Year end through tax season: planning, catch-up bookkeeping, W-2s & 1099s and refund advancesYear-end & tax season
Current ClientsNew Clients

Life changes

You Moved Out of South Carolina: What You Still File Here

Moving away does not end your South Carolina filing right away. You owe one last part-year return, and income that still comes from South Carolina can keep you filing here.

Reviewed by LaToya Clark-Thompson, FounderLast updated

What changes on your return

For the year you leave, you file a South Carolina part-year resident return (SC1040 with Schedule NR). It taxes the income you earned while you lived here, plus South Carolina-source income after the move. Your new state taxes the rest, through its own part-year return, unless it has no income tax.

After that, you file in South Carolina only if you still have South Carolina-source income. The common examples:

  • A rental property in South Carolina, which is taxed here no matter where you live. See becoming a landlord.
  • A business or partnership share with South Carolina activity
  • Wages for work you physically do in South Carolina
  • The sale of South Carolina real estate, including a home you sell after moving

Pensions and retirement income are generally taxed by the state where you live when you receive them, not where you earned them.

Forms that show up

  • W-2s that may show both South Carolina and your new state in boxes 15 to 17
  • Form 1099-S and the closing statement if you sold your South Carolina home
  • Any South Carolina nonresident withholding on a real estate sale, which shows on the closing statement and is credited on your SC return
  • Schedule E for any South Carolina rental you kept

What to bring to your appointment

  • Your move date, old and new addresses and proof of the move (lease, closing statement, new driver’s license)
  • All W-2s, and pay stubs around the move if the W-2 does not split wages by state
  • Closing statements from any home sale or purchase
  • Rental income and expense records for property you still own here
  • Your last South Carolina return

Common mistakes

  • Filing a full-year return in the new state and nothing in South Carolina
  • Forgetting that a South Carolina rental still needs a nonresident return every year
  • Keeping South Carolina ties (a homestead property tax assessment, voter registration, driver’s license) that make it look like you never left
  • Leaving South Carolina withholding on after the move, then waiting on a refund that a correct W-4 would have avoided
  • Not telling the county you moved, which matters if you kept the home as a rental

Your home sale may also qualify for the main home exclusion. See selling a home.

When it is worth having a preparer

Leaving the state is a good time to keep the same preparer, because the final South Carolina return and the new state’s first return need to agree on the move date and the income split. We work with clients nationwide through our secure portal, so you can keep working with us after you move. See virtual tax preparation, or start with tax preparation.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to file a South Carolina return if I moved away?

For the year you moved, yes: a part-year resident return covering the income earned while you lived here. After that, only if you still have South Carolina-source income, such as a rental property, a business with activity here, wages for work done in the state, or the sale of South Carolina real estate. If none of those apply, your South Carolina filing ends.

Does South Carolina tax my rental property if I live in another state?

Yes. Rental income from property located in South Carolina is South Carolina-source income, so you file a nonresident SC return each year you own it and have rental activity. Your home state usually taxes the same income too and gives a credit for the tax paid here. When you sell the property, the gain is South Carolina income as well.

Will South Carolina still tax my pension after I move?

Generally no. Federal law keeps a state from taxing the pension and retirement plan income of people who no longer live there. Once you are a resident of another state, that state decides how your pension is taxed. In the year you move, payments received while you still lived in South Carolina belong on the South Carolina part-year return.

Can I keep my South Carolina tax preparer after moving?

Yes. We work with clients in other states through a secure client portal, and the same preparer handles your return either way. Keeping one preparer for the move year is especially useful, because the South Carolina part-year return and your new state’s return have to agree. See virtual tax preparation.

Not the question you had? The full tax FAQ covers more ground, and our client reviews say what the work is actually like.

Related pages

You moved to South Carolina

Part-year resident returns, what South Carolina taxes, retirement income and what to bring.

Learn more

You sold a home

The main home exclusion, Form 1099-S, basis and improvements, and when a sale is taxed.

Learn more

You became a landlord

Schedule E, depreciation, repairs versus improvements, losses and the SC property tax change.

Learn more

You retired

Pensions and IRAs on a 1099-R, required distributions, withholding and SC’s retirement deduction.

Learn more

Part of Life Changes & Your Taxes. Not sure which service fits? Answer a few questions.

Tell us what you need

Send a short note about your situation and we’ll come back to you with a straight answer — whether that’s a quote, a next step, or a referral if it isn’t something we handle.

Prefer to talk it through first? Book a consultation and we’ll find a time, in the Easley office or virtually.

Prefer to talk? Call (864) 781-4035 or book a consultation.

Something changed? Bring it to us before you file.

Call (864) 781-4035 or book a consultation, in the Easley office or virtually.

Activate Your Client Portal
Call Us