gross income is gross income reduced by certain business expenses and other deductions claimed on Massachusetts Schedule Y, Lines 1 to 10, such as allowable employee business expenses, alimony paid or student loan interest, etc. Except for Line 4, these are generally federal allowable deductions.
If you do not qualify for No Tax Status (NTS), but your Massachusetts AGI still doesn't exceed certain amounts, you may qualify for the Limited Income Credit (LIC), which may reduce your tax significantly.
Married filing separate taxpayers do not qualify for either NTS or LIC.
See detailed information on No Tax Status and Limited Income Credit.
You only qualify for this credit if the property is residential and located in Massachusetts. It does not need to be a principal residence located in Massachusetts. You can get a tax credit if you own residential property in Massachusetts and paid for deleading (removing or covering lead paint) it in order to:
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