West Virginia tax forms & filing.

Things to know about filing in West Virginia

• West Virginia has reciprocity with Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia for wage income. Residents working in those states pay only WV tax on wages.
• West Virginia exempts Social Security benefits from state tax (phased in over multiple years to full exclusion). Other retirement income receives more limited treatment.
• West Virginia conforms broadly to federal AGI as the starting point, with selective decoupling on bonus depreciation and certain other federal provisions.

West Virginia reciprocity network — five states

West Virginia has wage-income reciprocity with Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. WV residents working in those states (and residents of those states working in WV) pay only their resident-state tax on wages — no nonresident return required.

This reciprocity network covers most of WV's likely cross-border patterns given the state's geography. Cross-border work with non-reciprocity neighbors (uncommon for WV) follows the standard nonresident-return + credit-for-tax-paid mechanics.

WV reciprocity is wages-only. Non-wage income (rental from out-of-state property, K-1 from out-of-state partnership) follows normal sourcing rules and requires a nonresident return in the source state.

West Virginia Social Security exclusion phase-in

West Virginia is phasing out the state-level tax on Social Security benefits via a multi-year exclusion phase-in. Each tax year, the percentage of Social Security excluded from WV taxable income increases, with full exclusion expected once the phase-in completes.

Practical effect: WV retirees see decreasing Social Security tax burden each year through the phase-in. The current-year exclusion percentage is set by the legislature and announced before filing season.

Until the phase-in completes, WV occupies a middle position — partially excluding Social Security but not yet at full exclusion. We apply the current-year percentage at filing rather than assuming continued partial inclusion.

Where's my refund?

The West Virginia Tax Division 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 West Virginia 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.

West Virginia-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 West Virginia Tax Division 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 West Virginia Tax Division website →