File your California taxes online with your federal return

How your California return is prepared

• Answer the interview once. Your California return is figured from the same answers as your federal return, so nothing is typed twice.
• We e-file your federal return to the IRS.
• We prepare your California return on the FTB's own forms, with the schedules your answers need.

The California forms we prepare

Full-year residents get Form 540 with Schedule CA (540). If you lived in California for only part of the year, or you are a nonresident with California income, we prepare Form 540NR with Schedule CA (540NR) instead.

The schedules your answers need are added with it, such as Schedule P for the alternative minimum tax and Schedule S for tax you paid to another state. If you owe California, we prepare the payment voucher with your return.

California credits we figure for you

• The California Earned Income Tax Credit (CalEITC), on FTB 3514.
• The Young Child Tax Credit, for CalEITC filers with a qualifying child under six.
• The nonrefundable renter's credit, if you qualify: one of its tests is renting your California home for at least half the year.
• The credit for tax paid to another state, on Schedule S.

Your California refund by Direct Deposit

Form 540 and Form 540NR have their own Direct Deposit box. Add your bank account and we fill it in, so your California refund can go straight into your account.

In English or in Spanish

The whole interview is available in Spanish. Form 540, Form 540NR and their schedules are in English, the language the FTB publishes them in. FTB 3514, the CalEITC form, is prepared in Spanish if you file in Spanish, because the FTB publishes a Spanish edition of it.

Questions