Forms & Instructions California 540 2015 Personal Income ...

1 Forms & Instructions California 540 2015 Personal Income Tax BookletMembers of theFranchise Tax BoardBetty T. Yee, ChairJerome E. Horton, MemberMichael Cohen, MemberCOVER GRAPHICS OMITTED FOR DOWNLOADING SPEEDFRANCHISETAXBOARD ..Page 2 Personal Income Tax Booklet 2015 Table of ContentsImportant Dates 2Do I Have to File? 3 What s New and Other Important Information for 2015 4 Which Form Should I Use? 7 Instructions for Form 540 9 Nonrefundable Renter s Credit Qualification Record 21 Additional Information 22 Frequently Asked Questions 23 Credit Chart24 Voluntary Contribution Fund Descriptions 25 Form 540, California Resident Income Tax Return27 Schedule CA (540), California Adjustments Residents 33 Instructions for Schedule CA (540) 35 Schedule D (540), California Capital Gain or Loss Adjustment 43 Instructions for Schedule D (540) 45 FTB 3885A, Depreciation and Amortization Adjustments47 FTB 3519, Payment for Automatic Extension for Individuals 49 Form 540-ES, Estimated Tax for Individuals50 Instructions for Form 540-ES 53 FTB 3506, Child and Dependent Care Expenses Credit55 Instructions for Form FTB 3506 57 FTB 3514, California Earned Income Tax Credit 61 Instructions for Form FTB 351463 FTB 3532, Head of Household Filing Status Schedule 71 Instructions for Form FTB 3532732015 California Tax Table 752015 California Tax Rate Schedules 80 How To Get California Tax Information 82 Privacy Notice82 Automated Phone Service83 Important DatesWhen the due date falls on a weekend or holiday, the deadline to file and pay without penalty is extended to the next business day.

2 April 18, 2016**Due to the Emancipation Day holiday on April 16, 2016, tax returns filed and payments mailed or submitted on April 18, 2016, will be considered timely .Last day to file and pay the 2015 amount you owe to avoid penalties and interest .** If you are living or traveling outside the United States on April 18, 2016, the dates for filing your tax return and paying your tax are different . See form FTB 3519 for more information . See form FTB 3519 for more information .October 17, 2016 Last day to file or e-file your 2015 tax return to avoid a late filing penalty and interest computed from the original due date of April 15, 2016 .April 18, 2016**Due to the Emancipation Day holiday on April 16, 2016, tax returns filed and payments mailed or submitted on April 18, 2016, will be considered timely .June 15, 2016 September 15, 2016 January 17, 2017 The dates for 2016 estimated tax payments . Generally, you do not have to make estimated tax payments if your California withholding in each payment period totals 90% of your required annual payment.

3 Also, you do not have to make estimated tax payments if you will pay enough through withholding to keep the amount you owe with your tax return under $500 ($250 if married/registered domestic partner (RDP) filing separately) . However, if you do not pay enough tax either through withholding or by making estimated tax payments, you may have an underpayment penalty . See Form 540-ES Instructions for more information .$$$ for YouEarned Income Tax Credit Federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EIC) EIC reduces your federal tax obligation, or allows a refund if no federal tax is due . You may qualify if you earned less than $47,747 ($53,267 if married filing jointly) and have qualifying children or you have no qualifying children and you earned less than $14,820 ($20,330 if married filing jointly) . Call the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) at 800 .829 .4477 and when instructed enter topic 601, see the federal Income tax booklet, or go to the IRS website at and search for eitc assistant.

4 California Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) EITC reduces your California tax obligation, or allows a refund if no California tax is due . You may qualify if you have wage Income earned in California of less than $13,870 . You do not need a child to qualify . For more information go to and search for EITC or get form FTB 3514 California Earned Income Tax Credit .Refund of Excess State Disability Insurance (SDI) If you worked for at least two employers during 2015 who together paid you more than $104,378 in wages, you may qualify for a refund of excess SDI . See the Instructions on page 14 .Common Errors and How to Prevent ThemHelp us process your tax return quickly and accurately . When we find an error, it requires us to stop to verify the information on the tax return, which slows processing . The most common errors consist of: Claiming the wrong amount of estimated tax payments . Claiming the wrong amount of standard deduction or itemized deductions.

5 Making tax computation errors . Entering the amounts on the wrong line . Claiming the wrong amount of withholding by incorrectly totaling or transferring the amounts from your W-2 . Failing to transfer amounts correctly . Failing to enter all required information or attach required schedules . Claiming the wrong amount of withholding tax credit by incorrectly totaling or transferring the amounts from your withholding documents .To avoid errors and help process your tax return faster, use these helpful hints when preparing your tax return .Claiming estimated tax payments: Verify the amount of estimated tax payments claimed on your tax return matches what you sent to the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) for that year . Go to and search for myftb account to view your total estimated tax payments before you file your tax return . Verify the overpayment amount from your 2014 tax return you requested to be applied to your 2015 estimated tax . If the FTB records do not match the amount of estimated tax payments claimed, a Return Information Notice will be sent explaining the difference.

6 Claiming state disability insurance: Verify the amount of State Disability Insurance (SDI) used to figure the amount of excess SDI claimed on Form 540, line 74, matches amounts from your W-2 s .Claiming standard deduction or itemized deductions: Verify the adjusted gross Income amount on Form 540, line 17 is calculated correctly . See Form 540, line 18 Instructions and worksheets for the amount of standard deduction or itemized deductions you can claim .Computing your tax: Verify the total tax amount on Form 540, line 64 is calculated correctly . Go to and search for tax calculator to compute your tax with the tax calculator or with the tax tables . Locate the correct tax amount from the tax table (page 75) and transfer it to your tax return correctly . Verify any affected schedule to ensure that the total tax amount is correctly transferred over .Use e-file: By using e-file, you can eliminate many common errors . Go to and search for efile options.

7 By using the helpful hints above, you assist in preventing delays in processing your tax return and unnecessary account adjustments . Personal Income Tax Booklet 2015 Page 3Do I Have to File?Steps to Determine Filing RequirementStep 1: Is your gross Income (all Income received from all sources in the form of money, goods, property, and services that are not exempt from tax) more than the amount shown in the California Gross Income chart below for your filing status, age, and number of dependents? If yes, you have a filing requirement . If no, go to Step 2 .Step 2: Is your adjusted gross Income (federal adjusted gross Income from all sources reduced or increased by all California Income adjustments) more than the amount shown in the California Adjusted Gross Income chart below for your filing status, age, and number of dependents? If yes, you have a filing requirement . If no, go to Step 3 .Step 3: If your Income is less than the amounts on the chart you may still have a filing requirement.

8 See Requirements for Children with Investment Income and Other Situations When You Must File . Do those Instructions apply to you? If yes, you have a filing requirement . If no, go to Step 4 .Step 4: Are you married/registered domestic partner (RDP) filing separately with separate property Income ? If no, you do not have a filing requirement . If yes, prepare a tax return . If you owe tax, you have a filing requirement .On 12/31/15,my filing status was:and on 12/31/15,my age was: (If your 65th birthday is on January 1, 2016, you are considered to be age 65 on December 31, 2015) California Gross IncomeCalifornia Adjusted Gross IncomeDependentsDependents012or more012or moreSingle orHead of household Under 6516,25627,48935,91413,005 24,23832,66365 or older21,70630,13136,87118,45526,88033,62 0 Married/RDP filing jointlyUnder 65 (both spouses/RDPs)32,51443,74752,17226,01237, 24545,670 Married/RDP filing separately(The Income of both spouses/RDPs must be combined; both spouses/RDPs may be required to file a tax return even if only one spouse/RDP had Income over the amounts listed.)

9 65 or older (one spouse/RDP)65 or older (both spouses/RDPs)37,96443,41446,38951,83953, 12958,57931,46236,91239,88745,33746,6275 2,077 Qualifying widow(er)Under 6565 or older27,489 30,13135,91436,87124,238 26,88032,66333,620 Dependent of another person Any filing statusAny ageMore than your standard deduction (Use the California Standard Deduction Worksheet for Dependents on page 11 to figure your standard deduction.)Requirements for Children with Investment IncomeCalifornia law conforms to federal law which allows parents election to report a child s interest and dividend Income from children under age 19 or a student under age 24 on the parent s tax return . For each child under age 19 or student under age 24 who received more than $2,100 of investment Income in 2015, complete Form 540 and form FTB 3800, Tax Computation for Certain Children with Investment Income , to figure the tax on a separate Form 540 for your child .If you qualify, you may elect to report your child s Income of $10,500 or less (but not less than $1,050) on your tax return by completing form FTB 3803, Parents Election to Report Child s Interest and Dividends.

10 To make this election, your child s Income must be only from interest and/or dividends . To get Forms FTB 3800 or FTB 3803, see Order Forms and Publications or go to Situations When You Must FileIf you have a tax liability for 2015 or owe any of the following taxes for 2015, you must file Form 540 . Tax on a lump-sum distribution . Tax on a qualified retirement plan including an Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA) or an Archer Medical Savings Account (MSA) . Tax for children under age 19 or student under age 24 who have investment Income greater than $2,100 (see paragraph above) . Alternative minimum tax . Recapture taxes . Deferred tax on certain installment obligations . Tax on an accumulation distribution from a trust .Filing StatusUse the same filing status for California that you used for your federal Income tax return, unless you are a registered domestic partnership (RDP) . If you are an RDP and file single for federal, you must file married/RDP filing jointly or married/RDP filing separately for California .