Vermont tax forms & filing.

Things to know about filing in Vermont

• Vermont taxes Social Security benefits for higher-income residents — one of a small number of states that taxes Social Security at the state level.
• Vermont has a Homestead Declaration and Property Tax Credit system that interacts with the income tax return — filers with a primary residence in Vermont need to declare the homestead annually, and a refundable property tax credit is available for residents meeting income limits.
• Vermont conforms broadly to federal AGI but with selective decoupling on certain provisions.
• Vermont has a state estate tax with a threshold below the federal threshold.

Vermont Homestead Declaration — annual filing for primary residents

Vermont requires residents with a primary residence in Vermont to file an annual Homestead Declaration alongside the income tax return. The declaration confirms the property is the filer's primary residence and is the gateway to several Vermont-resident benefits — most importantly the Property Tax Credit.

The Property Tax Credit is a refundable state credit for residents meeting income limits, calculated based on Vermont property taxes paid relative to household income. The credit can be substantial for moderate-income homeowners and is fully refundable.

Renters can also claim a Renter Rebate based on rent paid — a separate refundable credit calculated on Vermont's structure. Both the property tax credit and renter rebate require the homestead/renter declaration to be filed correctly. We confirm at intake.

Vermont taxes Social Security — like a handful of other states

Vermont taxes Social Security benefits at the state level for higher-income residents. A state-level subtraction phases out at defined income levels, so low- and moderate-income retirees often see most or all of their Social Security excluded.

Higher-income Vermont retirees pay state tax on the federally-taxable portion of Social Security. This is similar to Minnesota's treatment and contrasts with the more common state-level full exclusion.

The phase-out structure makes strategic withdrawal sequencing meaningful for Vermont retirees in the phase-out band — Roth conversion timing, capital gain harvesting, and IRA withdrawal cadence can shift Social Security taxability between years. We model this at intake.

Where's my refund?

The Vermont Department of Taxes runs the official refund-status tracker. You'll need your Social Security number, filing status, and exact refund amount (in some cases, the tax year and a return-amount input).

Check your Vermont refund status →

Multi-state considerations

If you lived or worked in more than one state during the tax year, you typically file a part-year resident return in each state. If you live in one state and work in another, you usually file as a resident where you live and as a nonresident in the work state — claiming a credit on the resident return for taxes paid to the work state. Reciprocity agreements between some neighboring states change this default; we map this out at intake.

Vermont-specific multi-state nuances are addressed in the quirks list above when they apply.

Get the current-year forms

State tax rates, brackets, and forms change every year. We point to the Vermont Department of Taxes as the authoritative source for current-year information. Form numbers above are stable; rates, deduction amounts, and credit limits are not — always verify before relying on a specific dollar amount.

Open the Vermont Department of Taxes website →