1099 Contractor in North Dakota with a Missouri Client: Where Do You File?
Answer
The client's location does not decide this. Self-employment income from personal services is sourced to where the work happens, so working from North Dakota keeps it North Dakota-source and North Dakota-taxed. Travel to Missouri to work and that portion becomes Missouri-source, needing a Missouri nonresident return.
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.
Missouri publishes no de minimis day count or dollar floor for nonresidents. Any Missouri-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 Missouri Department of Revenue nonresident instructions before filing.
What you file
- 1Quarterly estimated payments · North Dakota
Make quarterly estimated payments to North Dakota Office of State Tax Commissioner on your full self-employment income — nothing is withheld from a 1099.
- 2Nonresident return · MissouriForm MO-1040 with Form MO-NRI
File a Missouri nonresident return only if you performed services inside Missouri. Missouri publishes no de minimis day count or dollar floor for nonresidents. Any Missouri-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 Missouri Department of Revenue nonresident instructions before filing.
- 3Resident return · North DakotaSchedule ND-1CR
File the North Dakota resident return last and claim the credit for any tax paid to Missouri.
The two states, side by side
| North Dakota | Missouri | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | Yes — graduated | Yes — graduated |
| Reciprocity partners | 2 (Form NDW-R) | None |
| Convenience rule | No | No |
| Nonresident return | Form ND-1 with Schedule ND-1NR | Form MO-1040 with Form MO-NRI |
| Credit for other-state tax | Schedule ND-1CR | Form MO-CR |
| Nonresident safe harbour | None published | None published |
| Local income tax | No | Yes |
| Revenue department | North Dakota Office of State Tax Commissioner | Missouri Department of Revenue |
| Last verified |
The other direction
Reversing the commute does not always reverse the answer. Living in Missouri and working in North Dakota 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: North Dakota → MissouriBoth states — credit offsets the double tax
- Remote worker: North Dakota → MissouriHome state only
- Moved mid-year: North Dakota → MissouriTwo part-year returns
Other North Dakota pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in North Dakota and my client is in Missouri. Do I have to file a Missouri tax return?
The client's location does not decide this. Self-employment income from personal services is sourced to where the work happens, so working from North Dakota keeps it North Dakota-source and North Dakota-taxed. Travel to Missouri to work and that portion becomes Missouri-source, needing a Missouri nonresident return.
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 North Dakota and Missouri hold an agreement makes no difference to a self-employed filer — sourcing rules decide the answer instead.
How current is this?
The North Dakota and Missouri rules on this page were last checked against North Dakota Office of State Tax Commissioner and Missouri 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.
- North Dakota Office of State Tax Commissioner — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- Missouri Department of Revenue — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07