1099 Contractor in Arkansas with a New York Client: Where Do You File?
Answer
Arkansas always, New York sometimes. With no withholding on a 1099 the whole tax is yours to manage: estimate to Arkansas through the year, and file a New York nonresident return for any income from work you physically performed in New York, claiming the credit back on the Arkansas return.
Last verified
The client's location is the wrong thing to track. What matters is where you were sitting when you did the work — which is why a contractor's exposure to New York is measured in days on the ground rather than in invoices sent.
New York publishes no de minimis exemption from the nonresident return. There is a separate 14-day rule that relieves an employer from withholding for a nonresident expected to work 14 days or fewer in New York during the year — but that is a withholding convenience for the employer, not a filing exemption for the employee.
What you file
- 1Quarterly estimated payments · Arkansas
Make quarterly estimated payments to Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration on your full self-employment income — nothing is withheld from a 1099.
- 2Nonresident return · New YorkForm IT-203
File a New York nonresident return only if you performed services inside New York. New York publishes no de minimis exemption from the nonresident return. There is a separate 14-day rule that relieves an employer from withholding for a nonresident expected to work 14 days or fewer in New York during the year — but that is a withholding convenience for the employer, not a filing exemption for the employee.
- 3Resident return · ArkansasForm AR1000TC
File the Arkansas resident return last and claim the credit for any tax paid to New York.
The two states, side by side
| Arkansas | New York | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | Yes — graduated | Yes — graduated |
| Reciprocity partners | None | None |
| Convenience rule | No | Yes — general rule |
| Nonresident return | Form AR1000NR | Form IT-203 |
| Credit for other-state tax | Form AR1000TC | Form IT-112-R |
| Nonresident safe harbour | None published | None published |
| Local income tax | No | Yes |
| Revenue department | Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration | New York State Department of Taxation and Finance |
| Last verified |
The other direction
Reversing the commute does not always reverse the answer. Living in New York and working in Arkansas gives:Home state, plus the client state if you work there.
Same two states, different situation
The withholding answer turns on how you are paid and where the work happens, not only on which two states are involved.
- W-2 commuter: Arkansas → New YorkBoth states — credit offsets the double tax
- Remote worker: Arkansas → New YorkConvenience-of-the-employer rule — both states tax you
- Moved mid-year: Arkansas → New YorkTwo part-year returns
Other Arkansas pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in Arkansas and my client is in New York. Do I have to file a New York tax return?
Arkansas always, New York sometimes. With no withholding on a 1099 the whole tax is yours to manage: estimate to Arkansas through the year, and file a New York nonresident return for any income from work you physically performed in New York, claiming the credit back on the Arkansas return.
Do reciprocity agreements help a 1099 contractor?
No. Every state reciprocity agreement in the country is an arrangement about wage withholding between two revenue departments, and a 1099 has no withholding to switch off. Whether Arkansas and New York hold an agreement makes no difference to a self-employed filer — sourcing rules decide the answer instead.
How current is this?
The Arkansas and New York rules on this page were last checked against Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration and New York State Department of Taxation and Finance on 2026-08-07. We re-check the full grid every December after state legislative sessions close, and re-check the convenience-of-the-employer states quarterly because that is where the rules move fastest.
Sources
Every fact above comes from the revenue department that publishes the rule. We do not cite secondary summaries, and we do not restate a figure we could not find at source.
- Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- New York State Department of Taxation and Finance — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07