Moving to New Jersey From New York: What Changes for Your Taxes Car and Commute

Moving from New York to the Jersey Shore changes four things right away: your license and car move to New Jersey within 60 days, you become a New Jersey taxpayer on the day you move, your commute runs on NJ TRANSIT or a ferry, and your home comes with a local property tax bill set by your town. If you keep working in New York, New York still taxes that income, and New Jersey gives residents a credit for income tax paid to another state, up to set limits.

I'm Dennis Mark Interdonato with The Dennis Mark Group. Here's what changes, using the State's own guidance.

How do you switch your license and car from New York?

The NJ MVC gives new residents 60 days from the move, or until the current license or registration expires if that's sooner, to transfer both. You can do them together in one out-of-state transfer appointment.

• License: If your New York license is valid, non-provisional and in good standing, the knowledge and road tests are waived. The transfer permit is $10, you surrender your New York license, and you get a four-year New Jersey license.
• Car: Bring the original title, New Jersey insurance information and the MVC's title and registration forms. The title fee is $60, or $85 with one lien. If the car is financed or leased, the lender has to release the title to the MVC first.
• Insurance: Every car registered in New Jersey needs liability, personal injury protection and uninsured motorist coverage (NJ MVC).

The step-by-step versions are in transferring an out-of-state license and registering an out-of-state car.

How does income tax work if you live in New Jersey and work in New York?

Two states are involved, and they each have a role. New York taxes the income you earn there, and the NJ Division of Taxation's bulletin on the credit for taxes paid to other jurisdictions points New Jersey residents to New York's nonresident return, Form IT-203, for that income. On the New Jersey side, residents who paid income tax both to New Jersey and to another state in the same year may be eligible for a credit against what they owe New Jersey (NJ Division of Taxation, GIT-3W).

The bulletin says the credit is meant to minimize double taxation. It's the lesser of the New Jersey tax you would have paid if that income had been earned in New Jersey or the tax you actually paid to the other state, and it's subject to a proportional limit. You claim it on Schedule NJ-COJ. For New York income, the bulletin says to use only the income New York actually taxed.

That's the framework. Your actual numbers belong with a tax professional who handles New York and New Jersey returns.

What about the year you move?

That year, New Jersey treats you as a part-year resident. The NJ Division of Taxation says part-year residents file the regular Form NJ-1040, show their period of New Jersey residency, and report only the income received while they lived here. If you had New Jersey-source income before you moved in, you may also file a nonresident return, Form NJ-1040NR.

New Jersey decides residency by your domicile, the place you consider your permanent home. The Division looks at your intent, where you vote, your driver's license and car registration, and other factors (GIT-6). That's one more reason to get the license, registration and voter registration done early. More in how to establish residency in New Jersey.

How does the commute change?

From the Jersey Shore, the train into the city is NJ TRANSIT's North Jersey Coast Line to New York Penn Station. NJ TRANSIT says it runs direct from Long Branch at all times, and direct from the stations between Bay Head and Long Branch during weekday peak periods (NJ TRANSIT). Seastreak runs ferries from Atlantic Highlands and Highlands to Manhattan, and NJ TRANSIT buses run to the Port Authority Bus Terminal.

I go through every option, and how to test one before you buy, in commuting to NYC from the Jersey Shore.

What's different about owning a home here?

• Property taxes are local. Each town's tax rate comes from its own budget, its schools and its share of county costs (NJ Division of Taxation). The State's 2025 data puts the average residential property tax, before credits and deductions, at about $11,830 in Monmouth County and about $8,167 in Ocean County (NJ DCA). See how to compare property taxes between towns.
• There's an attorney review period. A New Jersey contract prepared by a real estate licensee isn't final for three business days, so an attorney for either side can review and disapprove it. Read what attorney review is before you make an offer.
• Towns are small and separate. Monmouth County has 53 municipalities and Ocean County has 33, each with its own government and services.

Where do buyers from New York usually start looking?

It depends on how often you'll be in the city. If it's daily, I start with the direct-train towns like Red Bank and Middletown, and the ferry towns like Atlantic Highlands. If it's a few days a week or less, the map opens up to the beach towns south of Long Branch and to Ocean County. The Monmouth vs. Ocean County comparison helps you narrow it.

And one thing I tell everyone coming from the city: visit in the off-season too. You're buying a place to live twelve months a year, so see it in February as well as July.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I pay income tax to both New York and New Jersey?

If you live in New Jersey and work in New York, New York taxes the income you earn there, and New Jersey may give you a credit for that tax, up to set limits, on Schedule NJ-COJ. A tax professional should run your numbers.

Do I have to give up my New York driver's license?

Yes. The NJ MVC says you surrender your out-of-state license when you get your New Jersey license.

Can I keep my New York car registration after moving to New Jersey?

No. The NJ MVC says new residents have 60 days to transfer their vehicle title and registration, or less if the current registration expires first.

Can I commute from the Jersey Shore to Manhattan by train?

Yes, on NJ TRANSIT's North Jersey Coast Line to New York Penn Station. Direct trains run from Long Branch at all times and from the stations south of it during weekday peak periods.

This is general information, not legal, tax or lending advice. Talk to a tax professional who prepares New York and New Jersey returns about your own situation.

About the author

Dennis Mark Interdonato is a REALTOR® and Master CDRE® who leads The Dennis Mark Group at Keller Williams Realty Ocean Living in Point Pleasant, NJ, helping buyers and sellers throughout New Jersey make their next move, with Monmouth and Ocean County as home base. Read more about Dennis Mark.

Keep reading

• How Dennis Mark helps buyers relocating to the Jersey Shore and the relocation guide
• Moving to Red Bank, New Jersey
• Own a New Jersey home already? Get a free home value.
• Have a question this didn't answer? Send it to Dennis Mark and it may become the next article.