1040 - E-filing State Return Requirements
- Brandon Bellamy
There are three categories that states fall into when it comes to electronically filing:
State Only
Stand Alone and
Piggyback
The following is a description of each category with a chart of the states and the category they fall into.
State Only: These States can be electronically filed without the Federal return.
These States require additional information from the Federal return, specifically From 8879.
Stand Alone: These States can be electronically filed without the Federal return and require no additional information from the Federal return.
Piggyback: These States must be electronically filed along with the Federal return. It is common for these State returns to be rejected when the Federal return is also rejected. Fixing the Federal return will commonly also fix the State return, and both returns will need to be resubmitted electronically.
If the Federal return is accepted and the State return is rejected, the State return can be resubmitted by itself, but only if the State return is rejected. Keep in mind that if the Federal return is submitted without the State, then the State will need to be paper filed.
