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Louisiana Income Tax
Income taxes should be turned in by May 15th.
Louisiana Tax Filing Guide
Here are detailed instructions for filing taxes in the state of Louisiana.
Consider using TurboTax to E-File your Louisiana taxes.
Louisiana Residents
A resident of Louisiana is someone whose domicile (permanent) home was in Louisiana the entire year. A Louisiana resident may leave the state temporarily and still be considered a full-year resident. If you are a Louisiana resident and had to file a Federal tax return, you are required to file a Louisiana tax return. Additionally if you overpaid your taxes over the year and need a refund you will need to file a return with Louisiana. To file a Louisiana resident return use Form IT-540 (attached below).
There are deductions on certain types of income, which are exempt from Louisiana taxation. An example of one of these deductions is that income that is earned by someone in the armed forces and is on active duty for 120 days qualifies for a deduction of up to $30,000. If income is deductible please note that it must be included on your Louisiana return before the deduction is allowed. For more information on filing a Louisiana resident return see From IT-540 Instructions (attached below).
Related Tax Forms
- Form IT-540 - Louisiana Individual Resident Income Tax Return
Part-Year Louisiana Residents
If your domicile home was in Louisiana for only part of the year, perhaps because you either moved into or moved out of Louisiana during the year, and you filed a Federal tax return you will need to file a Louisiana tax return. For the period of time that you were a resident see the Louisiana Resident or Resident Who Worked In Another State section for information on how to file a return for this time period. For the period of time that you were nonresident of Louisiana see the Louisiana Nonresident Who Sold Property or Nonresident Working In State sections.
Louisiana Residents who work in another state
A resident of Louisiana is someone whose domicile (permanent) home was in Louisiana the entire year. A Louisiana resident may leave the state temporarily and still be considered a full-year resident. If you are a Louisiana resident and had to file a Federal tax return, you are required to file a Louisiana tax return. Additionally if you overpaid your taxes over the year and need a refund you will need to file a return with Louisiana. To file a Louisiana resident return use Form IT-540 (attached below).
There are deductions on certain types of income, which are exempt from Louisiana taxation. An example of one of these deductions is that income that is earned by someone in the armed forces and is on active duty for 120 days qualifies for a deduction of up to $30,000. If income is deductible please note that it must be included on your Louisiana return before the deduction is allowed. For more information on filing a Louisiana resident return see From IT-540 Instructions (attached below).
If you are a Louisiana resident that worked in another state you may qualify for a credit on income earned in a different state if the income was already taxed by the state in which it was earned. Please note that all income, regardless of where the income was earned, may be taxed by Louisiana and that the reason for the credit is simply to avoid dual taxation on the income earned in another state. To qualify for a credit on the income earned in another state report all income to Louisiana when filing your Form IT-5, however also fill out Schedule G (on Form IT-540). Make sure to also attach the return you filed with the other state to your return. For additional information see IT-540 Instructions page 25 on how to file Schedule G.
Related Tax Forms
- Form IT-540 - Louisiana Individual Resident Income Tax Return
Non-Residents who work in Louisiana
You are a nonresident of Louisiana if your domicile home was not in Louisiana for any period of time. You will be required to file a Louisiana tax return if you were required to file a Federal tax return for income earned from Louisiana sources. To file a nonresident Louisiana return use Form IT-540B (attached below). You will be required to report all income made from both Louisiana and other sources on IT-540B, although Louisiana will only tax you on income from Louisiana sources. you must report all income because Form IT-540B computes the ratio of Louisiana sourced income to all income reported on your Federal income return. For more information on filing Form IT-540B see Form IT-540B Instructions
Gambling winnings count as income earned from Louisiana sources and as a result of this are taxed. Nonresidents who are enlisted in the armed forces and are stationed in Louisiana are not required to file a return for military wages earned in Louisiana. Military personnel who earned income from Louisiana sources besides military wages are required to file a Louisiana return on such income.
Use the Tax Computation Worksheet to calculate the amount of tax that needs to be paid to Louisiana based on the amount of income that was earned from Louisiana sources. The worksheet also calculates deductions and Person Exemptions for different filing statuses (such as a $1000 credit for each dependant or a spouse who is over 65).
Related Tax Forms
- Form IT-540B - Louisiana Individual Part-Year and Non-resident Income Tax Return
Non-Residents who sold property in Louisiana
You are a nonresident of Louisiana if your domicile home was not in Louisiana for any period of time. You will be required to file a Louisiana tax return if you were required to file a Federal tax return for income earned from Louisiana sources. To file a nonresident Louisiana return use Form IT-540B (attached below). You will be required to report all income made from both Louisiana and other sources on IT-540B, although Louisiana will only tax you on income from Louisiana sources. you must report all income because Form IT-540B computes the ratio of Louisiana sourced income to all income reported on your Federal income return. For more information on filing Form IT-540B see Form IT-540B Instructions
Gambling winnings count as income earned from Louisiana sources and as a result of this are taxed. Nonresidents who are enlisted in the armed forces and are stationed in Louisiana are not required to file a return for military wages earned in Louisiana. Military personnel who earned income from Louisiana sources besides military wages are required to file a Louisiana return on such income.
Use the Tax Computation Worksheet to calculate the amount of tax that needs to be paid to Louisiana based on the amount of income that was earned from Louisiana sources. The worksheet also calculates deductions and Person Exemptions for different filing statuses (such as a $1000 credit for each dependant or a spouse who is over 65).
Related Tax Forms
- Form IT-540B - Louisiana Individual Part-Year and Non-resident Income Tax Return
Louisiana State Tax Forms
- Form IT-540 - Louisiana Individual Resident Income Tax Return
- Form IT-540B - Louisiana Individual Part-Year and Non-resident Income Tax Return
Relevant Links
- State of Louisiana Tax Website - Official Site
- State of Louisiana E-File Service - Offered by Louisiana's Official Website
- Additional Tax Forms - A Comprehensive Collection of Louisiana Tax Forms
Louisiana Mailing Address
Wondering where to mail your Louisiana taxes? Here's the address:Mail Balance Due Return with Payment:
TO: Department of Revenue
P. O. Box 3550
Baton Rouge, LA 70821-3550
Mail All Other Individual Income Tax Returns:
TO: Department of Revenue
P. O. Box 3440
Baton Rouge, LA 70821-3440
Louisiana Sales Tax
Louisiana has a tax rate of 4% (3..97% of which is state sales tax and 0.03% of which is Louisiana Tourism Promotion District sales tax). Localities may also levy additional sales taxes. There is also an 8% use tax for good purchased outside of Louisiana. Half of the use tax is given to local governments. The use tax is 8% regardless of weather the combination of local and state sales tax equals, is less than, or is greater than 8%.
