1099 Contractor in Illinois with a New York Client: Where Do You File?
Answer
Illinois taxes all of it; New York taxes only what you earn on its soil. Nothing is withheld from a 1099, so you pay Illinois quarterly. A New York client alone creates no New York filing obligation — performing services inside New York does, and Illinois 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.
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 · Illinois
Make quarterly estimated payments to Illinois Department of Revenue 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 · IllinoisSchedule CR
File the Illinois resident return last and claim the credit for any tax paid to New York.
The two states, side by side
| Illinois | New York | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | Yes — flat | Yes — graduated |
| Reciprocity partners | 4 (Form IL-W-5-NR) | None |
| Convenience rule | No | Yes — general rule |
| Nonresident return | Form IL-1040 with Schedule NR | Form IT-203 |
| Credit for other-state tax | Schedule CR | Form IT-112-R |
| Nonresident safe harbour | 30 days | None published |
| Local income tax | No | Yes |
| Revenue department | Illinois Department of Revenue | 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 Illinois 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: Illinois → New YorkBoth states — credit offsets the double tax
- Remote worker: Illinois → New YorkConvenience-of-the-employer rule — both states tax you
- Moved mid-year: Illinois → New YorkTwo part-year returns
Other Illinois pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in Illinois and my client is in New York. Do I have to file a New York tax return?
Illinois taxes all of it; New York taxes only what you earn on its soil. Nothing is withheld from a 1099, so you pay Illinois quarterly. A New York client alone creates no New York filing obligation — performing services inside New York does, and Illinois 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 Illinois 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 Illinois and New York rules on this page were last checked against Illinois Department of Revenue 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.
- Illinois Department of Revenue — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- New York State Department of Taxation and Finance — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07