1099 Contractor in Arkansas with a Pennsylvania Client: Where Do You File?
Answer
Two possible returns, one certainty. The certainty is Arkansas, which taxes residents on all self-employment income and expects quarterly estimated payments. The possibility is Pennsylvania, which taxes nonresidents on services actually performed inside the state — invoices sent there do not count.
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 Pennsylvania is measured in days on the ground rather than in invoices sent.
Pennsylvania publishes no de minimis day count or dollar floor for nonresidents. Any Pennsylvania-source wage income above the state's general filing threshold requires a nonresident return, and that threshold is reset each year — check the current figure on the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue nonresident instructions before filing.
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 · PennsylvaniaForm PA-40 (nonresident)
File a Pennsylvania nonresident return only if you performed services inside Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania publishes no de minimis day count or dollar floor for nonresidents. Any Pennsylvania-source wage income above the state's general filing threshold requires a nonresident return, and that threshold is reset each year — check the current figure on the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue nonresident instructions before filing.
- 3Resident return · ArkansasForm AR1000TC
File the Arkansas resident return last and claim the credit for any tax paid to Pennsylvania.
The two states, side by side
| Arkansas | Pennsylvania | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | Yes — graduated | Yes — flat |
| Reciprocity partners | None | 6 (Form REV-419) |
| Convenience rule | No | Yes — general rule |
| Nonresident return | Form AR1000NR | Form PA-40 (nonresident) |
| Credit for other-state tax | Form AR1000TC | Schedule G-L |
| Nonresident safe harbour | None published | None published |
| Local income tax | No | Yes |
| Revenue department | Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration | Pennsylvania Department of Revenue |
| Last verified |
The other direction
Reversing the commute does not always reverse the answer. Living in Pennsylvania 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 → PennsylvaniaBoth states — credit offsets the double tax
- Remote worker: Arkansas → PennsylvaniaConvenience-of-the-employer rule — both states tax you
- Moved mid-year: Arkansas → PennsylvaniaTwo part-year returns
Other Arkansas pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in Arkansas and my client is in Pennsylvania. Do I have to file a Pennsylvania tax return?
Two possible returns, one certainty. The certainty is Arkansas, which taxes residents on all self-employment income and expects quarterly estimated payments. The possibility is Pennsylvania, which taxes nonresidents on services actually performed inside the state — invoices sent there do not count.
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 Pennsylvania hold an agreement makes no difference to a self-employed filer — sourcing rules decide the answer instead.
How current is this?
The Arkansas and Pennsylvania rules on this page were last checked against Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration and Pennsylvania Department of Revenue 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
- Pennsylvania Department of Revenue — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- Pennsylvania — Form REV-419accessed 2026-08-07
- Pennsylvania Personal Income Tax Guide — Income Subject to Tax Withholdingaccessed 2026-08-07