The Schedule California 540 form is a crucial document used by California residents to report their state income tax adjustments. It allows taxpayers to reconcile their federal income with state-specific modifications, ensuring compliance with California tax laws. Understanding how to accurately complete this form is essential for effective tax preparation, so be sure to fill it out by clicking the button below.
The Schedule California 540 form is an essential document for residents of California who are filing their state income tax returns. This form allows taxpayers to report their income adjustments, which can significantly impact their overall tax liability. It consists of several sections that guide individuals through the process of calculating their taxable income based on their federal tax return. Taxpayers will find spaces to enter various types of income, such as wages, interest, dividends, and retirement distributions, as well as adjustments for specific deductions. For instance, adjustments can include educator expenses, health savings account deductions, and student loan interest deductions, among others. Additionally, the form provides a section for itemized deductions, allowing those who did not itemize on their federal return to do so for California purposes. Understanding the nuances of this form is crucial, as it helps ensure compliance with state tax laws while maximizing potential deductions and credits.
TAXABLE YEAR
SCHEDULE
2020 California Adjustments — Residents
CA (540)
Important: Attach this schedule behind Form 540, Side 5 as a supporting California schedule.
Name(s) as shown on tax return
SSN or ITIN
Part I
Income Adjustment Schedule
A
Federal Amounts
B
Subtractions
C
Additions
Section A – Income from federal Form 1040 or 1040-SR
(taxable amounts from
See instructions
your federal tax return)
1
Wages, salaries, tips, etc. See instructions before making an entry in column B or C . . .
. 1
2
Taxable interest. a
. . .
. .
. . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . .
2b
3
Ordinary dividends. See instructions. a
3b
4 IRA distributions. See instructions. a
4b
5 Pensions and annuities. See instructions. a
5b
6
Social security benefits. a
6b
7
Capital gain or (loss). See instructions
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Section B – Additional Income from federal Schedule 1 (Form 1040)
Taxable refunds, credits, or offsets of state and local income taxes
2a
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Alimony received. See instructions
. . . . . . . . . .Business income or (loss). See instructions
4
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Other gains or (losses)
5
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Rental real estate, royalties, partnerships, S corporations, trusts, etc
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Farm income or (loss)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Unemployment compensation
8
Other income.
a
California lottery winnings
e
NOL from FTB 3805Z,
b
Disaster loss deduction from FTB 3805V
3807, or 3809
c
Federal NOL (federal Schedule 1
f
Other (describe):
d
(Form 1040), line 8)
NOL deduction from FTB 3805V
g
Student loan discharged due to
{g
closure of a for-profit school
9
Total. Combine Section A, line 1 through line 7, and Section B, line 1 through line 8 in
column A. Add Section A, line 1 through line 7, and Section B, line 1 through line 8g in
column B and column C. Go to Section C
Section C – Adjustments to Income from federal Schedule 1 (Form 1040)
10 Educator expenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
11Certain business expenses of reservists, performing artists, and fee-basis
government officials
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
12
Health savings account deduction
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
13
Moving expenses. Attach federal Form 3903. See instructions . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
14
Deductible part of self-employment tax. See instructions
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
15
Self-employed SEP, SIMPLE, and qualified plans
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
16
Self-employed health insurance deduction. See instructions.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
17
Penalty on early withdrawal of savings
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
18a
Alimony paid. b Recipient’s:
SSN
–
Last name
19
IRA deduction
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
20
Student loan interest deduction
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
21
Tuition and fees
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
22Add line 10 through line 18a and line 19 through line 21 in columns A, B, and C.
See instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
23 Total. Subtract line 22 from line 9 in columns A, B, and C. See instructions . . . . . . . . . . 23
For Privacy Notice, get FTB 1131 ENG/SP.
7731203
Schedule CA (540) 2020 Side 1
Part II Adjustments to Federal Itemized Deductions
Check the box if you did NOT itemize for federal but will itemize for California . . . . . . . . .
AFederal Amounts (from federal Schedule A (Form 1040)
BSubtractions See instructions
CAdditions
Medical and Dental Expenses See instructions.
Medical and dental expenses
Enter amount from federal Form 1040 or 1040-SR, line 11
3 Multiply line 2 by 7.5% (0.075)
Subtract line 3 from line 1. If line 3 is more than line 1, enter 0
. 4
Taxes You Paid
5a State and local income tax or general sales taxes
5a
State and local real estate taxes
5c
State and local personal property taxes
5d
Add line 5a through line 5c
5e
Enter the smaller of line 5d or $10,000 ($5,000 if married filing separately) in column A . .
Enter the amount from line 5a, column B in line 5e, column B
Enter the difference from line 5d and line 5e, column A in line 5e, column C
Other taxes. List type
Add line 5e and line 6
Interest You Paid
8a Home mortgage interest and points reported to you on federal Form 1098 . . . . . . . . . . . 8a 8b Home mortgage interest not reported to you on federal Form 1098. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8b 8c Points not reported to you on federal Form 1098. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8c 8d Mortgage insurance premiums . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8d 8e Add line 8a through line 8d. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8e 9 Investment interest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 10 Add line 8e and line 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Gifts to Charity
11 Gifts by cash or check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 12 Other than by cash or check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 13 Carryover from prior year. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 14 Add line 11 through line 13 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Casualty and Theft Losses
15 Casualty or theft loss(es) (other than net qualified disaster losses). Attach federal
Form 4684. See instructions
Other Itemized Deductions
16 Other—from list in federal instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
17 Add lines 4, 7, 10, 14, 15, and 16 in columns A, B, and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
18 Total. Combine line 17 column A less column B plus column C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Side 2 Schedule CA (540) 2020
7732203
Job Expenses and Certain Miscellaneous Deductions
19Unreimbursed employee expenses - job travel, union dues, job education, etc.
Attach federal Form 2106 if required. See instructions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
20 Tax preparation fees. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
21 Other expenses - investment, safe deposit box, etc. List type
22 Add line 19 through line 21 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
23Enter amount from federal Form 1040 or 1040-SR, line 11
24 Multiply line 23 by 2% (0.02). If less than zero, enter 0. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
25 Subtract line 24 from line 22. If line 24 is more than line 22, enter 0. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
26
Total Itemized Deductions. Add line 18 and line 25
. . . . . . .
27
Other adjustments. See instructions. Specify.
28 Combine line 26 and line 27. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
29 Is your federal AGI (Form 540, line 13) more than the amount shown below for your filing status? Single or married/RDP filing separately . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $203,341 Head of household . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $305,016 Married/RDP filing jointly or qualifying widow(er) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $406,687
No. Transfer the amount on line 28 to line 29.
Yes. Complete the Itemized Deductions Worksheet in the instructions for Schedule CA (540), line 29 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
30 Enter the larger of the amount on line 29 or your standard deduction listed below
Single or married/RDP filing separately. See instructions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $4,601
Married/RDP filing jointly, head of household, or qualifying widow(er) . . . . . $9,202
Transfer the amount on line 30 to Form 540, line 18 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
This space reserved for 2D barcode
7733203
Schedule CA (540) 2020 Side 3
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