Live in Michigan, Work Remotely for a Alaska Employer: Who Taxes You?
Answer
Michigan gets all of it. Because Alaska does not tax wage income, no Alaska withholding exists and no Alaska return is required — but Michigan taxes residents on worldwide income, so every dollar earned in Alaska still belongs on your Michigan resident return.
Last verified
The instinct that working in a no-tax state means paying no tax is the single most expensive misunderstanding in this niche. Alaska takes nothing, but Michigan still taxes residents on income earned anywhere, so the full amount lands on your Michigan return.
What you file
- 1Resident return · Michigan
File a Michigan resident return reporting all of your income.
The two states, side by side
| Michigan | Alaska | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | Yes — flat | No |
| Reciprocity partners | 6 (Form MI-W4) | None |
| Convenience rule | No | No |
| Nonresident return | Form MI-1040 with Schedule NR | Not applicable |
| Credit for other-state tax | Form MI-1040 (credit for income tax imposed by another state) | No income tax |
| Nonresident safe harbour | None published | Not applicable |
| Local income tax | Yes | No |
| Revenue department | Michigan Department of Treasury | Alaska Department of Revenue — Tax Division |
| Last verified |
The other direction
Reversing the commute does not always reverse the answer. Living in Alaska and working in Michigan gives:No state income tax on your wages.
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: Michigan → AlaskaHome state only
- 1099 contractor: Michigan → AlaskaHome state only — estimated payments
- Moved mid-year: Michigan → AlaskaOne part-year return — the state you left
Other Michigan pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in Michigan and work remotely for a Alaska employer. Which state do I pay?
Michigan gets all of it. Because Alaska does not tax wage income, no Alaska withholding exists and no Alaska return is required — but Michigan taxes residents on worldwide income, so every dollar earned in Alaska still belongs on your Michigan resident return.
Which state should my employer be withholding for?
Michigan. Your employer should withhold Michigan tax rather than Alaska tax on these wages. If a Alaska line is showing on your pay stub, raise it with payroll now rather than at filing time.
How current is this?
The Michigan and Alaska rules on this page were last checked against Michigan Department of Treasury and Alaska Department of Revenue — 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.
- Michigan Department of Treasury — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- Alaska Department of Revenue — Tax Division — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07