1099 Contractor in New Hampshire with a North Carolina Client: Where Do You File?
Answer
One state at most. New Hampshire does not tax earned income; North Carolina does, but only what is sourced to North Carolina. For a contractor working entirely from New Hampshire, that source amount is normally zero regardless of where the invoices are sent.
Last verified
The most common contractor worry — that invoicing an out-of-state client creates a filing obligation there — is usually unfounded. What creates the obligation is physical presence, and New Hampshire residents have no home-state return in any case.
North Carolina publishes no de minimis day count or dollar floor for nonresidents. Any North Carolina-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 North Carolina Department of Revenue nonresident instructions before filing.
What you file
- 1Nonresident return · North CarolinaForm D-400 with Schedule PN
File a North Carolina nonresident return only for income from services you physically performed in North Carolina. New Hampshire does not tax wage or self-employment income.
The two states, side by side
| New Hampshire | North Carolina | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | No | Yes — flat |
| Reciprocity partners | None | None |
| Convenience rule | No | No |
| Nonresident return | Not applicable | Form D-400 with Schedule PN |
| Credit for other-state tax | No income tax | Form D-400TC |
| Nonresident safe harbour | Not applicable | None published |
| Local income tax | No | No |
| Revenue department | New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration | North Carolina Department of Revenue |
| Last verified |
The other direction
Reversing the commute does not always reverse the answer. Living in North Carolina and working in New Hampshire gives:Home state only — estimated payments.
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: New Hampshire → North CarolinaWork state only
- Remote worker: New Hampshire → North CarolinaNo state income tax on your wages
- Moved mid-year: New Hampshire → North CarolinaOne part-year return — the state you moved to
Other New Hampshire pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in New Hampshire and my client is in North Carolina. Do I have to file a North Carolina tax return?
One state at most. New Hampshire does not tax earned income; North Carolina does, but only what is sourced to North Carolina. For a contractor working entirely from New Hampshire, that source amount is normally zero regardless of where the invoices are sent.
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 New Hampshire and North Carolina hold an agreement makes no difference to a self-employed filer — sourcing rules decide the answer instead.
How current is this?
The New Hampshire and North Carolina rules on this page were last checked against New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration and North Carolina 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.
- New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- North Carolina Department of Revenue — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07