1099 Contractor in Vermont with a Connecticut Client: Where Do You File?
Answer
Vermont always, Connecticut sometimes. With no withholding on a 1099 the whole tax is yours to manage: estimate to Vermont through the year, and file a Connecticut nonresident return for any income from work you physically performed in Connecticut, claiming the credit back on the Vermont return.
Last verified
The client's location is the wrong thing to track. What matters is where you were sitting when you did the work — which is why a contractor's exposure to Connecticut is measured in days on the ground rather than in invoices sent.
Connecticut publishes no de minimis day count or dollar floor for nonresidents. Any Connecticut-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 Connecticut Department of Revenue Services nonresident instructions before filing.
What you file
- 1Quarterly estimated payments · Vermont
Make quarterly estimated payments to Vermont Department of Taxes on your full self-employment income — nothing is withheld from a 1099.
- 2Nonresident return · ConnecticutForm CT-1040NR/PY
File a Connecticut nonresident return only if you performed services inside Connecticut. Connecticut publishes no de minimis day count or dollar floor for nonresidents. Any Connecticut-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 Connecticut Department of Revenue Services nonresident instructions before filing.
- 3Resident return · VermontSchedule IN-117
File the Vermont resident return last and claim the credit for any tax paid to Connecticut.
The two states, side by side
| Vermont | Connecticut | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | Yes — graduated | Yes — graduated |
| Reciprocity partners | None | None |
| Convenience rule | No | Only against convenience-rule states |
| Nonresident return | Form IN-111 with Schedule IN-113 | Form CT-1040NR/PY |
| Credit for other-state tax | Schedule IN-117 | Schedule 2 (Form CT-1040) |
| Nonresident safe harbour | None published | None published |
| Local income tax | No | No |
| Revenue department | Vermont Department of Taxes | Connecticut Department of Revenue Services |
| Last verified |
The other direction
Reversing the commute does not always reverse the answer. Living in Connecticut and working in Vermont 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: Vermont → ConnecticutBoth states — credit offsets the double tax
- Remote worker: Vermont → ConnecticutHome state only
- Moved mid-year: Vermont → ConnecticutTwo part-year returns
Other Vermont pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in Vermont and my client is in Connecticut. Do I have to file a Connecticut tax return?
Vermont always, Connecticut sometimes. With no withholding on a 1099 the whole tax is yours to manage: estimate to Vermont through the year, and file a Connecticut nonresident return for any income from work you physically performed in Connecticut, claiming the credit back on the Vermont 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 Vermont and Connecticut hold an agreement makes no difference to a self-employed filer — sourcing rules decide the answer instead.
How current is this?
The Vermont and Connecticut rules on this page were last checked against Vermont Department of Taxes and Connecticut Department of Revenue Services 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.
- Vermont Department of Taxes — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- Connecticut Department of Revenue Services — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07