Reciprocity state pair

Live in Kentucky, work in West Virginia

Reciprocity agreement: covered employee wages are subject to state income tax only in your home state. Give your employer the work state's exemption form and arrange home-state withholding. County and city taxes require a separate check.

By Abu HasnatPage updated Nov 7, 2026Data: Kentucky and West Virginia revenue departments (methodology)

Official tax guidance for both states

Check withholding, filing requirements and current forms with each state's tax agency.

Kentucky: Kentucky Department of Revenue (opens in new tab)
West Virginia: West Virginia Tax Division (opens in new tab)

Agency directory checked 2026-10-01 against the IRS state-government directory. This verifies the agency links, not an individual tax result. Use forms for the year you are filing.

Before you use this estimate

This model assumes a full-year resident of Kentucky, ordinary employee wages and all workdays physically in West Virginia. Check exemption eligibility before treating a work-state amount of $0 as your own result. Withholding is a prepayment, not final tax liability. Other income, a move during the year, remote work and separate local taxes or credits can change the result.

Wage-exemption conditions: A qualifying KY resident who remains a West Virginia nonresident and has only wages or salaries from West Virginia can claim the covered-wage withholding exemption. Give the employer WV/IT-104NR, the Certificate of Nonresidence on page 2 of the current WV IT-104 packet. Notify the employer when exemption status changes.

This pair's wage-exemption or credit guidance checked 2026-11-02. Individual return calculations and other source dates are separate.

I live inI work inAnnual wages ($)Filing status

State income tax: $3,382 a year

Modeled annual state income tax for living in Kentucky and working in West Virginia: about $3,382 on $100,000 of wages.

Conditions for this pair: A qualifying KY resident who remains a West Virginia nonresident and has only wages or salaries from West Virginia can claim the covered-wage withholding exemption. Give the employer WV/IT-104NR, the Certificate of Nonresidence on page 2 of the current WV IT-104 packet. Notify the employer when exemption status changes.

Official guidance (tax.wv.gov) (opens in new tab) · Official guidance (tax.wv.gov) (opens in new tab)

Tax guide and official sources: live in Kentucky, work in West Virginia

Official agency starting points: Kentucky tax agency (opens in new tab) · West Virginia tax agency (opens in new tab). These directory links identify the selected states' agencies, not your filing obligations. Check their individual-tax guidance and forms for the year you are filing.

Tax to West Virginia

nonresident

Tax to Kentucky

$3,382

resident

Total state tax

$3,382

Typical state returns

This is the usual filing pattern, not a determination that you must file. Filing thresholds, age or dependent status, other income and withholding refunds can change which returns you need.

How this $100,000 estimate adds up

These steps follow the selected home, work state, salary and filing status. They reconcile the model's annual liability, not the amounts withheld from your paycheck.

Modeled state income tax for Kentucky residence and West Virginia work
Step	West Virginia work state	Kentucky home state
Tax before the modeled other-state credit	$0	$3,382
Modeled other-state credit subtracted	$0	$0
Tax after that credit	$0	$3,382

Total: $0 + $3,382 = $3,382 a year. Amounts are rounded for display. Work-state wage exemptions, when applicable, are already reflected in the first row; they are not an other-state credit.

No other-state credit is subtracted in this selected scenario. Included county components stay in these amounts; excluded local taxes and credits stay excluded. Federal income tax, payroll programs and refund eligibility are outside this reconciliation.

State tax at different salaries

Wages	To WV	To KY	Modeled total	If you worked in KY
$50,000	$0	$1,632	$1,632	$1,632
$75,000	$0	$2,507	$2,507	$2,507
$100,000	$0	$3,382	$3,382	$3,382
$150,000	$0	$5,132	$5,132	$5,132
$250,000	$0	$8,632	$8,632	$8,632

Single filer, all wages earned in West Virginia, 2026 state tax rules, standard deductions. Local income taxes not included.

What to do

Reciprocity: A qualifying KY resident who remains a West Virginia nonresident and has only wages or salaries from West Virginia can claim the covered-wage withholding exemption. Give the employer WV/IT-104NR, the Certificate of Nonresidence on page 2 of the current WV IT-104 packet. Notify the employer when exemption status changes.
Keep a record of the days you work in each state, especially if you sometimes work from home.

Local income taxes

Kentucky: City/county occupational license taxes are levied by work location on residents and nonresidents alike (e.g., Louisville Metro ~2.2% combined, Lexington 2.25%), and are NOT covered by KY's state reciprocity agreements - OH/IN commuters into Louisville/Covington still pay them.

Frequently asked questions

Do I pay West Virginia income tax if I live in Kentucky?

If you qualify for the wage-reciprocity exemption, no West Virginia state income tax on covered employee wages: under reciprocity Kentucky taxes them. City and county taxes require a separate check. A qualifying KY resident who remains a West Virginia nonresident and has only wages or salaries from West Virginia can claim the covered-wage withholding exemption. Give the employer WV/IT-104NR, the Certificate of Nonresidence on page 2 of the current WV IT-104 packet. Notify the employer when exemption status changes.

Do I have to file taxes in both Kentucky and West Virginia?

Usually you file only one state return (a resident return in Kentucky), though some states still require a nonresident return to get a refund of any wrongly withheld tax.

Will I be taxed twice?

Not at the state level on covered wages: under reciprocity Kentucky taxes them, about $3,382 on $100,000 in this model. The estimate includes resident county tax where modeled; other local taxes or credits are separate.

Rules reviewed 2026-09-24 from state revenue departments and the Tax Foundation. Estimates only; confirm with each state's revenue department.