Who We Work With
CPA for Military Families in San Antonio
San Antonio is a military town. Between Lackland, Randolph, and Fort Sam Houston, a large share of the households here are dealing with tax questions that simply do not come up for civilians — and that most off-the-shelf software handles badly.
We prepare returns for active-duty, Guard, Reserve, and retired families around JBSA every season.
Who this is for
- Active-duty families stationed at or transferring through JBSA
- Spouses working across state lines or running a business from home
- Guard and Reserve members with civilian income alongside service pay
- Retirees and veterans settling in Texas after a career of moving
Residency is the question that matters most
Where you are stationed and where you are a legal resident are two different things, and the difference is worth real money. Under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, moving on orders does not by itself change a servicemember's state of legal residence.
Texas has no state income tax, which makes it a favourable state of legal residence to hold. Whether you can claim it, whether you should, and what it takes to establish it properly are questions worth getting right rather than guessing at.
Spouse income across state lines
Spouse employment is where military returns most often go wrong. The Military Spouses Residency Relief Act, as amended by the Veterans Benefits and Transition Act, gives military spouses options about which state they are treated as a resident of — options that a civilian preparer may not think to ask about.
Getting this wrong typically means paying income tax to a state that was never entitled to it, sometimes for several years running before anyone notices.
PCS moves and mid-year filing
A PCS move mid-year raises questions about part-year residency, whether a former state still has a claim on income earned before the move, and which moving costs are treatable.
Active-duty members moving under orders remain able to deduct qualifying moving expenses — an allowance that no longer applies to civilians. It is a genuine benefit and it is regularly missed.
Side businesses and Schedule C
Military households run a lot of small businesses — spouses with client work that travels between duty stations, members with consulting or trade income alongside service pay.
Those returns need Schedule C handled properly, self-employment tax accounted for, and quarterly estimates sized so April is not a shock. One long-standing client's review specifically cites Schedule C work alongside military considerations and rental property in the same return; that combination is routine here.
Common questions
- Do I have to change my state of legal residence when I PCS to Texas?
- No — a permanent change of station does not automatically change legal residence. Whether you should change it is a separate question, and given that Texas has no state income tax, it is one worth asking deliberately rather than by default.
- My spouse works in another state. Which state taxes that income?
- Possibly not the one you would expect. Federal law gives military spouses elections about residency that civilians do not have. This is the single most common place we find money left on the table.
- Is combat pay taxable?
- Qualifying combat zone pay is excluded from taxable income, though it can still be counted for certain credits — sometimes to your advantage. It is worth modelling both ways rather than assuming.
- Can you work with us after we transfer out of San Antonio?
- Yes. Most of our work happens through a secure portal, and a fair number of clients stay with us across multiple duty stations.
This page is general information, not individualised tax advice. Tax rules change and every situation differs — please speak with us before acting on anything here.