Moving states: how are your Google RSUs taxed?
By Vaibhav Goel, registered financial advisor (SEC record) · Formerly a product director at DoorDash, ex-Google, ex-Microsoft · LinkedIn
Updated September 17, 2026
Moving does not erase California’s claim on equity you earned there. California sources RSU compensation to where you worked over the grant-to-vest period, so a grant that vests after your move can still be partly California income.
What California still taxes after you move
California’s FTB sources RSU compensation to where you worked over the grant-to-vest period, which is why the move alone settles nothing.[14] The records matter more than the address on your next paycheck: keep grant dates, vest dates, residence dates, and where you actually worked — trips and remote weeks included — for every grant still open when you go.
| Planning area | What to review |
|---|---|
| Before the move | Record the move date, work arrangement, outstanding grants, and payroll changes. Whoever does your return needs to know both states’ rules. |
| While grants are open | Keep a workday and location record. Business trips and remote days count, not just your assigned office. |
| At vesting and sale | Source the compensation separately from the investment gain on a later sale, and check state withholding against reality. |
| At filing time | Bring both states’ payroll records, grant and vest dates, and the workday history to sort out filing obligations and credits. |
- What to review
- Record the move date, work arrangement, outstanding grants, and payroll changes. Whoever does your return needs to know both states’ rules.
- What to review
- Keep a workday and location record. Business trips and remote days count, not just your assigned office.
- What to review
- Source the compensation separately from the investment gain on a later sale, and check state withholding against reality.
- What to review
- Bring both states’ payroll records, grant and vest dates, and the workday history to sort out filing obligations and credits.
A grant that straddles the move, tranche by tranche
California sources each vest by the share of the grant-to-vest period you worked in California, so one grant can carry four different answers. An illustration with stated assumptions: 1,000 units granted January 1, 2025, vesting 250 a year each January 1 from 2026 to 2029; you work in California until June 30, 2026 and in Washington from July 1, 2026; months stand in for workdays.[14]
| Tranche | California share of grant-to-vest | California-source |
|---|---|---|
| Vests January 1, 2026 | 12 of 12 months in California | 100% |
| Vests January 1, 2027 | 18 of 24 months in California | 75% |
| Vests January 1, 2028 | 18 of 36 months in California | 50% |
| Vests January 1, 2029 | 18 of 48 months in California | 37.5% |
- California share of grant-to-vest
- 12 of 12 months in California
- California-source
- 100%
- California share of grant-to-vest
- 18 of 24 months in California
- California-source
- 75%
- California share of grant-to-vest
- 18 of 36 months in California
- California-source
- 50%
- California share of grant-to-vest
- 18 of 48 months in California
- California-source
- 37.5%
Arithmetic on the FTB’s method with assumed dates; your own count uses actual workdays, including trips and remote days, and your grant’s own schedule. Washington then taxes none of the compensation, though its capital gains excise tax can reach a later sale.
The question to ask in a move year
“For each grant that vests after my move, which service period and which work locations count?” That gets you further than assuming the new state settles it.
Two destinations worth a closer look
Seattle or Kirkland. Washington has no income tax but does have a capital gains excise tax: 7% on taxable Washington capital gains up to $1 million and 9.9% above that, starting with tax year 2025, after a standard deduction. It applies to the gain when you sell, not to the compensation at vesting.[27]
New York. The state answered this one in a 2024 advisory opinion. RSUs granted to someone while a nonresident, but recognized in February 2019 after the petitioner became a New York resident in October 2018, were New York income in full: New York sources RSU compensation by your resident status at the moment the income is recognized for federal tax, not by where the grant was earned. So a grant from your California years can enter a New York return entirely if it vests after the move, and the relief comes from credits for tax paid to the other state, which you have to claim.[28]
Sources for this section
A common question
Can moving out of California eliminate California tax on my Google RSUs?
Not on its own. California sources RSU compensation to where you worked between grant and vest, so a grant that vests after the move can still be partly California income. Keep grant, vesting, residence, and work-location records for every grant still open when you go.
Connect this to your wider plan
Meet your financial advisor
Simple Money Advisors LLC is a California state-registered investment adviser.
Vaibhav Goel
Co-founder of Simple Money · Registered financial advisor · SEC record
Investment adviser representative, registered with the State of California.
Vaibhav spent fifteen years building products at Google, DoorDash and Microsoft before becoming a licensed advisor. He works with people in tech on the whole picture, equity, taxes, investments and cash flow, as one plan rather than four.
Vaibhav Goel on LinkedInA complimentary conversation about your goals and whether our services are the right fit. No obligation.