Live in North Dakota, Work Remotely for a Alaska Employer: Who Taxes You?
Answer
North Dakota gets all of it. Because Alaska does not tax wage income, no Alaska withholding exists and no Alaska return is required — but North Dakota taxes residents on worldwide income, so every dollar earned in Alaska still belongs on your North Dakota 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 North Dakota still taxes residents on income earned anywhere, so the full amount lands on your North Dakota return.
What you file
- 1Resident return · North Dakota
File a North Dakota resident return reporting all of your income.
The two states, side by side
| North Dakota | Alaska | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | Yes — graduated | No |
| Reciprocity partners | 2 (Form NDW-R) | None |
| Convenience rule | No | No |
| Nonresident return | Form ND-1 with Schedule ND-1NR | Not applicable |
| Credit for other-state tax | Schedule ND-1CR | No income tax |
| Nonresident safe harbour | None published | Not applicable |
| Local income tax | No | No |
| Revenue department | North Dakota Office of State Tax Commissioner | 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 North Dakota 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: North Dakota → AlaskaHome state only
- 1099 contractor: North Dakota → AlaskaHome state only — estimated payments
- Moved mid-year: North Dakota → AlaskaOne part-year return — the state you left
Other North Dakota pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in North Dakota and work remotely for a Alaska employer. Which state do I pay?
North Dakota gets all of it. Because Alaska does not tax wage income, no Alaska withholding exists and no Alaska return is required — but North Dakota taxes residents on worldwide income, so every dollar earned in Alaska still belongs on your North Dakota resident return.
Which state should my employer be withholding for?
North Dakota. Your employer should withhold North Dakota 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 North Dakota and Alaska rules on this page were last checked against North Dakota Office of State Tax Commissioner 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.
- North Dakota Office of State Tax Commissioner — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- Alaska Department of Revenue — Tax Division — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07