1099 Contractor in Arkansas with a Virginia Client: Where Do You File?
Answer
Arkansas taxes all of it; Virginia taxes only what you earn on its soil. Nothing is withheld from a 1099, so you pay Arkansas quarterly. A Virginia client alone creates no Virginia filing obligation — performing services inside Virginia does, and Arkansas then credits that tax.
Last verified
Reciprocity agreements are the first thing contractors ask about and the first thing that does not apply to them. Every agreement in the country is a wage-withholding arrangement, and a 1099 has no withholding to switch off.
Virginia publishes no de minimis day count or dollar floor for nonresidents. Any Virginia-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 Virginia Department of Taxation 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 · VirginiaForm 763
File a Virginia nonresident return only if you performed services inside Virginia. Virginia publishes no de minimis day count or dollar floor for nonresidents. Any Virginia-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 Virginia Department of Taxation nonresident instructions before filing.
- 3Resident return · ArkansasForm AR1000TC
File the Arkansas resident return last and claim the credit for any tax paid to Virginia.
The two states, side by side
| Arkansas | Virginia | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | Yes — graduated | Yes — graduated |
| Reciprocity partners | None | 5 (Form VA-4) |
| Convenience rule | No | No |
| Nonresident return | Form AR1000NR | Form 763 |
| Credit for other-state tax | Form AR1000TC | Schedule OSC |
| Nonresident safe harbour | None published | None published |
| Local income tax | No | No |
| Revenue department | Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration | Virginia Department of Taxation |
| Last verified |
The other direction
Reversing the commute does not always reverse the answer. Living in Virginia 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 → VirginiaBoth states — credit offsets the double tax
- Remote worker: Arkansas → VirginiaHome state only
- Moved mid-year: Arkansas → VirginiaTwo part-year returns
Other Arkansas pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in Arkansas and my client is in Virginia. Do I have to file a Virginia tax return?
Arkansas taxes all of it; Virginia taxes only what you earn on its soil. Nothing is withheld from a 1099, so you pay Arkansas quarterly. A Virginia client alone creates no Virginia filing obligation — performing services inside Virginia does, and Arkansas then credits that tax.
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 Virginia hold an agreement makes no difference to a self-employed filer — sourcing rules decide the answer instead.
How current is this?
The Arkansas and Virginia rules on this page were last checked against Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration and Virginia Department of Taxation 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
- Virginia Department of Taxation — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- Virginia — Form VA-4accessed 2026-08-07
- Virginia Tax — Reciprocityaccessed 2026-08-07