1099 Contractor in New York with a West Virginia Client: Where Do You File?
Answer
Pay New York by instalments, and watch your West Virginia days. Reciprocity agreements do not help here: every one of them covers wage withholding, and a 1099 has no withholding to switch off. New York taxes the full profit, West Virginia taxes the on-site share, and the New York credit reconciles them.
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.
West Virginia publishes no de minimis day count or dollar floor for nonresidents. Any West 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 West Virginia Tax Division nonresident instructions before filing.
What you file
- 1Quarterly estimated payments · New York
Make quarterly estimated payments to New York State Department of Taxation and Finance on your full self-employment income — nothing is withheld from a 1099.
- 2Nonresident return · West VirginiaForm IT-140 with Schedule A
File a West Virginia nonresident return only if you performed services inside West Virginia. West Virginia publishes no de minimis day count or dollar floor for nonresidents. Any West 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 West Virginia Tax Division nonresident instructions before filing.
- 3Resident return · New YorkForm IT-112-R
File the New York resident return last and claim the credit for any tax paid to West Virginia.
The two states, side by side
| New York | West Virginia | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | Yes — graduated | Yes — graduated |
| Reciprocity partners | None | 5 (Form WV/IT-104) |
| Convenience rule | Yes — general rule | No |
| Nonresident return | Form IT-203 | Form IT-140 with Schedule A |
| Credit for other-state tax | Form IT-112-R | Schedule E (Form IT-140) |
| Nonresident safe harbour | None published | None published |
| Local income tax | Yes | Yes |
| Revenue department | New York State Department of Taxation and Finance | West Virginia Tax Division |
| Last verified |
The other direction
Reversing the commute does not always reverse the answer. Living in West Virginia and working in New York 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: New York → West VirginiaBoth states — credit offsets the double tax
- Remote worker: New York → West VirginiaHome state only
- Moved mid-year: New York → West VirginiaTwo part-year returns
Other New York pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in New York and my client is in West Virginia. Do I have to file a West Virginia tax return?
Pay New York by instalments, and watch your West Virginia days. Reciprocity agreements do not help here: every one of them covers wage withholding, and a 1099 has no withholding to switch off. New York taxes the full profit, West Virginia taxes the on-site share, and the New York credit reconciles them.
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 York and West Virginia hold an agreement makes no difference to a self-employed filer — sourcing rules decide the answer instead.
How current is this?
The New York and West Virginia rules on this page were last checked against New York State Department of Taxation and Finance and West Virginia Tax Division 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 York State Department of Taxation and Finance — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- West Virginia Tax Division — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07