Illinois state income tax and military deployment

Yo! Illinois resident here, considering a potential military career after graduation. I've come across a lot of confusing info regarding state income tax and deployment. Anyone care to explain how the Illinois state income tax works when you're deployed in the military?

Sure, happy to shed some light on this! When you're a military service member, your state income tax obligations will largely depend on your state of legal residency, which is often your home state.

Honing in on Illinois, a service member who declares Illinois as their home of record is categorized as an Illinois resident for tax purposes, no matter where the military duty station lies. However, the Illinois Income Tax Act allows sworn military personnel to exclude their military pay from Illinois gross income, if their duty status is deemed as "hostile". They define "hostile" as any duty in which an individual could receive hostile fire or imminent danger pay, in accordance with section 310 of Title 37 of the United States Code.

So, in layman's terms, if you're deployed in a location recognized as "hostile" by the military, your military pay should be exempt from Illinois state income tax. But the remaining portion, including all non-military income, could still be subject to Illinois state income tax.

As you can see, tax situations, especially those involving military service, can be complex. You would greatly benefit from consulting a tax professional who has experience in military tax situations to help navigate the specifics based on your personal circumstances.