States With Reciprocal Tax Agreements

A team of workers installing a new roof on a building

Reciprocal tax agreements allow residents of one state to work in another state without having income taxes withheld in the state they work in. The income they earn in their work state is taxed based on the tax rules of the state they reside in. As of 2024, 16 states—Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin—and the District of Columbia have reciprocal tax agreements in place.

If the state of your residence has a reciprocal agreement with the state you work in, you would not have to file nonresident state tax returns for your state of employment, assuming it follows all the rules. You can simply provide your employer with the required documents.

Reciprocity can greatly simplify tax time for people who live in one state but work in another, something that's relatively common among those who live near state lines. Numerous states have reciprocal agreements with others.

Key Takeaways

Reciprocal tax agreements allow residents of one state working in another state to pay taxes on their earned income based on the rules of the state of their residence.
Reciprocal tax agreements also mean that residents of one state working in another may not need to file separate tax returns if they provide correct documents to their employers.
All required forms are available on state websites. Your human resources department likely has the appropriate form on hand as well.
Taxes for your work state will be withheld from your pay if you fail to submit the form, but you won't lose the money. Your home state should provide that tax credit equal to the amount of tax you paid to your work state, even if it doesn't have reciprocity with that state.
Your other option is to file a nonresident return in the state where you work to claim a refund for the taxes that were withheld there.

The History of Double Taxation

The reciprocity rule deals with employees having to file two or more state tax returns: a resident return in the state where they live and nonresident returns in any other states where they might work. This ensures they can get back any taxes that were erroneously withheld. As a practical matter, federal law prohibits two states from taxing the same income.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled against double taxation in a case called Comptroller of the Treasury of Maryland v. Wynne in 2015, stating that two or more states are no longer permitted to tax the same earnings. But filing multiple returns might be necessary to be absolutely sure that you're not being taxed twice.

For example, New York can't tax you if you live in Connecticut but work in New York, and you pay taxes on that earned income to Connecticut. Connecticut is supposed to offer you a tax credit for any taxes you paid to the other state, or you can file a New York state tax return to claim a refund of taxes withheld there.

Note

You won't pay taxes on the same money twice, even if you don't live or work in any of the states with reciprocal agreements. You'll just have to spend a little more time preparing multiple state returns, and you'll have to wait for a refund for taxes unnecessarily withheld from your paychecks.

States With Reciprocal Agreements

The table below shows 16 states where nonresident workers who live in reciprocal states don't have to pay taxes. Washington, D.C., also has a reciprocity agreement with states.

State	Reciprocal Agreement States	Forms Required
Arizona	California, Indiana, Oregon, Virginia	Form WEC Withholding Exemption Certificate
District of Columbia	All nonresidents who work in the district can claim exemption from withholding for the District of Columbia income tax.	Form D-4A Certificate of Nonresidence in the District of Columbia
Illinois	Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Wisconsin	Form IL-W-5-NR Employee’s Statement of Nonresidence in Illinois
Indiana	Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin	Form WH-47 Certificate Residence
Iowa	Illinois	Form 44-016 Employee’s Statement of Nonresidence in Iowa
Kentucky	Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Virginia	Form 42A809 Certificate of Nonresidence
Maryland	District of Columbia, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia	Form MW 507
Michigan	Wisconsin, Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Ohio, Minnesota	Form MI-W4 Employee's Michigan Withholding Exemption certificate
Minnesota	Michigan, North Dakota	Form MWR Reciprocity Exemption/Affidavit of Residency
Montana	North Dakota	Form MW-4 Montana Employee’s Withholding Allowance and Exemption Certificate
New Jersey	Pennsylvania	Form NJ-165 Employee’s Certificate of Nonresidence In New Jersey
North Dakota	Minnesota, Montana	Form NDW-R Reciprocity exemption from withholding for qualifying Minnesota and Montana residents working in North Dakota
Ohio	Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania, West Virginia	Form IT-4NR Statement of Residency
Pennsylvania	Indiana, Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia	Form REV-419 Employee's Nonwithholding Application Certificate
Virginia	Kentucky, Maryland, District of Columbia, Pennsylvania, West Virginia	Form VA-4 Employee's Virginia Income Tax Withholding Exemption Certificate
West Virginia	Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia	Form WV/IT-104 West Virginia Employee Withholding Exemption Certificate
Wisconsin	Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan	Form W-220 Nonresident Employee's Withholding Reciprocity Declaration

How State Reciprocal Agreements Work

Arizona

Arizona has reciprocity with one neighboring state—California—as well as with Indiana, Oregon, and Virginia. File Form WEC, the Withholding Exemption Certificate, with your employer for an exemption from withholding.

Washington, D.C.

You don't have to file a tax return in Washington, D.C. if you work there and you're a resident of any other state. Submit exemption Form D-4A, the Certificate of Nonresidence in the District of Columbia, to your employer. Unfortunately, this only works in reverse with two states: Maryland and Virginia. You don't have to file a nonresident return in either of these states if you live in D.C. but work in either of these states.

Illinois

Submit exemption Form IL-W-5-NR to your employer if you work in Illinois and are a resident of Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, or Wisconsin.

Indiana

Indiana has reciprocity with Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Submit exemption Form WH-47 to your Indiana employer.

Iowa

Iowa has reciprocity with only one state: Illinois. Your employer doesn't have to withhold Iowa state income taxes from your wages if you work in Iowa and you're a resident of Illinois. Submit exemption Form 44-016 to your employer.

Kentucky

Kentucky has reciprocity with seven states. You can submit exemption Form 42A809 to your employer if you work here but you're a resident of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, or Wisconsin. Residents of Virginia must commute daily to qualify, however, and residents of Ohio can't be shareholders of 20% or more in an S corporation.

Maryland

Submit exemption Form MW 507 to your employer if you work in Maryland and are a resident of Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, or Washington, D.C.

Michigan

Michigan has reciprocal agreements with Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Submit exemption Form MI-W4 to your employer if you work in Michigan and live in any of these states.

Minnesota

Submit exemption Form MWR to your employer if you work in Minnesota and are a resident of Michigan or North Dakota.

Montana

Submit Form MW-4 to your employer if you work in Montana and are a resident of North Dakota.

New Jersey

You can submit Form NJ-165 to your employer if you live in Pennsylvania and work in New Jersey.

North Dakota

Submit exemption Form NDW-R to your employer if you work in North Dakota and are a resident of Minnesota or Montana.

Ohio

You can submit exemption Form IT-4NR to your employer if you work in Ohio and are a resident of Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania, or West Virginia.

Pennsylvania

Submit exemption Form REV-419 to your employer if you work in Pennsylvania but are a resident of Indiana, Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, Virginia, or West Virginia.

Virginia

Virginia has reciprocity with Kentucky, Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Submit exemption Form VA-4 to your Virginia employer if you live in one of these states and work in Virginia.

West Virginia

Submit exemption Form WV/IT-104 to your employer if you work in West Virginia and are a resident of Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, or Virginia.

Wisconsin

Submit exemption Form W-220 to your employer if you work in Wisconsin and are a resident of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, or Michigan.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What do you do if your state doesn't have tax reciprocity?

If your state doesn't have a reciprocal tax agreement with the state where you work, you will have taxes withheld in your work state. At tax time, you will have to file taxes in both states to sort out how much you owe or how much you'll be refunded from either state. When it's all settled, you still won't be taxed twice on your income.

What is a state reciprocity tax form?

In states that have reciprocal agreements, you can file an exemption with your employer so that you won't have taxes withheld in your work state. Make sure your employer is withholding taxes for your resident state, though.